Although some of the chances spurned by Chelsea were laughable, others pitiful and several plain unlucky, Luiz Felipe Scolari would have been more interested in his first clean sheet in seven games last night and that it leaves his side well prepared psychologically for the visit to Anfield on Sunday. Two second-half goals from Salomon Kalou condemned Middlesbrough to yet more misery at the foot of the Barclays Premier League but livened up the title race — particularly in the light of Liverpool’s draw away to Wigan Athletic.

The songs at Stamford Bridge came only when the big screen flashed the news that Wigan had equalised. Suddenly, the balance of power between Chelsea and Liverpool had shifted, suddenly the talk is not of how vulnerable Scolari’s defence has become but of how his team have snatched second place from the Merseyside club. Suddenly, the game at Anfield feels as if it may be a defining match of the season — if not, as Manchester United may care to point out, the most critical.

But the game, curiously, did not end with the Chelsea manager smiling and full of bonhomie. He opted not to shake Gareth Southgate’s hand at the final whistle after an incident involving Mohamed Shawky. Having been shown a yellow card for an early foul on Florent Malouda, the Middlesbrough midfield player was penalised for a handball, but not booked. Scolari jumped to his feet and appeared to wave an imaginary card, which incensed Malcolm Crosby, Southgate’s assistant manager.

“It’s a pretty emotional game,” Ray Wilkins, the Chelsea assistant first-team coach, said. “Passions run high on their bench and they ran high on ours. It’s a nothing situation. If the referee had felt he [Scolari] needed to be sent to the stands, he would have done so and he didn’t do so.”

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Nobody much cares when a team in the bottom three struggles at set-pieces, but Middlesbrough finally succumbed to two corner kicks and have not won in the league in 11 matches. All the while that Chelsea have been lampooned for being a soft touch at set-pieces, they have at least shown they know how to score from free kicks and corners of their own; last night was no exception.

Southgate, the Middlesbrough manager, labelled it “unforgivable” that his team should have conceded goals from two corners as they “didn’t really get carved open” otherwise. But such was the bombardment of corners and free kicks that there was a sense of inevitability that they would succumb.

Yet despite the home side’s early dominance, a free kick from distance by Gary O’Neil still drew an audible intake of breath as Petr Cech punched rather than claimed the ball. It will take some time yet before Chelsea are totally rid of the tag of a team who struggle at set-pieces.

Chelsea seemed to panic on the few occasions that Middlesbrough forged a counter-attack and conceded more free kicks than was necessary. Malouda spent much of the first half on his knees bemoaning trips and tugs on his shirt, so the overall impression was one of a side who ought to have more self-belief than they exhibited.

That Malouda failed to reappear for the second half did not come as a shock and Didier Drogba, his replacement, marked his arrival with a scuffed shot. In the 55th minute, Chelsea spurned their best chance of the game so far, when Kalou nodded over from close range a header from Alex.

Three minutes later, Kalou made amends with a volley that beat Turnbull after yet another corner from Lampard had been only partially cleared by David Wheater under pressure from Drogba. Immediately, Southgate prepared for a double substitution that gave his team a more attacking look. Between them, Afonso Alves and Tuncay Sanli instantly injected a sprightliness that had been lacking before.

The prize for the least-accomplished moment in front of goal went in the end, ironically, to Kalou. Once Turnbull had spilt a free kick by Lampard, the Ivory Coast forward had time and space to pick his spot, but instead barely connected and sent the ball comically in the opposite direction.

Yet Kalou was in the mood to atone and, in the 81st minute, headed home another corner from Lampard after Turnbull rushed to claim the ball and failed. Kalou’s handcuff-style goal celebration with Drogba, his compatriot, remained enigmatic. Conjecture that he was displaying support for an Ivorian journalist recently released from jail was denied by the player, who said he was trying to find his own style. Whether Chelsea have found theirs of old will be determined only on Sunday.

Chelsea (4-1-2-2-1): P Cech — J Bosingwa, J Terry, Alex, A Cole — J O Mikel — M Ballack, F Lampard — S Kalou (sub: Deco, 82min), F Malouda (sub: D Drogba, 46) — N Anelka (sub: M Stoch, 89). Substitutes not used: Hilário, B Ivanovic, P Ferreira, M Mancienne.

Middlesbrough (4-5-1): R Turnbull — A McMahon, C Riggott, D Wheater, E Pogatetz — A Johnson, G O’Neil, M Bates, M Shawky (sub: Tuncay Sanli, 64), S Downing — M King (sub: Afonso Alves, 64). Substitutes not used: B Jones, J Hoyte, M Emnes, R Huth, J Arca. Booked: Shawky, Riggott.

Referee: L Probert.