The Frenchman explained the importance of the club's refusal to panic at Stamford Bridge after poor first half contributed to a nervous atmosphere before four goals sealed progress
Florent Malouda credits Chelsea’s patient approach for the club’s FA Cup home win over Portsmouth after a goalless first half."Especially with the recent results we had at home, we know that there is anxiety in the crowd when you don't get the result in the first half," Malouda told the club’s official website.
The French international set up Juan Mata’s opening goal shortly after half-time with a pull back from the byline, and the Blues eventually completed a 4-0 victory after two goals from Ramires and one from Frank Lampard came in the last 10 minutes.
However, the scoreline flattered the hosts given their struggle to break the away side down during a goalless first half in an atmosphere of rising tension.
"We had to be patient and keep the right balance of not conceding a goal and then trying to score the first goal, and after the first try to carry on. Especially in the first half it was difficult to break down Portsmouth's defense and it made a big difference with the first goal," Malouda said.
He added, "After that it was more a counterattack game for us and we scored three goals in the last 10 minutes, but most of the game Portsmouth gave us a hard time."
"We started the game with a lot of respect for Portsmouth and we know that they were expecting a good result, especially in the FA Cup, so when it was difficult for us in the first half we had to stay calm."
Malouda’s start on Sunday was his first since the Blues’ League Cup defeat at home to Liverpool at the end of November.
He went on to comment on the importance of the confidence the win will bring, adding: "This win is very important for a team like Chelsea because we need a good run and a positive result to keep the confidence to compete with the best teams in the country and the best teams in Europe.
"We have a lot of important games coming and to have a positive mentality you need the results, so it is very important, especially with the home games, to be able to win every time," he said.
