A controversial giant leap from Shaun Wright-Phillips helped to lift Chelsea towards the Carling Cup final on the night that they revealed they are also closer to bolstering their attack with the signing of Nicolas Anelka. Negotiations are continuing for the transfer of the Bolton Wanderers forward, who is expected to sign before Saturday’s Barclays Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur.

“We wanted him for [last night’s] game,” Avram Grant, the Chelsea first-team coach, said after the 2-1 victory over Everton in the first leg of their semi-final. “I hope it will be for Saturday, but this is not in my control. It’s important to do it quickly because of the players we’re missing.”

Bolton rejected an £11 million offer for Anelka on Monday, but Chelsea are expected to increase their bid by up to £2 million.

In the absence of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, who have gone to the African Cup of Nations, and Andriy Shevchenko, who is injured, the unlikely figure of Wright-Phillips took on the decisive role yesterday. Moved to a central position in attack after Claudio Pizarro was substituted, Wright-Phillips produced a man-of-the-match display that can hardly have failed to impress Fabio Capello, the new England manager, who was watching at Stamford Bridge. Wright-Phillips had scored only once for Chelsea this season but found the net with a precise diagonal shot from just inside the penalty area in the first half.

Yakubu Ayegbeni equalised in spectacular fashion after John Obi Mikel had been sent off for a lunging challenge on Phil Neville and Chelsea’s long unbeaten home record appeared in peril. However, Wright-Phillips, the smallest man on the pitch, popped up two minutes into injury time to force Joleon Lescott into heading into his own net.

David Moyes, the Everton manager, complained that Wright-Phillips had elevated himself illegally by using his arms to climb on Lescott’s shoulders. “He had his arms on his back,” Moyes said.

Grant side-stepped the question of whether Mikel deserved to be sent off by Peter Walton, the referee. It was the second red card of the season for the Nigeria midfield player, who now joins Drogba, Kalou and Michael Essien in Ghana, his fourth in less than two seasons at the club and the sixth dismissal under Grant.

“If it was a red card then two or three players who got yellow cards deserved to get red cards,” Grant said. Neville and Lee Carsley might have received second yellow cards for poor challenges, but other tackles, notably by Ricardo Carvalho and Steve Sidwell, of Chelsea, seemed as reckless as Mikel’s.

Less than four months into his reign, Grant has an excellent chance of emulating José Mourinho, his predecessor, by winning the Carling Cup in his first season in charge. “The players deserve the credit because of their performance, courage and spirit,” Grant said before praising Wright-Phillips. “I’m sure he’ll be in the next [England] squad,” he said.

Despite the defeat, which came three days after Everton were knocked out of the FA Cup by Oldham Athletic, Moyes is optimistic that his team can recover the deficit in the second leg at Goodison Park on January 23. “Chelsea are a really good side but we’ve got a chance,” he said. “We always wanted to keep the tie alive and we’ve certainly done that. We’re disappointed to lose but we’re not out yet.”

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