Deco's first and immensely-valuable set-piece goal for Chelsea may have come before some spectators had settled into their seats on Sunday, but one group not caught by surprise were the Chelsea players.

That's according to Ashley Cole who spoke about the third-minute winner after the game.

'He does it every day in training, it is something he is used to, and we knew as soon as he got on the ball in that position, he could produce some magic from there. We are delighted.'

The Portuguese playmaker's Cobham free-kick work-outs have been reminiscent of Gianfranco Zola's legendary practice sessions in their accuracy, suggesting a significant weapon has been added to the team's armoury this season.

'Deco once again produced a bit of magic and I think that is what is going to help us win the League this year,' suggested a confident Cole.

'The overall performance was not as good as last week but when you come to a place like this, it is always going to be a battle.

'Wigan have lot of big guys, they have a game plan, and for us it was about stopping them and getting three points.'

Wigan manager Steve Bruce explained that part of that game plan was to make life hard for Cole and fellow full-back José Bosingwa while still harrying and hustling in other areas of the match.

'Chelsea get their width from their full-backs but they have quality all round the pitch, so you have to have people in your team who are ready to run a million miles,' he said.

Bruce's opposite number, Felipe Scolari, certainly has one of those in Michael Essien who, in one of the more hidden stories of the game, lasted longer than anticipated on his return from injury.

'The boys were surprised I played the whole game because the talk before was that he [Scolari] may pull me out during the 70^th minute,' the Ghanaian revealed.

'But on 70 minutes he called me and said are you okay to continue and I said yes.'

Essien had suffered a knock to the knee during the pre-season tour and missed three weeks' training, only rejoining the full preparations on Friday and Saturday.

'I am not tired at all, I am fit and I still have energy,' he boasted after his 90 minutes as the anchor midfielder, in place of John Obi Mikel who had been ruled out.

'This season was the first time I my career I missed the opening game but I am happy to be back,' Essien continued.

'It was not our best day but it is always difficult up here, even though every time we do manage to get three points.

'It is good to keep a clean sheet and we have managed to do that so far this season, but we still have a long way to go.'