Blackburn (vs) Chelsea: Damage Control

Hello, my fellow Blues!

What a fortnight this has been for Chelsea football club and its fans alike! Let’s take a moment and compare that to a torrid season so far that Blackburn Rovers are having. Suddenly, our defensive frailties and off-field problems sound more dainty than daunting. But, this is a blog tailor made to cater Chelsea fans. Let’s focus on ourselves for a bit.

This JT-Ferdinand saga looks more grim than I had anticipated when it first popped up. I’m still quite sure JT is innocent. Like I said in my previous post, he would never be so clinically successful in skirting his racist sentiments for over 14 years as a professional footballer because Chelsea FC is one of the most ethnically diverse football clubs in England, with players representing us from all corners of the world. It simply does not make sense.

Moving on to the core of this blog — football!

Blackburn Rovers haven’t quite seen the upsurge in fortunes under new ownership, which is usually the trend. They have only managed to win one game out of their last 10. We, on the other hand, have won one in the last 4. But, let’s not glare at these bare-bone stats in dismay, and rather try to put them in the context they revolve around. QPR game was a total nightmare, courtesy of Chris Foy. We may have lost that one, but football tacticians all around will cherish that 9 versus 11 encounter for a long time to come. The next one was a hard fought victory (which again had us in a 10 men against 11 situation against a strong team like Everton, that too at Goodison Park), the only one in our last four. Moving on, we played Arsenal at Stamford Bridge. Boy, was it a game of two halves! We created some great chances in the first half, but only scored twice, when we should have been 3 or 4 goals up. And, then came the 2nd half, when our defense was mocked by 4 goals. Never has the Chelsea defense been breached like that since 2002. So, in a nutshell, we really only should be looking at the Arsenal game as a crushing defeat. Sure, in a practical world, we lost 3 points at Loftus Road, but we cannot be criticized for the result. Although, it must be added that out impotence in front of goal was the reason why we allowed Arsenal to come back in the game, just like we allowed Genk this past Tuesday night.

Mind boggling stat of the week: Chelsea have now failed to convert the last 3 penalties in a row — Lampard, Anelka and Luiz have all missed!

What else?

Well, Blackburn have only picked up one point at Ewood Park. That isn’t a very convincing number to have at the ticket sales counter. No wonder Blackburn fans, a quite a bit of which are season ticket holders, are protesting against Steve Kean. May be I am a bit protective of football managers in this trigger-friendly world of club owners. But again, they have only won one of their last ten games. That is unacceptable, no matter how much you crave relegation. What probably hurts Blackburn fans the most is that they have only won only once in front of them so far. I see their point.

Let’s switch over to Chelsea again. What was it that we could all see, which led to that humiliating defeat at Stamford Bridge against Arsenal? High defence-line, you might say, right? Well, you’re wrong, I’m afraid, chief. Don’t blame the tactics, blame our ineffectiveness in applying it. Like I said in my previous post, Barcelona have been using this system for over 40 years now, when Rinus Michels introduced the “Total football” philosophy in 1970s, which Pep Guardiola has polished further. Playing a high defence line virtually reduces the opponents playing area by 1/3rd of the total surface area of the football pitch. It is a very conducive situation for the team not in possession to get it back as soon as they can, which in Barca’s case, is usually 6 seconds. It makes perfect sense. Would you rather run a 40 yards to win the ball back instead of getting it back by hounding the player in possession by hovering around him in a radius of 5-10 yards, in his own half? No, sir. But, that isn’t the point of high defence line — not the whole point, anyway. The impetus is on minimizing the time between winning the possession back and converting it into a counter attack. The move, though, is incomplete, if you don’t switch the play from both flanks.

Let me ask you again! Would you run 40 yards back into your own half to win the ball back? Nope! And, now we have a reason. When you win the ball back within 30-50 yards from your opponent’s goalpost, it takes a lot less time to build up the attack (or hit them on counter attack), because there is a lot less running to do, not only for the playmaker, but also the wingers and the strikers. That is exactly what AVB is trying to do. Like I said last time, Brazil have been doing this for decades, and so has Barca. This is a major change in the way we’ve been playing since Mourinho took over. It is certainly taking its sweet time (sour for us in the past 2 weeks) but it will pay its dividends, mind. Under AVB, defenders must help in attack, while the strikers and attacking midfielders must track back and help defend. Let me quote myself from pre-match analysis of the Sunderland game:

“But, true to his utilitarian qualities, he believes in extracting every last drop of contribution from all his players. Which means, his midfield must work very hard in pressing and winning the ball back(Ramires and Lampard) and his forwards must track back to defend set pieces(Drogba). But, the biggest difference of all is his use of defence in attack. Yeah, you heard me. Defenders FOR attack. And, because he wants his defenders to contribute in attack, he also expects a lot more from his goalkeepers. That means Cech will be seen doing a lot of work as a sweeper at the back. Forget the old days when Cech was always seen kicking the ball into our opponents’ halves. You’re more likely to see him distribute the ball to one of the wing backs instead.”

Don’t worry I haven’t turned into a narcissist all of a sudden. I had to bring that quote up to prove to you that AVB wants Cech to play as a sweeper-goalkeeper. No more long balls, no wastage of possession, and more importantly, a safe build-up from the back. See any similarities to Barca again? I know I do. Valdez is not only a very good goalkeeper, but also an accomplished passer, who is very good with his feet and can often be seen doing the dirty work for Puyol and Co. at the back, if they happen to be in trouble. That is what AVB expect Cech to do.

Blackburn will typically go for long balls to break Chelsea’s defence. David Hoillett is the man we must be wary of. He is easily their most valuable player and will cause us all sorts of trouble. With AVB’s stance against man-marking, it will be interesting to see how we deal with him and Chris Samba (especially in set pieces).

Finally, what I would like to see tomorrow, in terms of the line-up, and why!

We travel to Lancashire in desperate need of a proven striker who can lead the line. We have just that in Daniel Sturridge. The 22-year-old has clearly made an impression on Villas-Boas, starting eight games in all competitions under him despite having been utilised wide on the right, has averaged over a goal every other game this term. Sturridge’s loan spell at Bolton last season confirmed his ability in his natural, central role – he would be desperate to prove himself in the north west yet again. I think it will all be down to who trained better this week. So far, Torres has always had the upper hand. But, I just don’t see him retaining his position as a central striker with a stranglehold, given his average displays off late. If he didn’t impress AVB this week, he won’t start, it’s as simple as that, because now AVB has Sturridge to unleash in that position. I would rather see Anelka playing right behind Sturridge in support, which is ironically where Sturridge has been playing so far. I say that because Anelka has a very good record against Blackburn: 12 goals in 16 games as a premier league player, 5 in 6 games in Chelsea’s royal blue. AVB might use him on the right of Sturridge.

Please watch the video below for a detailed take on tactics and formation. I’m sorry if I sound tired in this video. Looo0ooong day! Please watch in 480p for better viewing experience! Also, be sure to check out my YouTube channel. It’s dedicated to…you guessed it…Chelsea FC!

Our focus tomorrow should be on scoring first and then controlling the tempo of the game throughout the first half and to patiently search for a second goal. If we can finish the first half with a clean sheet, it puts us in a very good position to win the game. Let’s hope we can finally keep a clean sheet — our first since the opening game of the season against Stoke at the Britannia.

CFCEmpire’s Starting XI prediction: Cech, Bosingwa, Luiz, JT, Cole, Ramires, Meireles, Lampard, Anelka, Sturridge, Mata

Subs: Torres, Hilario, Romeu, Malouda, Alex, Kalou, Ivanovic

CFCEmpire’s Formation Prediction: 4-3-2-1

CFCEmpire’s Final Scoreline prediction: BLA (0) :: CHE (3)

Anyway, these are my pre-match thoughts, which also cover our frailties in the Arsenal game (Yeah! Just for you, Adam!). Let me know your thoughts on the tactics, line up, formation, and/or my blog, if it’s pertaining to football. As always, suggestions are welcome!

Until I ink again, stay shrewd my fellow Blues…

Chelsea (vs) Arsenal: Match Made in Heaven

Hello, my fellow Blues!

It’s been a month since I posted my last analysis report. I sincerely apologize for being out of touch. Matters of academic discipline governed CFCEmpire’s life in the past 4 weeks. But, I’m back now and what better time to be back – It’s the London derby! I’d be lying to you if I told you this is not one of my most awaited games. It’s not just a clash of two bitter London rivals – it’s a clash of two different footballing philosophies! Drogba (vs) Arsenal’s defence, Men (vs) Boys and all that jazz… But, I’d rather reserve such bullish, and rather teasing comparisons for later. Men (vs) Boys? How about Mancunian Muppets derby?

Arsenal have seen their worst start in premier league since Arsene Wenger took charge of the North London club. Wenger recently mentioned in AGM (Arsenal General Meeting) that he needs Gooners to support his plans, his philosophy and bear in mind that Arsenal have been “more consistent than anybody else in the last 15 years”. Sure mate! Now, I don’t exactly know if he is talking about trophies or financial restructuring. It’s no secret CFCEmpire is a huge fan of Monsieur Wenger’s expertise in MS Excel but not such a keen admirer of his inflexible philosophy.

To put it politely, Arsenal don’t exactly enjoy playing against Chelsea when Drogba is on the teamsheet. Lucky for them, he is out of the squad due to suspension. To put it into perspective let’s look at some key stats that illustrate just that.

Arsenal’s record    Played        Won     Lost       Drew

With Drogba           14             1        10           3

Without Drogba        3             2         0            1

Speaks volumes of the effect the big Ivorian has in Arsenal games. We are not a one man team by any stretch and currently have 10 different goal scorers in our team. We’ve scored from right, left and centre. I’m sure Monsieur Wenger has that down on one of his trusty spreadsheets. But, let’s not get too cocky and show some due respect to our opponents. Especially, to a particular Mr. Flying Dutchman – Robin van Persie. As much as I used to despise his guts, I have come to admire his, what’s the adjective I’m looking for, sheer intrepidity in front of the goalpost. 21 goals in last 25 appearances. Need I say more?

But, here comes the difference. van Persie has only scored twice against us, the last one of which came in November, 2008. That may be superficially comforting to some. Although, CFCEmpire recognizes the differences that have come in our defence since November 2008. I try to stay away from history. It whirls you into a cycle of illusions if you keep talking about it for too long, especially when you do it to feel good about yourself or the club you support. Just ask any scoucer what I’m talking about. Given his 11 goals in last 12 away premier league outings, it’d be very naïve to think he isn’t a standout contender to break the Blues defence tomorrow.

I hope it’s not getting too technical yet. I plan on washing your brain with a lot more stats as we go further along. I’m just kidding. A few more, and that’s all.

There are two pieces of stats that really caught my eye. These stats will primarily have a major say in what the final scoreline will look like.

• 1) We have taken 31 points out of 33 at Stamford bridge in last 11 PL encounters.
• 2) Upon conceding a goal first, we have only come back twice against the Gunners, while they have come back from behind 6 times to snatch victories. It must, although, be noted, that most of those victories came in the pre-Abramovich era. Things have changed a lot since, haven’t they?

But, as you may have already noticed, this isn’t about Drogba or van Persie. We’ve had some stunning all round performers in our team. Everyone has chipped in and made that extra effort count, whereas Arsenal, I’m afraid, have heavily relied on van Persie, at least in the scoring department.

CFCEmpire thinks that if Arsenal score the first goal, and if that first goal happens to be from van Persie, we can expect a tough night. But, if we score first, we still can’t sit back. No margin below 2 goals is safe enough against our French guests…errm…I meant North London neighbours.

I thought about writing after the QPR game, but got wound up looking up Chris Foy’s home address on the internet. Blasphemy – that’s what comes to mind. We have now picked up 3 red cards in a matter of 4 days. I suppose I have the Everton game to thank for a big favor. Ashley Cole was one of the 9 players booked in the QPR game. That was, unfortunately, his 5th yellow of the season. Had the Everton game not been there in our fixture list, Cole would miss the game tomorrow. I don’t need to tell any football follower what a huge blow that could be to any team. Cole is one of the most consistent footballers of his generation. The ones that have the ability to perform week in week out with his work-rate and work ethic are Messi and Ronaldo. As a matter of fact, C. Ronaldo admitted to Sergio Ramos that Cole is the toughest defender he has ever played against.

Cole is definitely starting, so is JT, who, by the way, didn’t sit out of the Everton game to meditate in the midst of media frenzy coverage of the alleged “racist slur” used by him against Anton Ferdinand. I’m sorry, but if you have seen any of the Chelsea games, you know he is NOT a racist. Just watch any of Chelsea’s past games and JT will be found hugging and celebrating with a lot of African lads in our team. And even if we assume for a moment that he is in a racist, I doubt he’d have been able to bottle up his “racist sentiments” for the past 15 years as a professional footballer, who has regularly played against team-mates and opponents of multi-ethnic origins.

As a Chelsea fan, I have accepted the fact that you have to learn to deal with a variety of negative external elements in order to retain success. People and media will call you names and you just have to come to terms with the fact that they really can’t change a thing about the way you perform on the pitch in those 90 mins. Chelsea players are accustomed to being despised, ridiculed and mocked. In fact, it spurs them on to silence their critics.

David Luiz has been an exceptional player for us since he has come back from that minor injury. Don’t let a few silly fouls and a wrongly given penalty give you a false impression. Luiz runs his socks off for the team. He did it when we were 2 men down against QPR and he did it again against Everton in Carling cup, when we were one man down. It’s true that some of his tackles are too rash for a CB, but then he adds so much to our passing game. A lot of pundits have been talking about how he can play as a defensive midfielder. I would honestly not mind that at all. But, we all know it’s Essien’s place and he will have to it occupied as soon as he comes back. AVB’s goal is to help Luiz with his tackling, and we have one of the best CB’s in the world. Show me a CB that can pass and dribble over to the box covering 40 yards like Luiz does. Unfortunately, he has played over 220 mins, a huge chunk of which has been played with at least one man down (and a fair bit with two). I doubt AVB wants to risk playing him again in a high tempo fixture like Arsenal’s. Bosingwa has served his 1 match ban by sitting out in the Carling cup game against Everton. He is fresh and might start, whereas Ivanovic will replace Luiz as CB, teaming up with JT, who has now had a good week’s rest. If Bosingwa doesn’t play, it wouldn’t be too much to expect Ivanovic to play in his position, while Alex takes up the CB spot. Only AVB knows.

The midfield part looks pretty straight forward. Ramires will be back from the injury he picked up against Everton at Stamford Bridge, right when he scored our 3rd and final goal of the night. Meireles was also rested for the Carling cup game against Everton, so I expect him to start as well. The same applies to Lampard, who was on the bench against Everton and will be raring to go!

Finally, the 3 pronged attack. Torres comes back from his 3 match ban! Brilliant timing yet again! He scored a brace against Genk in Champions league group stage game and I can bet my bollocks he’d have ripped QPR’s defence to shreds had he not been out suspended from domestic games. Oh well, let’s watch him bully Arsenal’s defence tomorrow! Another man who can’t seem to stop scoring is Danny Studge! It’s like he himself said, “Quit talking, start scoring”. And, scoring he does. Santos will have a busy night. Last, but certainly not the least, Juan Mata. He is fresh, he is motivated (after all, he ditched Arsenal to play for us. He must want to show Wenger why he chose to put on royal Blue) and he is creative as ever. What a great game he had against Everton last week. Our attack looks quite spritely and I think the real difference will be made in midfield tomorrow.

Let’s talk tactics, shall we?

Please watch the video below for a review of tactics and formation. CFCEmpire recommends watching the video in 480p resolution for a better viewing experience. If you don’t like videos, just continue reading…

I have always stressed how important it is to boss the midfield in order to control the tempo and hopefully the outcome of the game. Barcelona are the perfect contemporary example. They work on this rule, which one can call the “6 second rule” in Layman’s terms. It basically requires the team not in possession of the ball to win it back within 6 seconds. It was first brought into spotlight by ex-Barca man Eidur Gudjohnsen, who was a remarkable player for us as well. Arsenal are what you would call Barca-lite. Their squad plays a very attractive passing game etched into their brains by Monsieur Wenger and they do it quickly. The trick would be to prohibit them from holding possession of the ball for no longer than 6 seconds. While that limits the opponent from getting the stranglehold of the ball it can backfire if not applied with caution. If you keep pushing high up the pitch and fail to win the ball back, you have a lot of players pushing in the opponent’s half and can be beaten heavily in counter-attacks. If that does happen, it leaves the space between the nearest Chelsea defender and Cech – about half the length of the pitch. The biggest difference between Barca and Arsenal is that Arsenal are nowhere nearly as good as Barca in delivering that final killer ball. Chelsea will capitalize on that, there’s no doubt in my mind. Walcott will be heavily involved in keeping Cole quiet, which I highly doubt would work very well. If Cole can do it Ronaldo, this is Walcott we are talking about, no offence. That being said, we haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of our domestic games (if we exclude the league cup game against Fulham that went into penalties). I don’t see that trend stopping against an Arsenal attack spearheaded by in-form van Persie and Gervinho. I believe they will score at least one goal.

CFCEmpire’s Formation Prediction: 4-3-3

CFCEmpire’s Line-up Prediction: Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, JT, Cole, Ramires, Meireles, Lampard, Sturridge, Torres, Mata.

Subs: Rhys Taylor, Lukaku, Kalou, Malouda, Luiz, Ferreira & Romeu

CFCEmpire’s Score Prediction: CHE (3) :: ARS (1)

Alright! That will be all from me for now. Please let me know what you think of my work, my tactical analysis and line-up selection. if you disagree with something, I’d love to know, so long as it’s relevant to the context of this specific entry.

Finally, I’d like to dedicate my work today to my close friend Danny’s Grandfather who passed away recently. May he rest in peace…

Unitl I ink again, stay shrewd my fellow Blues…

Valencia (vs) Chelsea: Pre-Match Analysis

Hello, my fellow Blues!

The Swansea game was a cracker, wasn’t it? Torres scoring his 2nd consecutive goal of the season, and then unfortunately getting sent off. Ramires scoring a brace with finishing touches of a striker. Drogba making his return from a nightmare injury he suffered against Norwich City from a tackle by Ruddy — and scoring a goal that was a replica of Torres’s opener!!! The game ended 4-1, with Blues coming out victorious despite having played 60% of the game with 10 men (which was the case against Fulham as well! What’s up with that, eh?)!

This Wednesday evening we face the Spanish giants, Valencia. They are playing some really eye-catching football under Unai Emery. They were very unlucky to get just 1 point against Barcelona in a 2-2 draw at the Mestalla a week ago. And, this past weekend, they suffered their 1 defeat of the season against Sevilla, the game in which Jordi Alba picked up a red card and reduced Valencia to 10 men — which denied them the chance to go top of the La Liga table! So, we’re playing a team which are in a situation quite similar to ours. Oh well, this is Champions League and miracles happen! FC Basel are great example…Underestimating them wouldn’t be very wise, even thought we’ve never lost at Mestalla!

Valencia are a very strong opponent, especially at the Mestalla with a strong 55,000 fans in support. One man who knows all about it is Juan Mata — our marquee signing from Valencia. He is making an emotional return to his former club! But, I’m sure he’d like to show AVB that he is a top professional who strives for getting good results for his team. One man on red-hot form for Valencia at the moment is Soldado, who has already scored 5 goals this campaign for Los Che! But, the good news is that Valencia have heavily relied on him for goals. So, AVB’s primary target tonight will be blocking all his avenues. Thankfully, we have David Luiz who didn’t play a minute against Swansea to do just that! He is not only a terrific defender, but also very good in going forward and starting up counter attacks! Besides, Ivanovic played the entire 90 minutes against Swansea. It’ll be wise to keep him fresh for the Bolton game, who do not stop running and keep you on your toes. Ferreira, Alex didn’t travel to Spain. Which means, if need for a substitution arises, we can play Ivanovic in place of Bosingwa or Luiz.

Our midfield has always been one of the most prolific goal-scoring ones in the league for quite some time, courtesy of goal-machine Frank Lampard. He’s been asked to sit out in the past 2 games. Media was quick to jump to their baseless conclusion that Frank Lampard is nearing his end at Stamford Bridge. That’s just ridiculous, given what Frank Lampard has done for our club. And, practically speaking, Lampard may have come on as a substitute against Swansea had the sending off of Torres not forced AVB into altering his tactics.

Valencia move the ball about the pitch quite quickly and Lampard with his experience will come in handy. He is an excellent tackler for an attacking midfielder and has the ability to read the game unlike anyone in the league. With Mikel, we might be more protected in the back, but will have a lot slower build up. AVB would want to make sure we spend as little time on the ball as possible, when in possession, and that we pass it forward effectively for Torres.

I think we can expect Mata & Meireles to switch roles. We saw this against Swansea, and it worked out pretty well for Meireles. Meireles is no slouch in front of the goal, and it’ll be worth a punt to ask him to play a bit further up the pitch. Mata will once again run the show. He can afford to move in the center, right between the centre-line and the box to provide service to our forwards, thanks to Ashley Cole, who is just “out of this world”, as AVB put it in his pre-match conference yesterday!

Finally, the attack! How motivated is Torres! He came out with all his cylinder fired up against Swansea, because of the humiliations he has suffered at Old Trafford. It was quite unfortunate that he had to leave the field, when his tackle on Gower was not ill-intentioned. So, now he can’t feature in the next 3 league games and he won’t mind emptying his fuel tank tonight, in order to make sure we come back with a victory, and of course the sense of relief knowing that we’ll be at the top of Group E with 6 point, with noone even nearby!

CFCEmpire Starting XI: Cech, Bosingwa, Luiz, JT, Cole, Ramires, Lampard, Meireles, Anelka, Torres, Mata

Subs: Turnbull, Sturridge, Drogba, Malouda, Mikel, Bertrand & Ivanovic

CFCEmpire’s Formation Prediction; 4-3-3, which could later switch to 4-4-2 diamond.

Please watch this video for a detailed review of formation and tactics we can expect to see today! Watching it in 480p resolution is recommended for better viewing experience!

CFCEmpire’s Final Scoreline Prediction: VAL(1)::CHE(3)

Alright, let’s hope I am wrong and we don’t concede a goal tonight and score 4 again! Let me know what you think about my take on the game tonight. Do you agree or disagree with my team selection? What would your team be? Feel free to throw in your opinions, suggestions or just a message for our team tonight in Spain!

I will be back for the Bolton game, my fellow Blues! Until I ink again, stay shrewd…

Chelsea (vs) Swansea: Time for Sexy Football

Hello fellow Blues!

Are we feeling better after the bitter-sweet symphony of a weekend we had at OT? I surely am! In fact, I was never down after the game to be honest. We played great football and only lost the game because of our lack of good finishing. Apart from that we dominated possession, created quite a few more chances than United, disrupted their flow and displayed a very good brand of trademark AVB football!

Anyway, this weekend presents us with another challenge. What a game we had against Fulham! To win it in penalties made it even more special, because it was against our fierce West London rivals. It was a Herculean effort, mind you! Playing 120 minutes is something most footballers expect every now and then, but to play over 70 minutes with 10 men takes something special and we delivered! I bring this up, because fatigue will play a major role in today’s team selection by AVB, the tactics he will employ and his overall expectation from the game itself. I feel that today it will be about getting a good victory, but in a conservative minimalist fashion. This will be our 3rd game in 7 days, not to mention the two teams we faced are two of our most bitter rivals.

Swansea are a team that are under the able guidance of Brendan Rodgers! Welcome back to Stamford Bridge, Brendan! Swansea are known for their purist approach. I expect them to play with a 4-2-3-1 formation that is suitable for teams that depend on short passes to create chances. They demonstrated a Barca-esq like passing against West Brom, often working in triangles. Swansea dominated possession against West Brom the last time they were out. But, that’s also because of the tactics used by Roy Hodgson. He wanted his players to sit back, defend and wait for their chances to come. In that essence, Brendan Rodgers is facing an altogether different side today, whose philosophy is to attack from all fronts.

Swansea’s squad in brief:

Dyer and Rangel play on the right and provide width while Scott Sinclair on the left. Williams and Monk guard them in central defence. Allen is a great passer of the ball and controls the game’s tempo along with Gover. Lita is the lone central forward upfront. He actually had a good game against West Brom. Last but not the least, Michel Vorn! What a player he is! CFCEmpire would like to declare him the discovery of the season already! Gifted with reflexes that any goalkeeper would flaunt, Michel Vorm provides Swansea’s defence some much needed steel. Swansea have only conceded goals to Manchester City (4-0) and Arsenal (1-0) away from home so far. At home they have had two goalless draws and a cleansheet against West Brom, whom they defeated 3-0 last weekend! That game also marked their first goals of the season!

Possible Tactics to be used by AVB:

Chelsea’s formation this weekend will actually be a derivative of what happened during the game against Fulham. Malouda, Luiz, Lukaku, Romeu, Kalou played the entire 120 minutes.

AVB would want to especially keep Luiz fit for Valencia. I am expecting to see us start with a 4-5-1 today. AVB will try to break Swansea’s tempo by playing Mikel in a holding midfield role today. He will most likely be given the role of marking Gower, who makes good runs into the box and Meireles and Ramires will enjoy healthy duels with Britton and Allen respectively. Britton likes to sit at the back and support his defence. That’s why I like prospect of Meireles playing here. Allen, on the other hand shows great movement on the pitch and Ramires is the perfect man to play against him in midfield. Ramires will be very instrumental in how we counter attack today. Playing Ramires here also provides Bosingwa with extra help to deal with Scott Sinclair, who is one of the quickest players in the league at the moment. I believe Drogba will get some game time tonight and will come off from the bench in the 2nd half to replace Anelka. If that happens, I think we will switch into a 4-4-2 diamond, with Mata playing right behind the 2 central forwards. At some point, I think Meireles will be replaced by McEachran, who will make late runs into the box.

All in all this is clash of two teams who like to play proper attacking football! Or as, Ruud Gullit would have put it — sexy football(What a legend!)! This promises to make up for a great viewing experience for neutrals. A home win against Swansea is a must for our confidence. I’d like to think we will score 2 early goals and introduce our substitutes in the 2nd half to allow our squad to be fit for the Champions league against Valencia.

CFCEmpire’s Starting XI: Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, JT, Cole, Mikel, Ramires, Meireles, Anelka, Torres, & Mata

Substitutes: Turnbull, Luiz, McEachran, Drogba, Bertrand, Malouda, Lampard

CFCEmpire’s Formation Prediction: 4-5-1

Please watch this video for a detailed review of formation and tactics we can expect to see today! Watching it in 480p resolution is recommended for better viewing experience!

CFCEmpire’s Score Prediction: 3-1 for the Blues. Torres, Anelka and Meireles to be on the scoresheet for us, while Sinclair will get one for Swansea.

Alrightey then! That was my pre-match analysis for the game today! Let me know what you think of my video review of our tactics. It’s my first attempt at something like this, so do be gentle! I want to specially thank my very good friend Danny for the suggestions. It has really helped me evolve a bit and I will continue to do so.

I will ink again with the post-match analysis! Until I ink again, stay shrewd my fellow Blues!

Manchester United (vs) Chelsea: The Sweetest Defeat

Has a defeat ever tasted so sweet? I know some of you still feel it was more bitter-sweet than sweet!

You have to be on some top-shelf recreational drug if you’re telling me that the final scoreline was a fair reflection of how the game went on. Rooney scored a very lucky goal, missed a sure-shot penalty chance and then when he got another chance to score, he kindly passed it on to Berbatov in a “there you have it mate — on a platter! You need it more than I do” fashion, which Berbatov couldn’t capitalize on, thanks to a superb block from Cole!

But, Torres was even more unfortunate. He scored with a world class finish, thanks to a superb ball from Nicolas Anelka right in the beginning of 2nd half. But, the fact is that Torres served a superb ball to Ramires, which Ramires couldn’t net it in 1st half. Then, Torres maneuvered a stunning move with his quick feet but his shot was blocked by Fletcher. Torres then hit a stunning volley that missed the goalpost by a few inches. But, that wasn’t unfortunate enough. Torres got another superb through ball from Ramires (who by the way, is turning out to be a hell of a midfielder! Grazie Signore Ancelotti) and he made mincemeat of De Gea and….are you ready for this….Torres missed finding the net in a wide open goalpost! That De Gea fella is a one lucky git! I can’t imagine how terrible Torres must be feeling right now. But, I’m very content with his showing today. He is really getting back to his best! Props to AVB!

Speaking of AVB — he must have given one hell of a half-time team talk!

We played better football and dominated possession in first half and yet found ourselves trailing by 3 goals. The first two goals came from offside positions, but credit to Nani for that sublime bolter. Nevertheless, 2 offsides are a little too much for a game like this. And, then came the third in the final minutes of the first half, when a comedy of errors landed Rooney with his 9th goal of the season.

AVB had an obstacle the size of titanic to overcome! When it comes to taking tactical decisions, AVB is no slouch. He replaced Lampard and brought in Anelka. That was a very shrewd move which paid up right away in the 46th minute. He switched the formation to 4-4-2 (Diamond), with Mata sitting right behind Torres and Sturridge. It reminded me of the good old days of Carlo Ancelotti, when we dominated midfield like the Chinese dominate the manufacture industry. No, I’m kidding. It was more like how the Germans dominate the auto manufacturing industry.

Getting back to the main topic, we started the game with a 4-3-2-1 (or you could argue 4-3-3) quite like CFCEmpire had predicted. CFCEmpire was also spot on about starting line-up, except Ivanovic started instead of Luiz. Switching formations was always on the cards, but became inevitable when we came to the dressing room after the 1st half having conceded 3 unfortunate goals.

The 2nd half was Chelsea’s. We created waves after waves of attacks and made a mockery of United defence. But, it wasn’t our day. 2 offside goals, Ramires missing a sitter, Torres missing the easiest chance of his professional career, despite having played so well throughout. It was just not our day…IF….if you judge us solely based on the final scoreline.

We aren’t that naive, are we?

We definitely deserved a point, if not 3. But, that’s alright! We can take a lot of positives from the chaotic game! If you can outplay United in their own backyard like that, you can only do better at Stamford Bridge and against teams that aren’t as good as United’s. I’ll take that gladly. Today’s game might have been the first defeat in 17 months for AVB, but it is one he will cherish, for he knows he isn’t too far off. He knows he is on the right track. If there’s anyone who will surge past the rest in an emphatic fashion, it is the Blues. The prospect of having an in-form Torres and back to full fitness Drogba back in the squad will thrill any football fan. Add to that our creative midfield that will leave our midfield from last year chasing shadows, and we are looking at a typical AVB side that is capable of bulldozing past any defence.

Great game, plagued by poor finishing. But, it was one hell of an entertainer, nonetheless! Next up — Fulham in Carling Cup! I can’t wait for that fixture. Fulham drew at Craven Cottage against Manchester City. Their confidence must be quite high. But, they are going to meet an inspired and hungry Blues side! I predict a classic (read feisty) West-London derby!

Don’t forget to vent your anger, leave your thoughts… or your drivel (if you’re a delusional United fan) in the comments section!

Until I ink again, stay shrewd fellow Blues!

Manchester United (vs) Chelsea: Time For A Reality Check

“Every battle is won, before it is even fought.” ~ [Sun Tzu]

That may sound like a load of bollocks when you first read it, but dear readers, that quote comes out of The Art of War. CFCEmpire is a huge fan of ‘mind over body’ philosophy. And, if what I gather is accurate, so does AVB!

A lot that is said (and unsaid) is talked about in tabloids before clashes between Manchester United and Chelsea. If that weren’t inaccurate enough, you’ve got the baconhead muppet mumbling drivel in his pre-match conferences in his attempt to unsettle the mighty Blues! Well, here’s a piece of history for you: We have a better head to head record against the Salford Rags at Old Trafford than any other side since the inception of premier league in 1992. We have bagged 22 points in 19 meetings with them — 6 points more than any other side. More interestingly, we’ve won the last 3 of 4 premier league games against them. I don’t need to remind you what a thorn Jose Mourinho was in the eyes of Fergie. When Mourinho first took charge at Stamford Bridge, Fergie had no clue he was about to square up against the man who would go on to re-engineer the art of mind f#cking. Love Jose!!!

Interestingly enough, we’ve enjoyed this success against the reds with our “too old to challenge” side, as Rene Meulensteen put it last week. What baffles me is the inability of journalists and Reds fans alike to take note of the fact that Chelsea is a much younger and exuberant bunch compared to last year after the inclusion of Mata, Lukaku, Romeu, McEachran and Sturridge. If I remember correctly, David Luiz and Ramires won’t turn 30 for a good 6-7 years. If you’re expecting us to sign a string of ballerinas disguised as footballers like Arsenal, I’d recommend you go follow…ummm…Arsenal instead. Tell us how that goes, will ya?

No offence to Arsenal, but they’ve failed to mix youth with experience. It’s for everyone to see how badly that can turn out to be. I’m actually very happy to see the old guards in Lampard, JT, Drogba and Ashley Cole still around and doing their best week in and week out. Without them, our younger players won’t have the mentors (and one of the best players in their respective positions might I also add) to look up to and learn from. Lampard may have lost some pace, but he still is one of the sharpest footballing brains playing football. In JT, we have a captain who wears his heart on his sleeve and is always willing to fight it out till the end. In Ashley Cole, we have the best left-back that England has ever produced, and Europe has seen in a long time. And, Drogba — just ask any defender how they feel playing against him in one word. The most common response, I bet, would be “terrifying”.

But, this is the right time to sit down and slowly redistribute the weight of responsibility these old guards have been carrying on their shoulders for such a long time. And, I’m glad that’s exactly what AVB is doing for us right now.

Anyway, moving on to pre-match analysis.

United are brimming with confidence after scoring 18 goals in 4 league games so far. That’s a goal more than what we had scored in our blistering start to 2010-11 season. More interestingly, Rooney has scored 8 goals alone. That’s more than the cumulative goal count that any club besides City have been able to reach. Was it a brain transplant or just hair transplant again Wayne? United and City deserve CFCEmpire’s respect in this area. You might, although, like to notice that United put 8 goals past an Arsenal side that were 8 players short of their regular starting XI and didn’t have any replacements for Nasri, Clichy and Fabregas. Oh, and let’s not overlook the 2 goals they conceded in the process. And, the other North London club, Tottenham Hotspurs, are no different than Arsenal when it comes to leaking goals. There’s such a big hole in Harry Redknapp’s defence, Roman Abramovich can park his Maybach in it. So, to be fair, United are yet to play a proper defence. Let’s not forget we have had the best defence in premier league since 2004. Last year, we beat City by a small margin in terms of goals conceded. We all know Chelsea won’t concede 8 goals. Besides, we are doing a lot better job in scoring consistently than Arsenal are at the moment. But, that isn’t enough, is it?

AVB is still in the trial stage. He hasn’t figured out a combination that he can rely on to play the system and the style of football he has in mind. That makes us a bit more vulnerable, to be honest. Especially in counter attacks, when we tend to see a bad final ball delivered to a player running into the box. Against Sunderland, we were 3 against 1 in the dying minutes of the game, and Torres failed to find an accurate pass to Sturridge, who had busted his gut to make that run. We can’t afford such mistakes at Old Trafford.

Secondly, we need to fine tune our defence. I have a feeling AVB will throw in a defensive midfielder against United. He has to. It has long been argued whether Mikel has the pace and vision to play in the role Claude Makelele made his own and became the legend he is today. Unfortunately, I have to agree with his critics. While Mikel is as strong as an ox when he digs his foot into the ground and blocks players from moving, he is not quite well equipped with the speed to take on quick feets like Hernandez, Rooney and Nani. Mikel has enjoyed the status of the best passer in the league 2 years in a row. That’s quite a weapon to have in your armory. Although, in using that weapon we lose speed in passing the ball forward. But, the bigger issue with Mikel is his array of back passes to Ivanovic, Terry, and Cole & Bosingwa on odd occasions. I thought the point of having a defensive midfielder was to reduce the workload of passing the ball forward from the shoulders of central midfielders. I believe that is why AVB brought in Romeu and Meireles. Meireles has done an exceptional job in that deeper role he has been asked to play in for us. He set up that goal for Sturridge in his very first game for us against Sunderland. He was just as good against Leverkusen. It has to be Meireles again at Old Trafford.

Another candidate that has been a center of speculation is David Luiz. Blessed with a finishing touch that David N’Gog wished he had, or the ability to pass the ball so beautifully that any central midfielder would be proud of, we have a gem of a versatile player. I’d really like to see how David Luiz plays in a holding midfield position. He’s got a pair of quick feet, and loves battling it out to win the ball back. He can be a bit of a liability with his rash tackling, but let’s not brandish the guy with the Roy Keane badge yet. I think playing him in deep midfield would give us a lot more flexibility in the flanks. Besides, if he does in fact makes an odd bad tackle now and then, we won’t end up giving away a penalty chance if he were to make that tackle inside the box as a central defender. Food for thought.

I see him replacing Ivanovic in defence against United. He is cult favorite for his Manchester killing performances after all!

Lampard played the final 30 minutes against Leverkusen, while JT was rested completely. I take that’s a clear signal that they will both be starting. And, believe you me, there aren’t better players we can travel with to Old Trafford than them. They’ve seen it all and know how to handle the pressure cooker situations in big games.

Finally, let’s talk attack! Torres played his best game in a Blues jersey this past Tuesday. I can’t put it any better than that. I can’t see AVB dropping him. He knows all about scoring against United. I bet Vidic is glad he is out. Phil Jones and Rio ‘Snort it’ Ferdinand are about to be tested this week! Ferdinand isn’t the defender he used to be 2 years ago. He has just returned from a injury and will be asked to play his best game of the season right away. I doubt he’d do too well. That leaves all the pressure on young Smalling, Jones and loud-mouth Evra to soak up. While they’re all good players, they will be on their toes throughout the 90 minutes, because one mistake means De Gea (or The Gay, as I like to call him) will be pissing his shorts. Speaking of De Gea, you can expect us to bombard him with long range shots — something he’s been very vulnerable against. All the more reason to start Meireles — who scored 4 of his last 6 goals for Liverpool will long range volleys. Time for you to turn it up a notch mate!

Fergie has tremendous wingers at his disposal in Giggs, Valencia, Nani and Young. But, his real problem is in central midfield. It was no trip to the fairy in Portugal this past Wednesday. Carrick was seen chasing shadows throughout the game. Fletcher is a player I always admire and can play a major role in the center. But, who does he parter with? Honestly, CFCEmpire would like to see Anderson instead of Park. Park is a big game player and always comes up with dangerous assists and through balls to threaten our defence. Anderson, while more attacking, lacks the vision Park has. So, my bet would be on Park. Him and Fletcher in the middle of the park(no pun intended) for United. I also expect Rooney to drop deep. It worked wonders in the second half of last season, when he supplied Hernandez will a lot of assists. Rooney’s influence in midfield can make things difficult for us, but at the same time, make life a tad bit easier in defence. Let’s see how Rooney balances his act.

This is a huge clash, no matter when it is played, but like AVB said in his pre-match conference, the result of this game won’t decide where the title ends up at come May 2012. I agree with the Portuguese tactician. Last year, we had a flying start and lost the plot in mid-season and yet found ourselves traveling to Old Trafford with a chance to repeat what we did in April 2010 in our double winning season! The season’s long and has many a hurdles, that not just us, but every title contender team will have to overcome to claim the league title. Injuries, suspensions, transfers, you name it. The season is still young and a lot still lies in the store that nobody has yet seen.

I reckon AVB will etch this bit quite well on our players’ psyches before our game tomorrow. I personally think that the game will be won by the side with a stronger midfield and, of course, the hunger to come out victorious.

CFCEmpire’s Starting XI: Cech, Bosingwa, Luiz, JT, Cole, Ramires, Meireles, Lampard, Sturridge, Torres, Mata.

Subs: Turnbull, Ivanovic, Anelka, Mikel, Malouda, Ferreira, Kalou

CFCEmpire’s Formation Prediction: 4-3-2-1

4-3-2-1: Stronger Midfield. Allows Torres more space to play in as well.

What do you guys think? Do you see any flaw in my tactics? Feel free to point out and enlighten us! Do you think Ivanovic should play instead of Luiz?

I will be back with my post match thoughts! Until I ink again, stay shrewd fellow Blues…

Sunderland (vs) Chelsea: A Well Oiled Display from Chelsea Machine

Hello fellow Blues!

I couldn’t have hand-picked a better opponent than Sunderland if I wanted. Afterall, they’ve only won 1 game against us in the last 13. That’s a tremendous record, irrespective of how weak a team you are playing against. And, Sunderland aren’t a weak team by any stretch. Well, not at the moment, anyway, thanks to Steve Bruce’s shrewd spending in the transfer market this summer.

Chelsea's 4-4-2 (VS) Sunderland: Offensive Midfield

AVB surprised me by fielding a 4-4-2 this evening. Mata was operating from the extreme left of the 4-man midfield, followed by Lampard, Meireles in the center and Ramires on the far right. No defensive midfielder, or at least no player was appointed for that duty today. AVB opted for a very  offensive line up. Steve Bruce knew his team needed a miracle to beat this Chelsea side. AVB has been true to his word — he did indeed drop Torres for his lack of consistent display so far. Apart from Fernando Torres, CFCEmpire was spot on about AVB’s starting XI. It was Anelka who replaced
Torres in the starting line up today in the center along with Sturridge up front.

Chelsea started the game with a medium-paced, but much better controlled build up play. Anelka was brought down right outside the box at 16′. Mata took a stunning free-kick that dipped all the way and hit the bar, and deflects back to Sturridge. Sturridge lobbed it to Terry. Terry hit a nice low shot, but the shot was blocked and came back to him. This time he hit the ball into the ground with a very low volley and an extremely acute angle to work it in with a clinical finish.
Chelsea continued to dominate possession and kept passing the ball progressively in Sunderland’s half. Meireles did an exceptional job assimilating into Chelsea’s style of play. He performed quite well done in the center of our midfield by intervening a lot of potentially threatening passes from Cattermole and Richardson. Bendtner missed a sitter right before the end of the first half, when Seb Larsson delivered a trademark cross from a free kick. Sunderland crowd came back to life. First half finished with Chelsea in lead by one goal — a well deserved lead.
We began the 2nd half with brisk pace yet again. Anelka did a great job collecting the ball and passing it to Sturridge. Sturridge made a run with blistering  pace past the Sunderland defense and won the physical battle to eventually score with one of the best
timed backheel flicks you’ll ever see. Inch perfect and timed with milli-second precision. I have no other way to describe it! It was literally breathtaking — watch the highlights if you haven’t yet and you’ll agree with me!
Sunderland fans were shell-shocked, whereas Chelsea fans were already singing about the pleasant trip back to London out loud! AVB gave Lampard, Mata, Ramires and Meireles the freedom to alternate turns and run even past Anelka and Sturridge and try to score. Malouda replaced Sturridge at 61′. The young Englishman has done a great job by grabbing the opportunity to feature in first team by both hands. I believe AVB wants him to play against Leverkusen in CL on Wednesday. That way he also got the chance to keep Malouda fit and give him some game time, and put more pressure on Sunderland’s faltering defence.
Chelsea were controlling the midfield, especially because of the extra help Lampard was getting from Meireles and Ramires. Ashley Cole is easily the best left back in Europe(and possibly in the world) because of his tremendous work rate, versitality and consistency. He was a constant menace on the left for Steve Bruce’s men.
Fernando Torres came on for his Spanish compatriot, Mata at 71′. Mata was very lively for us today. Final substitution: Oroil Romeu made his Chelsea debut by replacing Nicolas Anelka. He got a big cheer of encouragement from the traveling Blues fans.
Seb Larsson delivered a beautiful cross for Arsenal reject, Bendtner who, true to his reputation, fumbled it again and the ball went to Korean debutant Ji Dong-Won on the left, right in front of our goal-post.. Dong-Wong sent Cech in the wrong direction and put the final touch with calm to give Sunderland a goal at 91′. Chelsea fans were a bit nervous and quite righly so. After being spotless in defense for 90 mins, conceding in extra time isn’t what any coach or fan likes to see. But, it was Chelsea’s day and they got the well deserved 3 points in the end.
Final whistle brought a good game of football to end. Chelsea were clinical and steady throughout the game. Although, JT didn’t look too pleased despite winning the game, which is understandable. He did a great job in both attack and defence and wanted a clean sheet. Not too much to ask for, when you boast the best defence-line in Europe.

All in all, it was a terrific game and Chelsea fans should see it as a sign of progression. Our midfield was organized and we spent a lot less time on the ball during possession, which I’ve pointed out earlier as well. I can only see the graph moving up steadily, because with time, Meireles and Mata will only get dangerous. It’d also be criminal to forget how hungry and driven Sturridge is. I think he will be the star of the season for us, personally. Mata might give him the run for his money, but I won’t mind that either. Great day for the Blues fans!

Thoughts on the game? Feel free to share with us in the comments section. What were you impressed with the most in Chelsea’s performance today? What was it that you thought could have been better?

CFCEmpire will strike back for the Leverkusen game! Until then, keep it cozy…

Asamoah Gyan

My deepest apologies for the error in reporting in the “Sunderland (vs) Chelsea: Pre-Match Analysis” post.I just heard Asamoah Gyan has actually been loaned out to Al-Ain for the season.

Such errors will not be repeated in the future posts. CFCEmpire always does its best in checking facts before reporting them.

Please visit again for the post-match analysis of the Sunderland-Chelsea game. Until I ink again keep it cozy, fellow Blues!

Chelsea (vs) Norwich City: The Underdogs Strike

Dear fellow readers,

What a beautiful afternoon it was in SW6! Add on to that the bright yellow traditional outfits the Canaries were sporting, and you’d be forgiven for admiring their sprightly presence, despite the fact that they came to Stamford Bridge with an intention of unsettling the Blues! To be truly reflective of the proceeding from yesterday, they did, to a certain extent in the first half. But, football isn’t about flashes of brilliance — it’s about consistency, ruthlessness, perseverance and adaptability.

Now, this isn’t a philosophy open-courseware, I’m quite aware of it. But, I will throw all the stats and numbers I can at you in the next 5 minutes to prove to you, that I mean what I wrote above quite literally.

Let’s start off with Norwich City’s record at Stamford Bridge:

In 22 games that they’ve played us at Stamford Bridge, they’ve only let us win 54.55% of the games, i.e. 12 victories. Now, that may come as quite a surprise to a lot of us, but Stamford Bridge didn’t always have the reputation of a fortress that it has garnered since Mourinho took over. Not just that, Norwich City had also won 5 times out of 22 games. That actually is quite a commendable feat, and in fact, makes them the 4th most successful away team to play at Stamford Bridge ahead of United, Arsenal and Spurs. There you go — a question you can ask your mates, or have them buy you a pint!

Combined with stats like that, and a very organized manager in Paul Lambert (who uses his experience from Germany, where he won the Champions League with current Bundesliga Champions Borussia Dortmund) and we were up against a team that had nothing to lose.

Let’s move on to our own team! We recently captured Juan Mata, who has been a hot target for a host of club giants across Europe, most noticeably — Arsenal. AVB made no secret of the fact that a player needs more than 2 training sessions to develop “relationships”, both on and off the pitch. When my friend Adam, an unfortunate Gooner, asked me if Juan Mata will start, I had to do nothing but recite what AVB had said, but I quickly added that if we were a goal or two up, he might get some minutes in the end.

Chelsea started the game quite unlike we started against Stoke and West Brom — brightly! Our passing was short, quick, & purposeful. I put a lot of emphasis on short. I remember when we were smashing teams like tropical flies last season. The thing that stuck out the most from that time was our speed of passing and the time spent on the ball, between passes. AVB made it very clear that we can’t keep winning games based on the resurgence we’ve become quite renowned for off late in 2nd halves. He wanted us to earn a good lead in the first half and then enjoy the game in the 2nd, even allowing him the chance to give some game time to the likes of Lukaku, Mata, McEachran.

Jose Bosingwa has been like a new signing this season! He didn’t play a game for an entire year from October ’09 to ’10. I can understand how difficult it is to come back from an ACL injury. But, he has worked hard on his fitness and is really turning into one of the most ferocious players in the league. If you were a neutral fan who didn’t know much about Chelsea, I’d excuse you for thinking he’s a winger! Because, that’s how good he is! Cole to Malouda, Malouda to Lampsy and then a flat pass on to Bosingwa, who had just drifted towards the center — and BOOM! What a blinder from Bosingwa from 25 yards! The Portuguese full-back picked the ball up 25 yards from goal and fired a thunderbolt into the top corner.

But, Norwich City didn’t come to Premier League to be pushovers! Paul Lambert was quick to introduce Chris Martin into the game and switch the formation to 5-3-2. That made things very difficult for us, and Norwich City started to pose threats from counter attacks. Holt could have equalized under 30 minutes, when he broke past the offside trap laid out by Terry-Ivanovic. If it weren’t for his slightly over-timed run, he would not have needed to improvise and use back-heel to try and score. Good for us, he couldn’t score. We went into the 2nd half with a 1:0 lead. But, it wasn’t Chelsea who dominated the half, despite dominating possession.

Lukaku and Mata could be seen warming up, as the second half proceeded with action. Holt, who had missed on a golden opportunity earlier, wasn’t ready to let go another. Ivanovic and Hilario both rushed towards a long ball, but collided and ended up pushing the ball to Holt, who hooked it back towards the goal. John Terry tried his best but couldn’t stop the ball from hitting the back of the net. To be fair to Norwich, they deserved a goal for the amount of perseverance they had shown all afternoon.

The ball was in Chelsea’s court now and it was time for us to show what we are made of! If things couldn’t get worse, Drogba got knocked out cold in midair to a ferocious elbow-smash from Ruddy, Norwich’s shot-stopper. Drogba fell on his face and I felt this cold sensation in my spine, as if something went terribly wrong. Cynics were probably thinking, “What great acting from Drogba!”. I didn’t. Drogba has changed a lot since he came to SW6 in 2004. He wouldn’t fake a concussion, and surely not a bleeding nose. I was disgusted with the amount of trash-talking Chelsea hating “fans” did on some forums. Anyway, I’m quite worried about the big Ivorian. He has been one of the pillars on which Chelsea’s success has been built upon! I hope he comes back to action soon! Good luck, Didi!

Lukaku, Juan Mata and Anelka were introduced on for Drogba, Malouda and Torres respectively. Yet another example of ruthless and purposeful substitutions from AVB! Malouda wasn’t having the best days, and neither was Torres. We played with a 4-1-3-2 for the most part, with Drogba and Torres upfront. But, with these strings of substitutions, came a change in formation — the tried and tested 4-3-3! Mata was operating from the left, while Lukaku did from the right, giving Anelka the central role. Mata made immediate difference with his dribbling and overall ball control. Whereas, Lukaku was a different beast(no pun intended)! Lukaku, at the age of 18 has the same menacing presence that Drogba is known for. No Norwich defender was able to hold him off from moving, and neither were they able to snatch possession from the towering Belgian!

We started getting closer and closer to scoring, but it wasn’t until the 81′ when Chelsea hit Norwich with a stunning counter attack. Except for Ruddy, no player was in Norwich’s half. And, it was Ramires yet again! Anelka did a tremendous job to check his run and make a beautiful diagonal through ball to Ramires. Now, Ramires, as we all know, has a jetpack retrofitted under his jersey. It’s just uncanny the amount of energy Ramires shows in the final 25 minutes. I’d even go as far as saying that he is the fittest player in PL, especially this early during the season, when most players struggle to finish 90 minutes. Ramires flew past Norwich defense, and moved a slight bit to the right to slot in a goal, but Ruddy brought him down. PENALTY! But, referee Mike Jones also decided to send Ruddy off, with a straight red. I thought it was a bit harsh, but now that I think about it, Ruddy never really received a yellow for that nasty challenge on Drogba. Football is no place for Karma, as Michel Platini and Tom Henning Ovrebo have shown us. Mike Jones begged to differ and sent Ruddy off right away. Thankfully, we have a penalty taker like Lampard in our team. He has only ever missed 5 penalties in PL games in Chelsea’s royal blue! The only one who has a better record than him was also a Chelsea player — Michael Ballack (I miss him!)

Chelsea (2) :: Norwich (1)

Stamford Bridge was rocking! The romantic I am, I was secretly hoping Lampard would let Lukaku take the penalty, which he would in turn dedicate to his idol – Drogba! But, I know football better than that! Lampard was the right choice and I’d rather see Lukaku score from a stunning 20 yard volley or a thunderbolt from 25 yards, which would suit his stature(no pun intended again!)…

Norwich City were starting to see the demons they saw in their home game against Stoke, when Jones scored in injury time to ruin their hopes of securing 3 points in front of their home crowd. And, to be brutally honest, Norwich City are quite a bit more powerful than what their recent scorelines sugest. One would argue they deserved better than that, but quoting Steve McMahon, an ex-Liverpool man, “If you want to be a Premier League winning team, you have to win games you aren’t meant to.” I agree with him on that one. Football is a result oriented phenomenon! Unfortunately, people like Alex Ferguson bully refs and give the “result oriented” part a bad name. But, oh well. People can argue all they want, it was a penalty all day long. Ivanovic was found cursing himself, when he missed out on the easiest goal scoring chance of the game, by heading the ball a yard wide of the goal post. Had that gone in, Norwich were looking at a late drubbing.

Never before have I seen 11 minutes of official injury time being played! Yesterday was my lucky day! I got to see 11 more minutes of football played by my team! Unfortunately, it came at the cost of a nasty concussion Drogba had faced earlier. Mata, Anelka and Lukaku proved to be way to sprightly for a depleted Norwich team. Mata pounced on a shoddy display in the back from Norwich and slotted in a low drive aimed at the far post. Juan Mata would go down as one of the very few men in the history of football to score a proper goal at 101′ in injury time. For a man who has only trained with his new team mates twice, this was something coming out of a movie script! What a dream installment into Premier League world for Juan Mata! Not only did AVB did a great job in snapping him up from under Arsene Wenger’s nose, he also brought him on into the game, which made immediate impact!

The game ended 3:1 and I couldn’t be any happier! I know we could have scored more, but it’s the 3 points I will care most about when I look back at the league table in May 2012. The positives to come out of the game was surely the more assuring presence of Ivanovic at the back, Ramires’s yet another tireless display, Mata’s heroic introduction into English football, and a day when Lukaku’s lifelong dream came true! Besides, who doesn’t love these nail biting games, especially when we end up victorious!

No games for the next 2 weeks and I will be extremely bored! But, on the other hand, I’ll be more than happy to know that when we come back in 2 weeks, we’ll be playing much better as a team and will have our pre-season hero, Daniel Sturridge back into action! What a mouth watering prospect it will be to see the likes of Lukaku, Mata, McEachran and Sturridge taking on the responsibility from the shoulders of our big boys who have done a great job for a such a prolonged period!

KTBFFH!

Transfer market is still open and we still have at least one more important signing to make. I want to talk about the various permutations and combinations that AVB might look at to accommodate these new signings, while still maintaining his brand of attacking and free flowing football! So, keep your tabs on my blog for a post dedicated to just that! Until I ink again, keep it cozy…

Chelsea FC: Shopping Check-List

Dear fellow Blues,

This summer has been nothing short of a revelation. It has also been quite a suspenseful time for us fans! First, the departure of Carlo Ancelotti — appointment of Andre Villas-Boas as his successor — Liverpool’s cash-splash on English players — Arsenal’s reluctance on letting Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri part ways — United’s investment in young and expensive talent — Sunderland spending all their earnings into squad rebuilding, and Man City bringing in Sergio Aguero for their personal record of transfer fee of £38 million! Compare it to Torres, and he is more or less a bargain. Of course, I’m not indirectly claiming that Torres was a terrible buy — I, to be honest, am convinced he will bang in as many as 15 goals, excluding penalties. Call it statement of bent logic(or none at all), but if you’ve seen Torres’s intensity and hunger from pre-season games and the game against Stoke, you know goals are on his mind and he will put it all on the line to fire his cylinders and show his critics that he has, in fact, “not forgotten how to score goals.”

Well, drifting back to the main topic here — transfer news!

Chelsea has been, as some have claimed, awfully quite and calculated in transfer market this summer. I can’t say that statement is far off from the truth. And, why should we not be? Last time I checked, Mr. Abramovich’s money didn’t grow on trees. Besides, the man has invested heavily in our youth academy and it’s time CFC’s football director gave him some fine products to throw in the senior squad mix. I’m glad we’ve been able to grow and nurture talents like Josh McEachran, Gael Kakuta, Patrick van Aanholt, Ryan Bertrand, Nathaniel Chalobah, Jeffrey Bruma, Milan Lalkovic, Slobodan Rajkovic, Conor Clifford, Tomas Kalas, etc.

But, coming back to reality, we are a club that thrives on winning mentality and an active habit of winning trophies. Rolling stone gathers no moss. Need I say more? Why am I suddenly bringing this up? Well, whoever is at helm at Stamford Bridge is under enormous pressure to deliver silverware. Let’s be honest, we’re not quite in Barcelona’s position to depend on our youth product entirely. But, to be fair to ourselves, Barca too had a trophyless string of run from 1999 to 2005, when their young buds finally blossomed into these flowers that we today call Champions League winners! That doesn’t mean we’re light years behind. Just look at the quality we’ve produced I mentioned earlier. It’s a matter of time before these Abramovich-era-first-batch Chelsea academy graduates start to shine for us! Our reserve and youth squad’s success last season speaks volumes of the progress we’ve made as a club!

Let’s talk short-term goals. Don’t let that phrase fool you — short term goals for Chelsea have always meant fighting for titles, both domestically and continentally. And, in order to achieve that, AVB will have to make a list of tools that he will use to achieve these goals.

What’s missing?

Since the departures of Robben and Joe Cole, we’ve been accused of not playing with creativity and width. Fair enough. We tend to play quite narrow and depend on Ashley Cole and Bosingwa/Ivanovic for width. While Cole has done a tremendous job in teaming up with Malouda on the left, our right flank has been a focal point of our opponents’ exploitation. Evra-Nani or Evra-Giggs (or) Bale-Modric or Bale-Pavluychenko (VS) Ivanovic/Bosingwa is always a nail-biting contests to watch, especially for us Chelsea fans. Ivanovic is a stunning CB, but making him play as a RB puts way too much responsibility on the no-nonsense Serbian. Besides, he is naturally a CB, so why not play him where he plays best. As for Bosingwa, I’d have to save my judgment for later. He was brought in by Scolari and has done fairly well as a RB. He is not as strong as Ivanovic, but he has speed and flair. Just look at the way he danced past West Brom’s defence last Saturday. Let’s see if he can perform at the same level with consistency.

But, shouldn’t he get someone like Malouda, as Cole has, to partner up on the right flank? That was a rhetoric question!

There we have it: A right winger. And, it appears Juan Mata is on his way to Stamford Bridge! I can’t say I’m not pleased with that signing! He is quick, aggressive and has tremendous ball control, which is quite the norm with Spanish players. He is a product of Real Madrid academy, but came out of the shell with Valencia. After Silva’s departure, he shouldered the responsibility in midfield for the Spanish club. It is only natural to presume that his understanding with Torres will be very good. I also get a feeling that AVB is a fan of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American style of football. And, who wouldn’t be! He, quite like Mourinho, is bringing back that flair and passion that has been lacking in our game off late. I think McEachran will benefit immensely from his partnerships with the likes of Mata, Modric and Nasri, who in current day football world, are some of the representatives of style and panache!

What else?

Well, going back to my talk about Fernando Torres. I think he played his best season in Liverpool when he had Gerrard and Alonso supplying him relentlessly from midfield. Torres, while very skillful, isn’t the type of striker who creates his own goals. And, that isn’t a fatal flaw or a crime by any stretch. Remember, Luis Ronaldo aka Ronaldo — the 2 times Ballon d’Or and 3 times FIFA Player of The Year! Yes, he was just like the player Fernando Torres is — you supply him a good ball in the box and he always scored! But, let’s not get carried away. I’m not saying Torres and Ronaldo are two peas. But, it is no rocket science to deduce that Torres needs someone like Gerrard or Iniesta to deliver those killer assists. We’ve got Benayoun, who in my opinion, is a very good team player. But, it’d be a bad idea to solely depend on him for two reasons: 1) injury 2) fatigue. We play a lot of games every year and it’d be unfair to think Benayoun can go the entire season without feeling fatigued and getting injured. That’s why AVB has been in the market for a creative midfielder.

Tottenham have been very difficult both for Modric and Chelsea. Modric openly accused Levi of not standing true to his word or as he put it, “the gentleman’s agreement”. Frankly, if Tottenham is serious about playing in CL, they need to be a little more intelligent than that. They can’t keep a player at the club against his will, especially not when it was agreed that he would be let go if a bigger club with a good offer comes knocking. I put a high premium on loyalty and I don’t think Modric is being disloyal to Spurs. No player would like to play for Spurs if they will hold their players against their will of playing in Europe.

Another alternate to Modric will be Nasri. Arsenal would be better off selling him to us than to Manchester City. City are looking very strong, and let’s be honest, they’ll be a bigger threat to Arsenal than us, who apparently have a weaker midfield compared to City or United — the two clubs that have been after Nasri signature. From a personal standpoint, Nasri will be £8 million cheaper compared to Modric. So, we never know — Nasri might just ditch City and move to Chelsea. It’d be an ideal move for him, because at Chelsea, he will have a much better chance of starting every game, compared to City. Besides, who wants to go to cloudy, dark and rainy Manchester?

Anyway, those are the three players we need, and if everything goes right, Juan Mata will be a Chelsea player in a day or two and hopefully, so will be Modric very soon. As for Nasri, AVB know! And, he knows BEST!

Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment below if you have another player in mind, who would be cheaper and much more willing to move to Chelsea but just as good(or even better) than Nasri or Modric.

Do you guys think we need rebuilding in any other area? What are those? And, who do you see playing in those areas to improve our play?

I’ll ink again after the home game against Norwich City! Until then, keep it cozy!