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Chelsea move a step closer to retaining the Carling Cup with a 2-1 victory over Everton in the semi-final first leg on Tuesday. The second leg will take place at Everton on January 23 - the winner clashing with Arsenal or Tottenham at Wembley on February 24.

Shaun Wright-Phillips was the toast of the day as Chelsea overcame the dismissal of John Obi Mikel to snatch an injury-time winner. The Blues led with a first-half goal by Wright-Phillips who whipped in a beautiful right-footed shot in off the post. Florent Malouda supplied the assist and it must be heartening to Avram Grant that he showed little sign of rustiness from a two month injury absence.

The sending off blight happened in the 55th minute when Obi Mikel made a studs-up challenge on Phil Neville. It was a correct decision by the referee as this is a career threatening tackle. Obi has to watch out as his disciplinary record (four red cards in 18 months) is raising eyebrows, and the dismissal did Chelsea no favors as they scrambled to re-organize in the face of mounting pressure from Everton.

Indeed, their fortress was breached nine minutes later as Everton hit back to equalize through Ayegbeni Yakubu and maintained their hopes of reaching the final for the first time in 24 years.

Everton manager David Moyes was pleased with the way his side matched Chelsea in the second half and relishes the return match at Goodison Park. He said: “We know we will have the advantage of the crowd behind us but basically we are still playing a really good team. I’ve been waiting for games like this at Goodison since I arrived; a cup semi-final second leg.”

However, Chelsea, despite fighting with ten men, had the presence of mind to snatch a dramatic 2-1 win deep in injury-time. Wright-Phillips was again instrumental as he pressurised Joleon Lescott into heading an own goal. In the dying seconds, Lescott had time to make amends at the other end but was thwarted by the on-rushing Hilario.

Everton, already knocked out of the FA Cup by Oldham Athletic last week, sorely missed the midfield creativity of Mikel Arteta who was suspended and realistic chances were far and few in between. They gained some traction with numerical superiority but still fell to the late assualt by Chelsea. It is doubtful if Everton can recover from this deficit as they are lacking the all-important killer instinct.

Aram Grant believes Chelsea’s never-say-die spirit is the key to their third League Cup final in four seasons. The defiant display showed his players are as hungry as before and that is enough to overcome the absence of several leading players through injury, suspension and international duty.

Grant said: “With the small squad and all the problems, the players deserve credit for the way they played. They showed spirit and character. It’s not easy at Goodison Park but it’s not easy against us either. We have the advantage although it does not guarantee anything. If we play like this, we have a good chance.”

Grant is also relieved to see Wright-Phillips impress in a variety of roles in front of new England coach Fabio Capello.

“Shaun is in good form,” Grant said. “I think he will be in the next England squad. He started in midfield, then on the right wing and then as a striker. He got used to it very quickly and that showed he is an intelligent player.”

The hard-to-beat characteristic in Chelsea is still intact, a spillover effect from the Mourinho’s era. However, it is clear that Chelsea is lightweight at the front, even if they looked sharper in this match and had more attacking intent from the start.

Grant made no secret of Chelsea’s deal with Bolton to secure striker Nicolas Anelka before the return leg. The Blues had a 10 million pounds bid for Anelka rejected, but he hinted that an improved offer is on the way.

Grant said: “We made a bid two days ago because we wanted him for the Everton match. We do not plan to stay with one striker. It is important to do it quickly but this is not my area. I am not negotiating with Bolton.”

It will be interesting to see how Anelka and Drogba match up in attack. If they form a telepathic partnership, there is a good chance of Chelsea being the black horse in the Premier League title race.

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