After the phantom handshake, this FA Cup tie barely lit up and had only one potential powder-keg moment, which was happily a good old-fashioned football incident: the disputed Juan Mata penalty that won the game.

The Football Association had called off the pre-match handshake between the sides after learning Queens Park Rangers would unilaterally ignore the convention in solidarity with Anton Ferdinand. This meant that the only shake from the players was between Joey Barton and John Terry at the coin toss – the matter an issue due to the Chelsea captain’s court appearance on Wednesday to answer the charge that he racially abused Ferdinand earlier in the season, which he denies.

On an incessantly sour and hostile afternoon, it was Daniel Sturridge who caused the sole true moment of on-field acrimony. When he went down close to Clint Hill in the area from a Mata cross just after the hour Mike Dean pointed to the spot. But the left-back’s furious volley at Sturridge plus subsequent replays suggested that the forward had fashioned a swallow dive and, as Barton continued to debate the matter with the forward, Mata stepped up to slot home.

“Cheat! Cheat!” was the livid cry from the home congregation, the latest choral offering in a tie that was peppered with the obscene chants and boos that can form the alternative soundtrack to Terry’s fine football career.

Luke Young had made the first mistake of many in QPR’s mediocre showing when a cleared Barton free-kick came back to him and his attempted return of the ball to the Chelsea area found only Fernando Torres. The striker instantly passed to Mata and though this was short Young compounded his initial error by sliding and failing to clear the danger. This allowed the Spaniard to zoom at Paddy Kenny’s goal before he let fly a shot that the keeper parried well.

QPR’s attack strategy had been to punt and hope and against Chelsea’s band of classy operators this proved futile. The right result, then, but a questionable route to it. But with little off-field incident apparently occurring perhaps Ferdinand, Terry and company can now move on.

At the close the players did embrace and Ferdinand did a mini-lap to clap his support.

FA Cup 2011-12QPRChelseaFA CupJamie Jackson
guardian.co.uk

• Chelsea advance to knockout stage of Champions League
• Villas-Boas says his players ‘deserve respect they don’t get’

André Villas-Boas was scathing of critics for their “persecution of Chelsea” and hailed his players for giving “everyone a slap in the face” as they confirmed their passage to the Champions League knockout stage as Group E winners.

“It was a win of human values, responsibility, solidarity, strength of character, team spirit, ability to take criticism, resilience, and it was a great win for Chelsea players,” the manager said. “They deserve a respect they don’t get. We’ve been continually chased by different kinds of people but today we’ve given everyone – those critics – a slap in the face.”

Asked if he and his players felt anger, Villas-Boas said: “No, I just think the reaction has been over the top. There’s only one team in the country at the moment, and that’s Manchester City. I hope they qualify sincerely [for the Champions League]. But the attitude has been if they qualify they qualify, and if they don’t they don’t. That’s not the same as with us.”

Villas-Boas appeared to single out Gary Neville, the former Manchester United captain who is a pundit for Sky Sports, for a perceived slight. “We see a Manchester United defender who says he doesn’t want to play as a Chelsea player and play in a game like this. This has been a continuous persecution of Chelsea, continuous aggression of one club. We have become your target. We have to accept it.”

Regarding the 3-0 win over Valencia, Villas-Boas admitted he had adjusted the team’s strategy to a more compact approach. “We made changes to the way we played,” he said. “Today it was evident. We tried it at Newcastle the other day. We kept our block further down the pitch, a medium low compact block with not a lot of space between the lines. We gave Valencia a lot of possession.”

Villas-Boas has maintained that the philosophy of the club under him would be the last element of his tenure to die. So had he changed this ethos against Valencia? “Yes. There is a phrase that is interesting: ‘The person that you are is a triumph in the person you want to be.’ This was a triumph in human values. A different strategy, but the same philosophy in human values.”

Frank Lampard was dropped to the bench and Villas-Boas confirmed he was no longer an automatic choice. “He has been fantastic in the way he’s taken these tough decisions, but he will continue to threaten for the starting XI.”

André Villas-BoasChelseaChampions League 2011-12Champions LeagueJamie Jacksonguardian.co.uk