The Premier League’s player of the year Eden Hazard gave a master class as team of the year Chelsea defeated Sydney FC 1-0 at ANZ Stadium.

Before a crowd of 83,598, just 235 short of the reconfigured ground record, Hazard was dominant.

The Sky Blues were well aware of the Belgian’s prowess, but no amount of Hazard warnings could have prepared them for the virtuoso performance he turned on before a massive gate twice as big as Chelsea’s home capacity at Stamford Bridge.

• FIFA acknowledges $10 million payment
• Premier League players apologise for ‘racist orgy’

Hazard’s speed, touch, feints, sleight of foot and passing, long and short, were simply dazzling.

In fact the only way Sydney defender Seb Ryall could stop him was to bring him down, earning the game’s only yellow card.

Yet Sydney FC could hold their heads high, giving a spirited effort against England’s Premier League champions just four days after losing by the same margin to Tottenham.

In the end this was a match that had Hazard’s dominance stamped all over it.

The only difference on the scoreboard came from a stunning strike on the half-hour mark from Loic Remy.

The Frenchman cut inside on the edge of the box and curled a searing left-foot strike inside the far post that gave goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic no chance.

Hazard created several clear-cut chances, and Remy would have had a second if Alex Gersbach had not headed off his line.

Spanish striker Diego Costa proved a handful for Sydney’s defence too before injury forced him off after 40 minutes.

Costa showed the form that delivered him a 20-goal EPL season, embarking on several solo runs that at times left Sydney’s defenders mesmerised.

The Sky Blues did manage to fashion chances of their own.

Alex Gersbach beat his man wide on the left only for Robert Stambolziev to fluff his lines; Chris Naumoff and Alex Brosque shared a double effort only to be denied by goalkeeper Peter Cech; and centre-back Branislav Ivanovic and Terry Antonis forced a couple of sharp saves from the custodian.

But they could find no way through the defences of the EPL champions, marshalled superbly by captain John Terry.

Two minutes from time the big crowd thought Sydney had found an equaliser when Ryall poked the ball into the net after a goalmouth scramble from a corner, but the effort was disallowed for hand-ball.

-AAP