Chelsea v Swansea reaction

Sunday's defeat at Manchester United had seen £50million man Torres score for only the second time in his Blues career before producing one of the worst open-goal gaffes in Premier League history. And he found the net against Swansea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday with another fine finish before being sent off for inexplicably diving in studs first on Mark Gower. Chelsea boss Villas-Boas had no complaints with referee Mike Dean's decision to brandish the red card but revealed he would not be seeking an apology from his player. "There's nothing to apologise for," Villas-Boas said. "It's the referee's decision." Admitting it was a "good decision" by Dean, he added: "It's part of the nature of the game, and the referee has decided on that. "It's a pity because the spectacle was promising." Torres' dismissal did not prove costly, with Chelsea running out 4-1 winners at the Bridge to get their title challenge back on track after their controversial defeat against United. "With 10 men, we never lost our will to continue to attack and I think it paid off," said Villas-Boas, whose side also played for more than 70 minutes of Wednesday night's Carling Cup win over Fulham a man short. "It was an important win for us based on the last defeat at Old Trafford and showing resilience in the end again after Wednesday." He added: "It really shows the nature and commitment of these players towards their objectives." Chelsea were already 2-0 up when Torres saw red, Ramires scoring the first of a double as the 10 men more than held on. Ashley Williams nodded in his first ever Premier League goal for Swansea before Didier Drogba netted his first of the season after marking his comeback from a sickening head injury with an 11-minute cameo. The other major talking point on Saturday was Villas-Boas' decision to start with Frank Lampard on the bench for the second successive game. The midfielder did come on and play most of the Fulham match but it appears, at 33, he is being held back more than ever for the big fixtures. Asked if Lampard was happy with his lot, Villas-Boas replied: "I don't know but this is nothing to speculate about. "The players just want the team to perform and Frank is like that. "He's a magnificent player and soon he'll be back into the team, sooner than you expect." Swansea boss Brendan Rodgers, who spent four years as Chelsea reserve-team manager, dismissed suggestions Lampard's omission was further evidence his powers were on the wane. "I only assume that there's a mind looking towards the Valencia game," he said. "When Frank's not in the team, it certainly helps us, because he's a player who can score goals, that can continue to score goals. "I think he'll end up like one of those players like (Javier) Zanetti at Inter Milan, who just keeps going. "He may need to change positions as he gets older but Frank Lampard will continue to score goals. "He's still got big ambitions to play and I'm sure he'll continue to do that." Rodgers was also confident Torres had not intended to hurt Gower with his challenge. "I don't think he's a malicious player," he said. "It's one where the ball's just got away from Gower. "He probably feels it's there to be won and he's trying to show his intention at the moment that he's fighting for everything." The Swans boss had no complaints with today's outcome. "To be fair, the best team won, so I'm not going to sit here and say that we deserved to win the game," he said. "Very proud players yet again. "We made a terrific start to the match, opening 10-11 minutes, showed our confidence. "Then the first goal rocked us back a wee bit. "Second half, we came out again and looked to get on the ball. "We're disappointed probably with our finally ball and the goals we conceded today. "But it's congratulations to Chelsea. "They need to win these types of games to push on and, for us, we'll have a great experience from it."