Chelsea came from 1-0 down to defeat English Premier League leader Manchester United 2-1 at Stamford Bridge, lifting themselves up to the fourth place in table.

The defending champions Chelsea were 15 points behind United before the match and the Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti had admitted earlier that keeping a top four finish this season would be a " realistic" target for the London side.

The confident United took the lead after 29 minutes when Wayne Rooney's low shot outside the area hit the bottom left corner.

Chelsea almost equalized 10 minutes later as Frank Lampard's free-kick slipped through the wall before being smashed out by goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar. Then, the Dutch veteran was quick enough to pounce the ball again as Branislav Ivanovic attempted to bundle the rebound over the line.

The game looked more intense after the restart and Chelsea made a response in the 54th minute when Brazalian defender David Luiz volleyed home Ivanovic's flick.

With 10 minutes remaining, Chelsea substitute Yuri Zhirkov was trapped down by Chris Smalling in the box. Lampard scored from the penalty spot, securing a precious win for the hosts.

United suffered another blow in the stoppage time as Nemanja Vidic was sent off after receiving a second yellow card.