The opening fixture of the new season does not always give the best clues as to how successful a team may be in the coming campaign.

But Chelsea’s impressive victory over last season’s over-achievers Portsmouth certainly made their rivals stand up and take note on Sunday afternoon. It was our first insight into how new manager Luiz Felipe Scolari is to set up the team and what ideas he will implement - and boy did the results look exciting.

While fellow title contenders Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United all looked rusty on their first day back, Chelsea hit the ground running with a stylish performance. Scolari’s reign certainly got off to a blistering start.

He has been wise to implement the tactics and formation that guided Brazil and Portugal to so much success in the World Cup and European Championships. He has never coached a nation to an unsuccessful international tournament, and that is why England were so keen to appoint him as their new boss only a few years ago.

Scolari’s football philosophy is based on attack. Full-backs venture forward at every opportunity and midfielders are encouraged heavily to get forward in support of the strikers. The offensive system will work even better at Chelsea because of the quality attackers at Stamford Bridge.

Full-backs Jose Bosingwa and Ashley Cole were already suited to getting forward before Scolari arrived, and that has allowed them to comfortably settle into the Brazilian manager’s style of play.

At the other end of the pitch Frank Lampard, Deco, Joe Cole and Michael Ballack give Scolari the perfect tools for the job as he aims to fulfil Roman Abramovich’s ambition of seeing Chelsea winning while playing beautifully.

All of those players, as well as Florent Malouda and Shaun Wright-Phillips when they are called upon, will be instructed to use their forward instincts to the full. And when fit again, Didier Drogba should be the prolific striker that spearheads this carnival of creativity to great effect.

John Obi Mikel performed fantastically well in his new “break and make” midfield role, though the Nigerian will have to wait and see if the injured Michael Essien eventually seals that starting place permanently on his return.

Behind him were the formidable central defensive partnership of John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho, whose quality can only be matched by that of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic at Manchester United. Petr Cech isn’t a bad goalkeeper either.

Everything clicked into place on Sunday for but fans must not get carried away. Tougher tests are ahead, and the trip to Wigan next Sunday will provide more of a challenge than a weak Portsmouth team did at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea’s victory was made to look easy mainly because of their own endeavours though, and not Portsmouth’s poor performance.

Scolari’s new system worked wonderfully in its first test, but whether it will withstand the forces of Manchester United is yet to be seen. The season is a marathon, and against most Premier League teams this formation may prove successful enough to fire Chelsea back to the top of the world’s greatest league.

Scolari certainly enjoyed the first of the 38 matches anyway.