Birmingham made it very difficult for the visitors and they hardly did themselves any favours, often looking sloppy and almost lethargic going forward.It was almost as if the FA Cup holders were waiting on a mistake from the home side, as there was no fight to their forward line and much of the dirty work was made easy for Birmingham's compact defensive unit.
They got what they wanted when Claudio Pizarro charged towards a Juliano Belletti corner and headed home with just over ten minutes to go.
It remained 1-0, and speaking to the BBC after the game, Avram Grant praised the striker's persistence as he has endured a rough time since his move from Bayern Munich - indeed his last Premiership goal came in the reverse fixture on the opening day of the season months ago.
Grant underlined the importance of the victory, and was honest regarding the substandard football on show.
"It was very important to win," emphasised Grant. "It was not high quality but we deserved to win.
"We did not create that many chances. There was one but at the end of the day we won and that's what matters.
"We knew it would be a difficult game against Birmingham. They defended very well and had a high spirit."
The former Israel manager paid homage to Birmingham's resilience, citing similarly strong displays against fellow top sides Manchester United and Arsenal, with the latter drawing at Birmingham just last week and the former being made to fight all the way for their 1-0 victory.
Grant was full of praise for his side's determination as they continue to keep in touch with top two sides Manchester United and Arsenal. United lead the Gunners on goal difference only, and Chelsea trail the pair by just four points.
The Blues' victory came at a price, with Shaun Wright-Phillips going down to a nasty looking injury.
Avram Grant rued the ill fortune of the pacey winger, who was just starting to rediscover some of his best form, but will now join Chelsea's long list of absentees including Frank Lampard, club captain John Terry, Claude Makalele and Andriy Shevchenko who make up just part of Chelsea's lengthy injury list.
Didier Drogba, Michael Essien, Salomon Kalou and John Obi-Mikel are also absent, representing their respective countries at the African Cup of Nations.
Grant could not comment on the severity of Wright-Phillips' injury but conceded that it was not looking good for the ex-Manchester City ace.
"It's too early too tell," he said. "It's not looking so good, but it's too early to say we need to wait and see."
"Shaun was one of our best players in the last few weeks, so I wish for him to be well as soon as possible."
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