A Chelsea side brimming with confidence tore capital rivals QPR to shreds on Sunday, with Fernando Torres bagging a hat-trick in a 6-1 win.

Torres grabs a hat-trick as Chelsea close to within a point of top four

A Chelsea side brimming with confidence tore capital rivals QPR to shreds on Sunday, with Fernando Torres bagging a hat-trick in a 6-1 win.

The Spanish striker netted twice during a devastating first-half display from the Blues, which also saw Daniel Sturridge and John Terry find the target, before going on to claim the match ball shortly after the hour mark.

Florent Malouda stepped off the bench to join the Blues' goalscoring party, before Djibril Cisse pulled one back for the shell-shocked visitors late on.

Fresh from their midweek heroics in the UEFA Champions League, Chelsea burst out of the blocks and were in front inside 60 seconds as Sturridge rifled into the top corner from the edge of the box.

Skipper Terry, who had apologised for his reckless red card against Barcelona prior to kick-off, added a second on 13 minutes as he nodded home a Juan Mata corner.

Six minutes later it was three, with Torres replicating his late effort at Camp Nou as he raced through, rounded Paddy Kenny and slipped the ball into an empty net.

He then grabbed his second of the afternoon on 25 minutes after a terrible mix-up between Nedum Onuoha and Kenny.

With his shooting boots rediscovered, Torres completed his treble on 64 minutes as he sprung the offside trap and guided the ball into the bottom corner.

Substitute Malouda bagged a sixth 10 minutes from time and Cisse's effort four minutes later, which he guided past Petr Cech with aplomb, offered little consolation to a beleaguered QPR side.

Screamer

Terry had the last laugh at the end of a week in which his sending off somehow failed to cost Chelsea at Camp Nou and his upcoming racism trial took centre-stage again when the pre-match handshakes were cancelled.

Both he and QPR defender Anton Ferdinand - the man he denies racially abusing - were mercilessly targeted by opposition fans, as they had been in January's FA Cup tie at Loftus Road.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who on Saturday bankrolled the club's first summer signing in Marko Marin, was at Stamford Bridge to watch Roberto Di Matteo's latest attempt to convince the Russian to give him the manager's job full-time.

It took the home side, who had been in danger of going a whole Premier League season without winning a London derby for the first time, barely a quarter of the game to make another case for the Italian.

With several players playing for a place in the FA Cup and Champions League finals, they tore into Rangers from the first whistle and Sturridge's screamer hit the net inside a minute.

Ferdinand provided an unwitting assist as Sturridge played the ball back off the defender before unleashing an unstoppable curler on his weaker right foot, although Kenny might claim he was unsighted by an offside Frank Lampard.

QPR tried to hit back but Chelsea might have had a penalty when makeshift centre-back Jose Bosingwa's drive hit the hand of Clint Hill, who was badly exposed as Terry made it 2-0 in the 14th minute.

Kenny tipped over a delightful Lampard chip but it was in vain as Terry got in front of Hill far too easily to nod home Mata's corner.

The celebrations were sensibly muted from Terry but the home fans could not have been more delighted.

Blistering

They were on their feet again five minutes later in appreciatio