Let's applaud Mourinho's Chelsea and not demean them

The fashionable thing is to demean overtly defensive tactics, belittle teams that operate in such a fashion and use the phrase “parking the bus” as though it is morally destitute to be so negative.

Let’s not forget though that Helenio Herrera’s Internazionale won three league titles and two European Cups in the 1960s by operating with a highly sophisticated, as well as highly defensive, strategy. In those distant times people rather swooned over its brilliance. They called it “catenaccio”, which as ever with Italian words sounds infinitely more romantic than its English translation, “door bolt”.

Catenaccio was actually positionally different from Chelsea’s hyper-defensive approach used successfully twice in a week against Atletico Madrid and then Liverpool. In the 1960s, playing a sweeper behind the back four was in vogue - and the goalkeeper could pick up back passes, which made life easier. What Chelsea do is play a regular back four while ensuring the full-backs are old-fashioned blocking full-backs rather than Roberto Carlos-style steam trains zooming up and down the flanks. They suck midfielders back to fill in extra space between the defenders and also operate an auxiliary shield in front.

At times, when patiently defending one impotent Liverpool attack after another on Sunday, they played a line of three in front of six defenders. Liverpool were outmanoeuvred and perplexed, and so was their manager. There was also a modicum of time-wasting by Chelsea, but these things are to be expected.

Everything worked perfectly for Chelsea and Jose Mourinho, whose careworn appearance of late may have deceived people into believing he had given up on silverware this season. There were so many outstanding performances from his side. Nemanja Matic was excellent and none of the back five - reserve goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer and the four defenders in front of him who included the rookie, Tomas Kalas - appeared to make a single error between them.

It is unusual to defend as perfectly as that, but Chelsea managed it, just as they had against Atletico - and as they famously did in the second half against Barcelona in the 2012 Champions League semi-final (second leg) at the Nou Camp. Yes, it was under a different manager on that last occasion, and with all sorts of different players across the three games, but there is something about the modern Chelsea that lends itself well to putting defence first - and why would any team not want to focus on its strengths?

Having won 11 straight games in the league, a draw was never on Liverpool’s agenda, let alone a 0-0 stalemate. But there was only one moment you could call a clear-cut chance in the first half, and it fell to the central defender Mamadou Sakho, who skied the ball in ungainly fashion. Approaching half time, Liverpool were growing frustrated and when Steven Gerrard took his eye off a simply pass from Sakho that slid under his studs, he compounded the gaffe by slipping in vain pursuit of Demba Ba, who suddenly had a clear run on goal. Ba finished adroitly, sliding his shot between the legs of Simon Mignolet.

Liverpool could have accepted Chelsea’s tactics and mentally backed off, implicitly accepting a draw which would have kept the title in the Reds’ hands. If they had done, Gerrard, his mind spinning with exasperation, might not have been plotting another attack deep in first-half injury time when making the hideous error that effectively turned the title climax on its head.

And so, as the second half started, Mourinho had Liverpool exactly where he wanted them. He had already banked the one goal he had hoped to garner from a rogue breakaway and could continue with an identical strategy to that which he had employed in the first half. Gerrard, inevitably desperate to atone for his error, launched a salvo of long-range shots which Schwarzer calmly dealt with. The 41-year-old keeper also saved well from Joe Allen and Luis Suarez. Liverpool couldn’t aim at the corners of the goal because everywhere there were defenders perfectly positioned to block.

Long before the final exchanges it was pretty obvious this wasn’t going to be Liverpool’s day, and then the final ignominy - their ex-player Fernando Torres charging at goal with the ball at his feet before sidefooting to Willian to pop it into the empty net.

Moments later, Manchester City kicked off their match against the second most in-form team in the league, Crystal Palace. With the cards having fallen delightfully into place, they looked psychologically refreshed and scored within four minutes at Selhurst Park. The newly fit Yaya Toure provided a fine assist for Edin Dzeko’s opener, and Toure’s perfectly struck long-range drive wrapped up a 2-0 win.

The title has not yet swung inexorably in City’s favour, but Liverpool will be pleading for a favour from their Merseyside rivals Everton next weekend when they host Pellegrini’s men. Those who believe the pendulum has swung for a final time will now be backing City to come out of this tumultous season with the big prize. Assuming they need something from their final game - a home fixture against an ill-at-ease West Ham - you’d expect the experience of the dramatic 2012 finale to stand them in good stead. As for Liverpool, the worst thing they can do is dwell on Sunday’s defeat. Six points from the last two games could yet prove enough.