Bookings take gloss off Chelsea's winning start

LONDON, Sep 13 (Reuters) Four yellow cards have taken the gloss off three points Chelsea earned in their 2-0 win over Werder Bremen, which kicked off their campaign for the Champions League glory they so desperately crave.

Captain John Terry, his England midfield team mates Frank Lampard and Joe Cole as well as marauding Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba received cautions.

Manager Jose Mourinho had warned that in the tournament's most difficult group, including champions Barcelona, bookings could play a role in how teams were prepared for the knockout stages. He did not hide his irritation that Chelsea had suffered more than other clubs, however.

''I don't want to speak about it because I have spoken a lot over the last three years,'' said the Portuguese renowned for his clashes with soccer's authorities, before listing the English champions' rivals who also had played yesterday and escaped with one or no bookings.

''Do you think it was violent?'' he asked.

''My players are players with a lot of fair play in English football. You know the mentality of the Terrys and Lampards...they don't get yellow cards in England; they go to European football and they get yellow cards.'' Werder captain Frank Baumann was also booked in a game full of fast end-to-end football, that was neither overly physical nor bad tempered.

Michael Essien scored in the 24th minute and Germany captain Michael Ballack, taking over penalty duties from Lampard, put the result beyond doubt in the second half.

While they kept control most of the game, Chelsea's new look formation has yet to combine comfortably, with Ballack operating alongside Lampard in a similar role and controversial signing from Arsenal Ashley Cole looking isolated at times on the left.

By luring experienced top European signings Andriy Shevchenko and Ballack to Stamford Bridge, the English champions have trumpeted their Champions League ambitions.

Chelsea have reached the semi-finals twice since Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003 with ambitions to make it a world soccer power.

In yesterday's match programme his captain said the pressure was on.

''We can't keep saying next year will be our time. We've got the experience and we've got the players,'' Terry wrote.

''It's going to be a tough group never mind a tough competition...But we're desperate to win this trophy.'' REUTERS PDS KN1527