Wigan Athletic 0 Chelsea 2.

Wigan manager Chris Hutchings hailed the killer instinct of Frank Lampard after he struck for the fourth time in two matches to help Chelsea to a 2-0 win at the JJB Stadium.

But Hutchings admitted his frustration after warning his players of the England midfielder's match-winning potential.

Lampard, back to full fitness and hitting top form after a disrupted start to the season, was Chelsea's key performer in the dramatic 4-3 Carling Cup win over Leicester in midweek, bagging a hat-trick, and he again set the ball rolling with a 10th-minute strike.

Shaun Wright-Phillips was the architect, finding Lampard's well-timed run into the box after shrugging off the attentions of two Latics defenders.

Juliano Belletti profited from some more energetic play from Wright-Phillips to produce a thrilling 50-yard dash before rifling home a second eight minutes later, but for Hutchings it was Lampard's strike which was most disappointing.

''We tried to match them in midfield but obviously it didn't happen for us,'' he said after watching his team slump to a sixth consecutive defeat.

''We'd talked in the week about Frank Lampard getting into the box and getting goals week in, week out as he does.

''And, lo and behold, he does it again. You're unhappy with the defence whenever you concede goals but it was a great finish from Frank.

''For their second goal, the full-back (Belletti) picks it up and runs 40 or 50 yards to score. We had a mountain to climb in the second half but we took it to them well.''

Chelsea again shuffled their pack for the match, with Wright-Phillips impressing on his first league start since Avram Grant succeeded Jose Mourinho, while Florent Malouda and Wayne Bridge were also drafted in.

Andriy Shevchenko, meanwhile, could do no better than a place on the bench, despite scoring Chelsea's other goal against the Foxes last time out.

For Hutchings, who has been struggling to paper over the cracks after a series of injuries to his squad, such options are something he can only dream about.

''They're one of the top teams in Europe,'' he continued.

''They have great strength in depth and a very, very strong bench. So am I envious? Yes.

''We havea lot of injuries and Antoine Sibierski's been struggling throughout the season.

''When we are fully fit and settled, we'll be a lot stronger.''

The former Bradford boss highlighted England striker Emile Heskey as the biggest loss but poured cold water on hopes he could make his comeback from a broken metatarsal as early as next week.

''Emile is a the main one. We know that we've missed Hesk and every other manager in the country probably knows that,'' Hutchings said.