Stoke 3 - Chelsea 2: Assaidi the hero given orders to win from Mark Hughes

SUPERSUB Oussama Assaidi might get a call from Brendan Rodgers after his last-gasp heroics sunk Chelsea.

CHEST THE JOB: Assaidi whips his shirt off to celebrate his stunning winner [ACTION]

“We were well in control for the first 20 to 25 minutes and we thought it was going to be a very easy game”

John Obi Mikel

The Moroccan, who is on loan from Liverpool, torpedoed Jose Mourinho's stars with a last-minute stunner.
You could feel the shockwaves at the stunned Britannia Stadium, so little surprise then that they were felt as far away as Merseyside.
The 25-year-old clinched victory with an absolute belter, a longrange rocket that flew past Petr Cech into the far corner.

He had come on only six minutes earlier with special instructions from Stoke boss Mark Hughes.
Assaidi said: "He knows my quality I think, because before I went on the pitch he told me, 'Go and win us the game'.

"He knows what I can do. I'm very happy for this confidence but I really want to start games.
"Brendan Rodgers texts me sometimes. I speak with him occasionally but we will see what the future brings. I hope I have a future at Liverpool."


Stoke's real star of the show was enigmatic midfield ace Stephen Ireland who transformed the game when he came on to replace the injured Charlie Adam early in the first half.

He gave Stoke a shock lead with a beautifully taken curling shot and though Andre Schurrle equalised with his second goal of the game, Ireland was determined to have the last word after missing a great chance.
He prodded the ball into the path of Assaidi, who clinched three points that had looked beyond them. But after Schurrle had put Chelsea in front after just 10 minutes, the smart money was on a heavy defeat for the Potters.
But Chelsea inexplicably took their foot off the gas, seemed to think victory was inevitable and paid a heavy price for it when Peter Crouch equalised minutes before half-time.


Chelsea star John Obi Mikel candidly admitted that maybe his side had been guilty of overconfidence.
Mikel said: "We were well in control for the first 20 to 25 minutes and we thought it was going to be a very easy game. We conceded the first goal and then we had to fight for it.
Barge "I think we eased off a bit. We came back again and then because we were pushing to win, it left a little space and they got the winner."

CLAPPED OFF: Mourinho applauds as Stoke celebrate behind him [GETTY]

England defender Gary Cahill felt the turning point was referee Jonathan Moss not pulling up Walters for a barge on Cesar Azpilicueta which led to Stoke's second goal.

Cahill said: "I thought we were in control early on so that's very disappointing.
"The turning point was the second goal. I thought it was a foul on Cesar. That's the way I saw it and it was such a big turning point.

"It was one of those headers you had to win, otherwise they were through. I felt Walters just looked at the player rather than the ball and just nudged him for the foul so it should have been a free-kick."
"We did enough to win the game, but we've ended up losing it. When it's at 2-2, it swings either way and we've got to push for the win because we need to try and get the three points. But it opens you up a little bit and that's what happens.

"You're obviously disappointed when you let goals in. Okay, maybe the third goal, where you just have to hold your hands up and say it's a great finish, but the others ..." Chelsea boss Mourinho is raging about the fact his strikers just can't find the net but it was keeper Cech who was responsible for them losing the lead.
He came out to meet a corner from Marco Arnautovic and changed his mind, allowing Crouch to cash in with a close range shot.

Chelsea were also unlucky when Schurrle hit the bar with a venomous right foot shot but, make no mistake, they brought defeat on themselves.
What should have been a comfortable win turned into a nightmare because Stoke dug in and then decided to slug it out with Mourinho's boys.
Not even Assaidi could have seen his thunderbolt coming - Cech certainly didn't - and the disappointment of taking only a point was suddenly increased for the dumbstruck Londoners.