The Chelsea Times (formerly the Chelsea Weekly Times, but I’m covering my arse now): Champions League Special!
Thursday, 07 May 09, 07:42 PM · Comments (75)
This week’s Chelsea Times was going to be a pleasant stroll down nostalgia avenue, with a few bits about the game in the Nou Camp or Camp Nou or whatever it’s called today, plus a bit on the Fulham (North Putney) game from last weekend. It was right in line with the Chelsea Times policy of accentuating the positive side of being conjoined to our enigmatic mistress, Chelsea FC.
I made an editorial decision to keep my powder dry on this week’s edition though and wait until after Wednesday’s showdown so as to include what I had convinced myself would be a glorious inset on our march to a revenge match against Manchester Village. Sorry United. Hmm... I rather like the first one though. Anyway, as it happened it seems my choice was prudent as it has given me the chance to produce a dedicated issue on the travesty/debacle/mugging/cock-up (delete as appropriate) that occurred against East Catalonia... sorry... Barcelona.
I’ve had just under 24 hours to digest the events of last night, so hopefully can now provide a reasonably objective and philosophical view on the night we never lost, but were beaten in the Champions League 2009.
I don’t think many were surprised by Hiddink’s selection for the game, especially in light of the success the Anelka, Drogba and Malouda triumvirate showed against Fulham. It seemed Guus, like many was confident that these three would shine in spearheading our attack against the flair and skill of Barca’s flamenco football. We all knew Barca may be slightly more suspect at the back without Marquez and Puyol, and if we were to show more of ourselves in attack then few can doubt we have much better than this currently. A midfield of regulars Ballack, Essien and Lampard could sit comfortably in front of a proven back four. There were no real surprises from Barca either, bar the no-show of ex-Gooner Henry through injury. We all knew this would be no cake walk, but after the display of stoicism and pragmatism at their place, we also knew we could defend like we used to under The Portuguese Gentleman formerly of these parts. A review has already been covered by our fearless editor so there’s no need to cover the minutiae of the game here. Suffice it to say the game ebbed in our direction rather more than flowed in theirs, but if we are to believe the club, this was all part of our Dutch master’s game plan. If so then it was a work of art to compare with anything slapped on a piece of canvas by Messrs Rembrandt and Vermeer. As containment goes both legs of the semi-final can be held up as glorious exhibitions of that genre of footballing art.
But of course, as with any great culturally shared experience, such as your first hearing of a particular album or the first time you visit a gallery and actually engage with some aspect of either to the point of wanting to tell the world, there will always be the bits you aren’t keen on, or those that turn you away from or onto something. The game was no different, with bits that neutrals could enjoy such as the two goals, both from glorious strikes, arguably from players not renowned for having that as their primary quality. Novice football watchers could revel in the skills shown by Malouda (yes, Malouda, looking every inch the player to keep now), Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Terry in their respective roles. But just what would the average viewer make of the game's key incidents, each in itself a potential turning point in either of the combatants' fortunes?
Key Incident 1 - Essien's wonder strike from 30 yards resulting from a fortunate deflection from a Lampard cross. Quite simply a strike of awesome power and beauty combined.
Key Incident 2 - The ‘Malouda’ incident. Early in the game of course, but so blatantly an offence that should have incurred a penalty, one could only wonder if this was the start of a conspiracy. I don’t for one minute think so, and prefer to blame Captain Cock-up, rather than any ‘Spooks’ internal UEFA conspiracy. Quite frankly no organization so full of air-headed, power crazed, bureaucratic fuckwits could execute anything like this without shooting themselves in the foot somewhere. Believe me, if this was in anyway true then I’m sure The Sun or similar would revel in exposing such sleaze.
Key Incident 3 - The Drogba penalty claim. Again, this seemed so clear to me, that I’m sure in the Premier League even perennial Chelsea hater Mike Riley would have struggled not to give it. But Drogba has that reputation, and be honest... are you really surprised the ref ignored our appeals? Some might say it’s karma, or fate repaying us. Bollocks, it’s purely the fear of a ref being harangued for being conned by a man whose 15 stone frame topples more easily than straw in a gale force wind.
Key Incident 4 – Drogba’s glaring miss. Unforgivable for anyone claiming to be a world class striker. The fact that this was the second time in a week against the same keeper makes it imperative that we get a young destroyer in place, similar to Torres or Arshavin next season and quick. If he scores then 93rd minute goals are irrelevant unless preceded by an earlier equalizer.
Key Incident 5 – Abidal’s red card. It could have tugged the tiger’s tail, but instead it was scarcely noticeable judging by the way Barca continued to dominate possession. I was reminded of England versus Brazil in 2002, when despite Brazil being down to 10 men, England did not get a single shot on or off target. Stupid accusations of Anelka diving are wide of the mark. His heel was clipped, but it did NOT warrant a red card, nor did Anelka even attempt to appeal. The ensuing free kick was Lampard at his worst. Scuffed and wide. I could have cried. I still don’t know why Ballack, who is far more reliable in beating walls didn’t get the chance.
Key Incident 6 – Pique’s blatant handball. A ‘stick on’ penalty and by not giving it the referee has just re-written the FIFA/UEFA/FA handbooks on what constitutes a handball offence worthy of a penalty. I will watch with interest the next time something similar happens in our domestic league. As Souness said, ‘How can he NOT give it?’
Key Incident 7 – Iniesta’s equalizer. Essien cocked up here. A ball that should have been row Z was half-heartedly stabbed at, maybe through fatigue. If that’s the case then why didn’t Hiddink recognise this and swap him for Obi for the last five minutes? Whatever... it was a great strike and much has been said about it being their first... but it only takes one good one in order to score. We forgot that for a split second and a huge price has been duly paid.
Key Incident 8 – The Eto’o incident. The shot was goal bound. Valdez may have saved, but again we’ve seen these given week in and week out in our own league. Ballack's reaction was over the top, but utterly understandable in light of the fact that in all likelihood this could be his last shot at a major honour.
Each or any of those going a different way might have influenced the game for better or worse as far as Chelsea are concerned. But what’s done is done and the brutal fact is that we were punished for not taking our chances as well as poor refereeing decisions. We gambled, nearly walked away with the fortune, but the house always wins. We staked the lot on Blue, but the ball fell to Yellow.
I would at this point question Guus’s tactics in one area. Substitutions. Drogba was injured, or feigning. The relevance is that just like the boy who cried wolf, the wolf will eventually get you. The wolf this time was Guus, who must have thought that Drogba was genuinely crocked. Time for a sub then... but Belletti? My problem here is the message that sent Barca. Clearly the message was that we intend to hold what we’ve got, and for me that was yet another shake of the large feline’s tail. With Kalou and Di Santo on the bench, why not give a further weakened Barca defence another player to watch? Belletti to his credit did well, but another chance to score was spurned by his poor touch. Then with 90 on the clock, and two possible substitutions left, why not use both, perhaps Essien for Obi and Ivanovic for Ballack? Fresh legs and maybe fresh impetus for the dying vestiges of the game. I don’t doubt for one minute our Branners would have hurled himself into Iniesta’s path at the moment of our execution.
Penultimately, some notes on the post match reaction across the media and football world. Firstly, one odd thing... I did not receive one gloating, baiting text from any of the normal fan rivals I know. Not one. Perhaps they could envisage their own feelings had it been their team. Who knows? The media it seems have been waiting since Mourinho’s departure for the chance to pounce on another bad Chelsea story, and enter stage left, pantomime villain Didier Drogba. Can you hear the collective booing and hissing? I understand Drogba’s reaction borne of frustration and culpability, and yes it was over the top. I also know that had I been a player I would have decked the ref and had a little spell in one of Lizzie's less luxurious establishments. I want my heroes to be passionate, caring and emotional. I do not want footballers to be like Schumacher, Woods or Hamilton, automaton-like press trained monkeys. In general the printed press seem to be giving the fairer coverage, maybe because their depth of understanding and contact with football is, by legacy, that much closer. They need their spies and moles to get the stories that sell the print and hence they probably have a more insightful knowledge of the machinations of the footballer's mind. It’s rare for me to praise the press but today, on balance, they seem to have been much fairer than normal. And that includes serial Chelsea despiser Richard Williams of The Grauniad. Of course Patrick Barclay has yet to comment so expect that to change
But the broadcast media get today’s vote as anti-Chelsea vultures.
TalkShite were nothing short of disgraceful. How happily they paraded their single brain celled presenters and pundits to berate Drogba and Terry whilst dismissing any balanced caller’s viewpoint as ‘opinion’ rather than their alleged facts. It was sickening to hear Ian Wright reinventing himself as the ‘referee’s friend’ in an act of hypocrisy only bettered by John Major preaching family values whilst lobbing his sausage up Edwina Currie's alley. And as for the idiot alongside him... I’ve trod in less vile dog droppings. Bias is fine, but make it educated and evidence based. It was like someone had decided to broadcast Football 365 over the air. And as for the pompous, pious callers complaining about Drogba’s on-camera language... words fail me. ‘Footballer swears’ as a headline competes with ‘Pope is Catholic’. Was it Drogba’s fault, or the fault of the headline seeking Sky cameraman shoving it in his face? Sky went looking for the pound of flesh, and they got exactly what they wanted, and then re-broadcast it in order to generate more shock and complaint, and allow their trained simpleton, the ever patronising Richard Keyes to feign his horror and indignation at such filth. The BBC were slightly more measured, and Simon Brotherton actually mentioned Terry’s Barca dressing room sportsmanship, but that was quickly set aside never to be mentioned again, lest it show us in a better light. As far as the media goes, maybe it’s time to don those old tin hats again for a few months, until of course the whole thing starts again next season and freshly sharpened knives wait in readiness for the next evil act emanating from Stamford Bridge.
To summarize then, it was an awful night that compared to last year’s failure in Moscow. We can blame the referee as much as we like, but to win games you have to be brave in attack as well as resolute in defence. If we’d taken our chances then penalties would have been a side issue rather than a major talking point. Even the 1-0 would have rendered the debates fairly trivial. We're maybe cursed as Lampard alluded, but I don’t hold with that fairy story bollocks either. Yes, you need luck, but that forms just part of the equation, and hard work and bravery is equally part of the mix that creates success. As Lee Trevino once said when accused of being lucky, ‘Yeah, and the more I practice, the luckier I get’... and the more we try to win the Champions League and the Premier League the luckier we will get.
For me, it’s part of the journey that’s needed to achieve true greatness, a journey that requires stout hearts and stubborn minds. The hoary old maxim about having to taste failure in order to relish the success still rings true. Since Mourinho left, we have been in a stormy sea, pitching violently from one crisis to another, deploying successive skippers who have failed to gain the confidence of the crew, until Admiral Guus was piped on board. He has steadied the ship with an experienced hand on the tiller, guiding us towards calmer waters where we can hopefully recruit the right man to lead us out into the squalls and storms of future thrilling adventures and ripping yarns. This year, let’s just get the winning habit back starting with the FA Cup. It's one more trophy than Liverpool or Arsenal will see this year.
No apologies to Messrs Ulvaeus and Andersson for the small amendment...
The gods may throw a dice
Their minds as cold as ice
And someone way down here
Loses something dear
The winner takes it all
The loser has to fall
It’s simple and it’s plain
Why should I complain.
Keep the Blue Flag Flying High!
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75 Comments · Add yours
Nice One mate.
Last night's match is still is haunting me.
Hard to believe we have lost. Hope we bounce back soon.
Blue is te color.
Media as usual has conned all to believe that Barca is the best team. Barca supposedly to be the best team struggled to create any real chances against Chelsea. Strange thing is that the referee and two of his assistants were unanimous about all the incidents on the pitch. It is incredible the ref and his cronies despite every thing happened on the pitch remained adamant to the contrary. Eufa can claim what it likes. No one can fool the audiences; the stage was set in a clever way for Chelsea to fail. I am usually impartial to controversies, however, there comes a time a person should stand against wrong doings. I do not care what media perceive, good on Drogba, and Good on John Terry for backing Drogba.
Absolutely brilliant and having had a couple of nights to digest this latest setback, you've forced me to accept some home truths about the night and this side.
Before i get to them, i firstly feel the need to defend the side for their "awful" reaction to the ref's performance at the end of the game. I wonder what the reporters' reactions would have been if we had simpl accepted defeated. If we had just walked off the pitch, with Barca shirts hanging off our shoulders, looking like Henman after again getting so near to the top prize, we would have got battered for not caring. The likes of Ballack and Didier would have been accused of being mercenaries, only in it for the cash, so seeing a little bit of passion brought a huge smile to my face. I thought back to the dark days of Scolari's era over Christmas where we were losing and drawing games and the players just didn't seem to care. This culminated in the most embarrassing second half display i've ever seen from a Chelsea side, when we lost 3-0 to United. On that night, this side looked finished. The players had lost interest and only Lamps and JT seemed to be "playing for the shirt" as the cliche goes. So to end up with players screaming in anger at being cheated out of a final in the biggest club competition in the world really impressed me. And what's more, it enabled me to feel some of that siege mentality i've been missing ever since Jose left. For the next few months it's going to feel like us against the world and personally, that's just the way i like it. Roman may have leaked a few stories about selling Didier for embarrassing the club in the papers this morning, but when the club comes together and completely focuses on sticking two fingers up to idiotic columnists who have no idea what it's like to lose in that context, then Chelsea perform at their best. So bring on the barrage of criticism as thi shit storm will only make us stronger...
And on the point of columnists getting on their high horse and laying into us, i was deeply surprised to see Matthew Norman sticking up for us brilliantly in the Evening Standard. He explained perfectly the reasons why the players' reaction was understandable and also pleasing to some. And then my sudden admiration for some football reporting was suddenly blown away by the idiot that is Mihir Bose and his embarrassment for a report on the news at 10. He jumped on the bandwagon and started mouthing of the usual bollocks about players being rolemodels...but then he said that every Chelsea fan would be disappointed and ashamed at the players' behaviour! I've always hated him and this only confirmed that some reporters really are just c*nts.
But on to those home truths:
1. Didier - World class hold up play? Yep. World class power? Yep. World class finishing? Most definitely not. His head down, just blast it somewhere near the middle of the goal technique has annoyed me for years and it has finally cost us. It should have cost us twice at Anfield but Didier was bailed out by Ivanovic. It should have cost us at the Camp Nou, but our defence bailed him out. But at the Bridge his poor technique was shown up and in the end we have to move on from him at some time. The Jose 4-3-3 with Didier up top has to finish and when it does we have to learn to play with a new type of striker. There will only ever be one Didier, who is the best in the world for our type of football but after this summer we may be looking at a David Villa or Pato leading the line.
2. Guus - He's a genius. Most definitely but something began to eat away at me once i sat down and looked back over the game - why didn't he make a sub? As soon as Barca scored, Pep brought on Sylvinho and Eidur to slow the game down and allowed Barca to clear their heads and reset. But why didn't Guus make sub? Ivanovic, Mikel, Mancienne, Kalou...any of them would have wasted time and given us the legs we needed in the...
last ten minutes to see the game out. I always remember the sight of Robben winning the game at Wigan to make it 3-2 in the 93rd minute and instead of celebrating, Jose ran to Makelele and Mikel and told them to get ready to come on. It was all about the result and Jose would do anything to ensure we got that result. So why didn't Guus make the sub? And i hate to lay into him, because i love what he's done for us but i fear he may have Benitez syndrome. He may just be too damned clever for his own self and he may just be too damned stubborn. In the 4-4 a couple of weeks ago, he refused to close the game out with some subs and again he refused to do it against Barca. I'm just guessing and it may be harsh to say, but was he too proud of his own tactics to admit that he needed to bring on fresh legs and go to 5 at the back and 5 in midfield to win the game? I've thought this for a while as well as the fact that Guus seems to have underachieved in his career. I accept he did great things in Holland and won the European Cup 20 years ago but when football exploded into the phenomenon it is now, where was he? Failing in Spain and managing obscure International sides. He's always got so near but never seems to have leaped that final hurdle to win what his tactical genius deserves. And after our CL run, i'm beginning to wonder why he's always been a nearly man?
3. Age - It seems like the end of the road for this side and it saddens me that Ballack will never remove the tag of being the World's best loser, by winning this competition. I have no doubts that revenge would have driven us on to glory in Rome and for our old stagers, they deserved that final shot at glory. But as that chance is gone, sentiment should not come in to the club's plans in this summer's overhaul. We need new blood and the likes of Ricky, Belletti, Ballack, Deco, Anelka and posibly Didier seem destined to go.
But on to Wembley, an FA Cup should do us fine, right? Well, sort of.
"For the next few months it's going to feel like us against the world and personally, that's just the way i like it."
Agree completely Habs.....Nothing will foster the team spirit like the battering we will receive from all and sundry. Watch for a top performance against the Arse at the weekend, and get your money on us now for the FA Cup final.
"There will only ever be one Didier, who is the best in the world for our type of football but after this summer we may be looking at a David Villa or Pato leading the line. "
You may be right, but Didier will still be at the Bridge..... No club in their right mind is going to match his 90 Grand a week for a 31 year old, that in all probability is going to be banned for at least the Group Stages of the Champs League.
I thought all our staff members put on a sterling show on the day. Only trouble was the Drog not telling the Goose about his Limping Tactic beforehand. Seen him before limping around to the point where Carragehr and Hyypia start thinking 'he's lame now never mind him', only for him to race away with a loose ball. His withdrawl got the Barca players(esp. def) out of the mogue.
The Goose deserves a cookie for what he's done. We're literally still and numb when he came over, who would have thought of him nudging us this further. Even Ballack&Frank are now playing effective role-based football as opposed to the do-as-you-fancy-as-crap-as-you-like roles under Sco.
If barca was playing in her Majestey's finest they would only be ahead of Fulham on gd. Forza Manure!! All the way.
LINK
Just Read The Link
Pretty much sums it up well Tony, we suffered a technical knockout so to speak from the competition, we have nothing to be ashamed of, in fact we all should be proud of the lads.
Also I won't do any nitpicking of tactics or substitutions, I thought he pretty much got it right, there are things as we all know, that are out of your control in a game. And when the wild card is an incompetent referee, all you can do is hope that things go in your favour not the oppositions.
I thought Belletti was a good substitution, he's more of an attacking wing back, with a better footballing brain than Kalou. And I suppose that's what GH was looking for at that stage of the game.
I think our favourite Norwegian ref should have his financial accounts looked into, not from money by Uefa, but from some University funding for Psychology research. It was obvious to me that he was provoking and observing human reactions to stress and injustice. ;-) And on that basis, he probably has a full case history on Drogs and Ballack alone.
On the plus side, as I previously mentioned at least we'll have a full weeks rest before the Cup Final.
Leave the media have their "Hollywood" final (god I hate that term) after all,Hollywood is full of wannabees and bullshitters, that's what they mean by the term, don't they?
Reply to Blue_MikeL:
Hmmmm.......if that's true (and it is The Sun after all) then it's an incredible coincidence.......or it'll feed the conpsiracy theorists for years to come.
It would highlight the incompetence of UEFA even more as well.....
TG,
"As Souness said, ‘How can he NOT give it?’".
That's just opened a little pocket of memories from Wednesday night - I'm sure someone in the studio said something along the lines of 'What's he got to do - catch it with both hands?' which made me chuckle.
Still absolutley livid, but moreso because United will undoubtedly hammer Barca all round Rome.
Stick me down on the 'Wave bye-bye to Drogba' list. Sell him and send some Euros to Valencia for that David bloke - he'd have spanked that chance past Valdes.....
Thanks TG, yet again you provide the best analysis it is possible to read. After a second night of disturbed sleep (god, it gets to you doesn't it, right down deep) I needed it. I agree with just about all you say. And Habs too.
On Key Incident 4: Drogba's miss. I think his frustration at the end is connected to his self-knowledge that he isn't a calm finisher. Sometimes his spontaneous blasts appear like the most sublime finishing, especially when there isn't time to think.
And I think your point about possession is important. It reminded me of the Brazil game also. Something deep in our teams DNA prevents us from keeping good possession. Man Utd have improved that a lot over the years and are dominating at home and abroad because of it. I think its born out of Jose's belief, when he first arrived here, that counter attack - in particular the immediate turning of defence into attack, when a team is off balance - was his best chance of making a quick impression in the Prem. It worries me when we concede so much possession in games like Weds. Even with 10 men they had it all.
Similarly I have heard no crowing from rivals I am in touch with. A Man Utd fan and colleague who I will probably accept an invitation to watch the final with - there will be a party of sorts - sent a long email explaining how he felt we were robbed. He's happier with Barca in the final, of course. And we've softened them up nicely for the taking. I'll be forced into Red support therefore, but anyway, I'm okay with Sir Alex gaining a rightful place in history (perhaps he'll then fuck off), and nothing is going to get up the Scousers noses more than Man Utd not only equally their League titles this season, but catching them up on European Cups too.
Reply to Fiftee:
I think that might have been Souness. As a manager he was hit and miss, but as a pundit he is for me, far and away the best. Common sense and well formed opinion are are rare in the football community but he always seems to capture both.
Yep, on the Drogba front I agree. On his day imperious, but the days are becoming more sporadic and his complexity means his mood is never guaranteed. I think we'll have trouble offloading him though through his reputation, although maybe Marseille may tempt him.
That David......chap......I believe he is still available, or are we going to sit back and watch the Spanish Hoover at Anfield snap him up.....
Great coverage from the Blog as usual guys. You really have the best comments on the Web about Chelsea.
That poem at the end really summed it all up for me.
Reply to ChelseaTony:
Now days are not the days of conspiracies these are the days of signals and suggestions. I am not pretending to write another review of the game I just want to take a look on some facts and events. Let us start from the Platini who sends signals all over the Europe about damaging English domination and about how bad it is to have another all English final. However, he is not stupid to jeopardize his reputation by conspiring with referee. He can do something different he can appoint referee, which is no use anymore, referee, which is known to be incompetent, referee, which understands signals. Tome Henning Ovrebo - He refereed the Italy–Romania match which resulted in a 1-1 draw. The Italian Football Federation later demanded an apology from UEFA after Luca Toni’s goal was incorrectly ruled out for offside in the Italy-Romania match that Ovrebo refereed. There was also criticism of the official for a penalty shot given to Romania and a yellow card to Daniele De Rossi at the ending moments of the game. Afterwards, Ovrebo admitted he had made a mistake during the game. Ovrebo was not assigned any more matches to referee at Euro 2008. It is by the way shows how UEFA punishes their failed referees, they just brought him back to referee highly important match!!! Why him?? I believe I do not need to explain this obvious fact. It is very simple, in economics it called win-win game; if Ovrebo does everything right and does not make any mistakes so everything is fine, but if does what he did UEFA says sorry, sends Ovrebo back home for another year or so, make him apologies again, it is not difficult for him he did it once already and that is all!!!! However it was obvious that Ovrebo will crack under the pressure of the game and this is why he was chosen to referee this game. Who needs conspiracies all you need to do is just to put right accents and to chose the right person for job. Person who understands signals.
That's about it TG.
The word culpability probably says more about Drogba's outburst than anything else.
After taking some blame for Moscow, then his misses in this competition, and being subbed when he was feigning injury (judging by his reaction), he must be going through some sort of crisis.
Not sure if that's passion or guilt, though.
A few more words about Didier:
From the early first touch which saw a potential run on goal turn into a kick 5 yards in the opposite direction, I guess many of us felt it wasn't going to be one of his stellar performances.
But goal-scoring isn't his only attribute.
He upsets and unsettles even the best defences and will force errors and uncertainty.
His game has improved under Guus to the point that he seems to enjoy playing with a strike partner, which was previously his biggest failing.
After the first wild lashings by Cech which went straight to their keeper, Petr started to find Didier's head with uncanny accuracy. I lost count of how many times DD knocked the ball on but there was nobody running past him to take advantage.
The whole point of using twin strikers is that they play together but Nic was off doing his defensive thing and nowhere to be seen.
Obviously 90 minutes against Fulham wasn't enough preparation for a match of this importance and let's hope that they continue to work together so that we finish this season with something to show for it.
Beyond that, on their showing so far and if they really can form a partnership, then I'd keep them both.
We won't find many takers if we want to sell anyway, and if they can give us at least one really good season then they'd be well worth their wages.
I'd be looking also to introduce some young, fast, strikers who could work with, and learn from, these accomplished and experienced pros.
Good post Tony, and there's also some excellent stuff from BlueBayou on the match report blog discussing Barca's tactics which is worth reading.
Like BlueBayou, I think we showed that Barca still have exactly the same weakness they had last season against United. They need to understand that if they want people to play differently against them, they need to correct these weaknesses, because at the moment they are so glaring it would be unprofessional to play another way against that.
I would also like to see the club make some sort of statement about the cultural bias in Uefa against us.
We need to stand up to them, or they will continue to walk all over us.
We need to complain about being branded 'the enemies of football', about the way Platini openly discusses ways of limiting our strength so as to preserve the status and wealth of the Establishment clubs with their larger fan bases, about the implications of Platini saying he did not want an all-English final in the same week that he was caught on camera singing the Barca anthem at the first leg.
Imagine if he was singing Celtic songs at an Old Firm game, or YNWA at a United-Liverpool fixture, and the in the subsequent game Rangers/United were denied four penalties!
If the club is too frightened of further rocking the boat to do this, I hope the fans at the Emirates on Sunday make their feelings loud and clear.
Reply to PeteW:
Well said - have touched on this in the bit I'm scribbling at present - should be up later / tomorrow morning.
Great article, sort of sums up my own feelings on the matter. It is hard to escape the feeling that we were robbed, but at the same time there is also that nagging feeling that we were the architects of our own downfall.
One small point on the substitutions, Most times now the ref will stop his watch when "timewasting" substitutions are made apparently and so you don't get any benefit from a time perspective. At the same time, changing players can also cause confusion from a team structure point of view, which for the previous 90 minutes had been working pretty efficiently.
JD, there's no doubt that Uefa would love it if Roman packed his bags and walked off into the sunset because he can't win the CL and it is ridiculous to pretend this does not have an impact on events on and off the field.
Finally, for now, the death threats garbage needs addressing. The British media have been full of stories that the ref had to have his hotel change and had a police escort as he was bundled out of the country because of death threats.
The truth, of course, is rather different.
According to somebody on the official site, 'Norwegian press has already refuted loads of the UK newspaper stories.
1. Ovrebo was not ushered away from his original hotel quickly for his safety. He was moved to a hotel closer to the airport because it would make it easier to catch his flight.
2. The police posted outside his house was NOT there to protect him from any would be murderers. They were there to ensure the press didn't step over the line in terms of his privacy.'
I am reminded here of the Ian Tomlinson stories, and the press lies that he was attacked by a mob of protesters.
The media then were simply covering up for the Met, and here they are doing Uefa's job for them. It's disgusting.
Reply to PeteW:
Best defence is attack we MUST make all these things you are suggesting!!!
Great work TG. I did wonder about the subs on the night but then again if it ‘aint broke… perhaps he felt some of his options wouldn’t keep the shape. Tough choices.
While I’ve been writing the thoughts below there’ve been a few observations, which overlap some of this but I’ll stick it on here anyway.
Strangely Barca are not appealing the sending off. Why? I’m not claiming a conspiracy here (see apology of reformed conspiracy theorist on post #111 under match report), but it is enormously helpful to UEFA. Given that the ref has apparently admitted to mistakes you would have thought they had a good chance.
Obviously lots of stories of death threats and “man in fear of life” headlines, helped by Chelsea fans’ long history of murdering referees, deflects attention from what could have been some real problems for them.
As a result of their referee making a complete cods of it, UEFA could have been left twisting in the wind here.
Now I’m sure sympathetic thoughts for Manure or Barca players will not be plentiful on here, but if you agree that the red cards in both matches were harsh, then the norm would be for the referee to reconsider and rescind. “We all make mistakes, genuine error blah de blah de blah.” Most teams have benefited from this in the past. The fact that both sendings off didn’t greatly affect the result would normally make this a fairly painless exercise.
But if they were asked to rescind the Barca red, then they refocus attention on the dreadful performance of Overcoat (or whatever his name is). Barca will be seen to be recompensed by having a player available, but nothing is available to Chelsea.
Poor old Darren Fletcher could also suffer as to rescind his card but not Abidal’s would seem grossly unfair and would invite an unflattering contrast, particularly as both teams are about to meet in the “Dream Final.”
Interesting to see what happens to him.
TBC
Unfortunately for us I think this will allow UEFA keep the heat under the Chelsea behaviour story, ignore Barca surrounding the referee and stick to the line that in any pressure game there will be one or two mistakes but nothing more than you would normally expect. They could use some of the amazing number of near doctoral thesis length posts that appeared in comment columns trying to dismiss the fact that Chelsea had a reasonable claim to have had at the very minimum 3 but more likely 4, some say 5 good shouts for a penalty.
By not having to make any concession to Barca, I fear that we are going to get both barrels. If Barca had appealed successfully, then I think a deal might have been done on the punishment for the “behaviour” issue so as not to be seen to be too one sided and feeding further conspiracy theories.
We’ll see but in the meantime, Pass the Sick Bag Alice.
Btw
As I was there live I haven’t seen a replay but the injury to Lampard, was that an elbow as he went up for a header. That was my impression.
Patrick Barclay related nonsense
On leaving the Pub, 4 of us wandered down the Fulham Road to a bus stop. As we strolled up towards the stop we were passed by two chaps in suits. One bald chap and one who looked like Bruce Buck but probably wasn’t. One of our group on seeing the bald bloke with glasses up on forehead, carrying a laptop bag, said “Isn’t that Patrick whats it from Star Trek?” A bus was coming so we hurried past them to the stop and took a look back, debate continued for a few seconds but the bus was speeding towards us. Someone said “It’s our bus, but I don’t think it’s stopping” to which I replied, “Make sure you get out in the road, but be careful ‘cause if it’s a f***ing Norwegian he probably wont see you”. The bald chap, who we now think was Barclay as he was more likely to be there than Patrick Stewart, chuckled as he walked past.
Pass me my Ovrebo, sorry overcoat
Blue Bayou - the Italian papers went through the ref's mistakes in detail and did indeed agree that Lampard had been elbowed in the head. I think they gave us just the three penalties.
There's no doubt that certain forces didn't want us to win..
There's also no doubt that we are the villains and may be unable to change that, whatever we do.
I cannot doubt either that the best way to get back at them is by winning.
This is the only way we can show what we're about and prove that we're here to stay and will be challenging for everything, come what may.
If football needs a villain then so be it but we must not be victims.
People out there do know, and we've already touched on the feeling that most real fans have. Even our most ardent opponents were shocked at such blatant misdoings.
The FA Cup is far from a consolation prize now, it's a chance to poke those establishment shits in their faces and then rub their noses in it.
Third place must be achieved too.
And we also have an opportunity to show them what good football really looks like so they'll wish we were playing in Rome, after all.
Reply to BlueBayou:
"Strangely Barca are not appealing the sending off. Why? "
During the Manu game the commentators were saying that there's no CL appeal for sending off, except in cases of mistaken identity.
Reply to fansincethesixties:
Indeed, I've just been sad enough to look up UEFA's regs on their website:
"Article 20 Disciplinary scope of decisions taken by the referee,consequential sanctions
1 Decisions taken by the referee on the field of play are final and may not be reviewed by the UEFA disciplinary bodies.
2 Only the legal consequences of a disciplinary decision taken by the referee may be reviewed by the disciplinary bodies in cases where such a decision has involved an obvious error, such as mistaking the identity of the person penalised.
3 The provisions of the present regulations apply to protests against match results affected by a referee’s decision that was in breach of the regulations"
- and Barca's protest against Messi's yellow card in the QF against Bayern was not admitted because there was no mistaken identity, so presumably they know there is no point in trying again.
So why exactly did OldPurplenose's mate on UEFA encourage him to appeal Fletcher's sending off then?
Reply to fansincethesixties:
Thanks FSTS you're spot on. I've just looked it up. A man should do proper research before spouting on. So we will be getting both barrels then as even that vague hope has gone.
From the desk of Dr Bayou
I believe I'm suffering from what's known as Ovrebo syndrome.
It apparently presents as an inability to see the bleeding obvious and continually making stupid mistakes, which leads you to ending up much closer to an airport.
Now I work a few miles from City Airport and I'm worried about going out for lunch in case I end up unable to stop myself getting on the DLR and travelling in that direction.
I also wonder if mistaken identity covers the person mistakenly identified as a fair and impartial referee?
Might be worth a try...
Reply to PeteW:
Thanks PW. Ever the cosmopolitan and all round man of letters ;-).
Glad you liked my bit on the tactics. I felt I had to do penance for my outburst. Bit like certain members of the team.
Reply to fansincethesixties:
Well then considering our folically challenged ref, could it have been Patrick Barclay in charge?
Reply to Clive:
Better check passport control to see if Ovrebo actually left Norway or if he's still locked-up in a cellar in some fjord hideaway.
I still don't subscribe to the conspiracy theory.
BlueM spoke of signals and that's the sort of thing we're probably looking at.
I recall early on in the competition noting that there appeared to be an ott commitment to not giving decisions that could be construed as favouring the home side.
If you add in a weak and accident prone ref, then you're likely to end up with what happened.
It might also explain Henry's shout that got ignored in the first game.
These referee's briefings do happen and a later commenter linked to one that was rather dubious where they showed vids of PL players as examples of what to watch out for (included DD I think).
Anyway, we expected little better so we should really have put the game beyond the official's incompetences.
btw. Is anyone else having problems posting here? I keep having to refresh the browser or open a new tab and start again.
Gonna give it a rest for a while.
Henry The Young King never gave straight orders to kill Thomas Becket. However, is was enough for him just to say: "Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?".
For Platini it was enough to sing Barcelona anthem and express his opinion about Chelsea damaging the beautiful game.
Reply to fansincethesixties:
I am having the same problem.
I have said it so many times that the establishment here and in Europe as well as the partisan media do not want us to achieve things. Conspiracy is not only an actual order for things to be done but a general physcological awareness that certain things must be so such as CFC not deserving of winning. Anyway, the fact is we should have taken our chances and yes Hiddink should have slowed the game down by substitutions in the last minute exactly as guardiola did after the equaliser. The ref should be censured by UEFA and as for Didier, Mourinho will take him and then Europe beware next season for those on here asking him to leave. The ownwer is still the biggest twat of all the club owners and Kenyon is still a snake. Where are the clubs protestations and why dont they ask an apology from UEFA for the refs incompetance..too scared from the media? We help pay UEFAS bills for fucks sake just as America even though loathed around the world pays the UNs bills! Forget about next year and the CL, we wont win it and neither will we win the prem regardless of manager unless by a miracle Jose were to return. Liverpool are getting stronger and we have to re-build so nothing except maybe and FA cup or league cup for 2/3 years. the whole thing since the owner made Jose take Shevchenko and Ballack on to putting his friend as manager to the capitulation to the press is the real "fucking disgrace" I have now officially stopped believing we will win the Prem or Cl for a while. Next year I will look on in amusement to see where we will finish but no more hope or faith on those targets. What a fall from the strongest machine like team, feared on the planet to this where we allow the media and UEFA to make us look like the bad guys all the time and we choke instead of fighting back. Mourinho tells Itlaian football they are all, managers and media "intellectual protitutes " live in a conference but he isnot banned and will win the sudetto this weekend or next depending on results.
Chelsea-Barca next season is inevitable, isn't it?
Interesting observations. I disagree with your view that there's no chance of an anti-Chelsea/ anti-England conspiracy by Platini and the UEFA Establishment. Re Drogba, you want us to sell him and buy someone like Torres or Arshavin?! How many goals did Torres score when it mattered - in the Champions League QF v Chelsea? 1. Drogs scored 2 - he also scored 2 v Juventus and the decisive goal in the FA Cup Semi Final for which we still have a chance to win a trophy this season. As for Arshavin, he couldn't score in the FA Cup SF (when it mattered) and was nowhere to be seen in the Euro SF as well when the cameras were on him. I, do, however think Arshavin is a decent player and Torres is highly over-rated. Liverpool are trophyless for 2 yrs in a row since he joined them. A striker has to be judged as to how many trophies he contributed in winning for his club. Except maybe for the 1st Premier League trophy, Drogs was crucial (the most important player) for us in winning the 5 trophies we won (under Jose) in the Abramovich era. We struggled this season when he was injured and didn't perform in his comeback under Scolari. I think we do need a good backup or 2nd striker who performs in the big games and need to sell Anelka (and I'm not at all convinced that the Argie kid is our future, so we should sell him as well). I agree with your positive views about Drogs' reaction and your preference for passionate footballers. Intriguing that Anelka was nowhere to be seen after the final whistle...
As far as I can tell, most people who play the game - as opposed to referees and journalists - have defended the players' reaction at the end.
Jeez, can you imagine what Fergie would have done if it happened to United? It would have finished him off!
Reply to TrueBlue:
Cheers TB. I'm not specifically anti-Drogba but age is against him, and he has been blunted over the last 2 seasons. I don't think we could sell him even if we wanted to in all honesty, but i do think Anelka is a class act. Remember prior to Drogs coming back, Anelka was scoring pretty much for fun.
I'm more interested in the fact that the rebuilding needs to start this summer and sentiment can't play a part. Unlike midfielders and defenders most strikers have limited shelf life as pace decreases, or defences get wise. Younger defenders are very clued up these days. Torres can't be rated on the game aginst us but has been lethal this season when playing - it's hard to picture him missing 2 opportunities similar to the ones Drogs poked at the keeper. Arshavin only got 15 mins at the end against us in the SF so it's hardly a like for like comparison. We could keep Drogs and Anelka but I think Villa would be far more potent and the competition for places would be challenging for all 3...Anelka does seem to be able to play right or left unlike Drogs, and does so with little complaint in his defence.
So, for me the players out, and this is removing all sentiment...Ferreira, Belletti, Ballack, Drogba, Deco, Carvalho.
Alex has more than proved his worth and Mancienne can be developed and Ivanovic is a prioceless player able to play, like essien almost anywhere.
Of ocurse I'm miles out on that prediction but few here would argue the need for the squad to be refreshed and like Old Purplenose it will need some ruthless and objective decision making from Moyes/Rijkaard/Ancelotti/Bilic/Klinsmann/Van Basten/Spaletti/Wilkinson/Bassett/O' Leary...(delete as appropriate)
Quick thoughts on our tactics, apropos of nothing:
When Garry Kasparov beat the IBM computer Big Blue in their match up, Kasparov said playing the computer was like "wading into a river." What he meant by that was if you walked into the middle, you were confronted with a rushing torrent. Playing a chess match of limited pieces against a machine of pure calculation is a losing battle. But, if you stay on the edges of the river, there isn't much force. Playing a complex, positional game blunts the opponents.
Barca, interestingly (to me at least) are a footballing side much like a chess supercomputer. They can make countless moves, and they make unexpected moves that you may have never seen before. The fewer players you have between the ball and the goal, the more dangerous they are. The more likely they see a pass, see angles that you don't.
Just look at Messi's goal last year against Getafe. Or the Madrid game this weekend. Wading into the river only allows them to drown you.
So, we did what any good Russian Chessmaster would do- take away our opponent's strengths, and fight the battle over what is left. Over two sets of 90 minutes, that almost worked out for us.
So, for all of the plaudits for "attacking football" out there, I can't quite understand the allure. Barca play like a computer, like a beast- a pure attacking machine. We, of course, play any way that we have to. Yes we'd love to run up the score, but if winning means 1-0, then by all means...
It is simple. Barca are romanticized. Barca have passion, history. All of that claptrap. We were in the way, we were supposed to lay down and die- but we didn't. And, as usual, everyone hates us for it.
Fine. We're the villains. But don't deride us in one sentence, then make us try to beg for your love the next. We tried being Sao-Paulo-on-Thames, and *gasp*, we can play that way! But it doesn't win you trophies. If we are to be the spoiler, we will spoil our way.
Neither team deserved to win that match. And I say this as a Chelsea supporter.
-Barca had something like 60% possession but they only had one shot on goal the entire match I think. It just happens that the one shot happened to go in.
-Drogba and Anelka: Missed chances. Partial Credit to Victor Valdes for making a crucial save in the first leg and another crucial save in the second. When you are up a man and fail to put the game away against a clearly struggling Barca side, you cant say that you truly deserved to win.
-The Final Clearance. Or at least what should have been. I think it was Terry who weakly headed it away and then Essien flailed at it, tapping it right to Messi, who then set up Iniesta for the winning goal. There was also a screenshot somewhere of Iniesta preparing to shoot, and a few yards in front of him...Ballack was ducking.
-Chelsea should have been given at least one penalty. One for the blatant Pique handball and probably another for the Malouda foul. The Eto'o incident wasn't a penalty. Ballack hit it literally right at him, there was no where to go.
-The "fouls" on Drogba I have no idea. Both players were fighting for the ball, there was a lot of contact and Drogba goes down. He goes down so often how does he expect the ref to know what is or isn't a dive?
-If there was a conspiracy against Chelsea, why would he have sent Adibal off when Anelka tripped over his own foot?
Chelsea more than likely should have won the game, but neither team really looked like they outright deserved to win.
As for the supposed "outbursts" The media needs to get a hold of itself. The majority of these idiots couldn't dribble saliva down their chins let alone dribble a ball.
In the heat of a competition, one that some have waited their whole careers to win, especially after the incidents during the game, you can't expect people to contain their emotions. Especially after such a shocking and disappointing ending to such a fierce and emotion filled game.
I contact of mine within the UEFA Education Secretariat has sent me a copy of a video they are going to circulate to all clubs on what they consider to be proper behaviour towards the referee, in the wake of Wednesday's digraceful scenes.
Have a watch.
(Unfortunately this is the one going to clubs in the Flemish region of Belgium but I've got a translation below)
LINK
"Do whatever you effing well like just make sure the ref is at least 25m away and no-one will bat an eyelid."
And a knight of the realm to boot.....who would have thought it eh?
Reply to BlueBayou:
And all that was probably only over an offside decision that went against him.
Oh goodness yes. José would have set fire to something -- perhaps himself -- if he'd been manager after that. Sir Puceface would have gone off like an exploding beetroot. One of the reasons UEFA will come down on us so hard is they know they can -- they'd be too frightened to do it to ManU or Inter.
Excellent post and many interesting comments. Perhaps the only reason most of us have been able to recover our sense of proportion/reason relatively soon is that we've been beaten by an overseas side. If we'd lost like that to the Mancs I'd have booked myself in for a weeklong Buddhist retreat.
Agree that the sensible thing is to say a fond farewell to a few of the older players this summer. But you only have to look at Barca-in-Brent up at the Emirates to realise the importance of keeping an experienced spine. I'd hang on to Riccy unless some massive offer came in, and I'd hang on to Drogs too. You look at how utterly rubbish Adebayor has been this season, when this time last year everyone was saying he was the new (and of course better, since all the media know that everything at Arsenal is better than its Chelsea equivalent) Drogba, and you see that value of keeping the older guys in tandem with the up-and-comers.
Still, one of the slight disappointments of this season is the lack of opportunities given to all the youngsters except Ivanovic. Mr Big kept going on about how important the youngsters were - parroting the party line, one suspects; the same thing Avram was doing when he kept saying how he'd got rid of José's style and was playing "attacking football" - but we never saw them, and Guus hasn't had time to do anything but pick the strongest team he can see and stick with it. It's a great team, but it can't be relied on for another season.
Reply to fansincethesixties:
I think if I remember correctly it was the penalty appeal in the FA semi against Everton. Just as well there weren't three others, there could well have been a nuclear incident!
Just saw an interview with Guus where he appeared to steadfastly refuse to criticise DD.
Can't find a link on the beeb's website but this is OK (ex ref Dermot G). Questioner asks about ref's eyesight, seriously though.
LINK
Perhaps during all this hoopla we've forgotten that the Club, from the owner on down, will also have been deeply affected by what went on.
However much we rationalize things in hindsight, the fact remains that the officiating went drastically wrong and the attempts to demonize Chelsea and it's players is what's really starting to take on a very nasty shape.
I wouldn't be surprised now to see a concerted effort by EPL to force Platini to resign.
His comments as UEFA president were unbecoming of such high office and have undoubtedly led, either directly or indirectly, to Wednesday's events.
I thought I would visit a few different fan blogs to see what the opinions were to our demise on Wednesday. That mainly included Utd, Arse, Spurs and Wet Spam.
There was a mixure of the usual nonsense, but some insightful and dare I say sympathetic comments to our plight.
But my favourite team and fans I love to hate, had a special blog totally dedicated to us. I just found the whole thing totally reprehensible, just like the author of the blog, who probably is a sad excuse for a human being, and football fan.
I'll leave you read it for yourselves if any of you have the inclination. But if I was a little more articulate in the writing dept. would I give them a few home truths. Anyway here's the link.
LINK
Reply to Clive:
Of all the Scouse blogs, that one is undoubtedly the very worst..... The writer has nothing of value to say, and you never ever see any sort of reasoned argument about anything.
Good news for Ballack who'll have one more chance to win it with us next year:
LINK
So judging by the almost perfect theory of Chelsea choosing one player to pose in our new shirt who'll be sold in a couple of weeks, i have to say that it looks like Ricky is going to be leaving.
Reply to Blue_MikeL:
I must have missed this comment yesterday but it seems closer to the truth of the situation. Under-experienced ref finds himself selected for huge game and has the seeds of unwitting bias sowed by his paymasters.
Like I have said, it's not conspiracy, UEFA are just too incredibly incompetent and bureaucratic for that....but the idea of suggestion subliminally being lodged into someone's mind is a well known and documented method of influencing someone's thoughts and potentially actions....from acorns do Oak trees grow.
I hope that Drogba is not reading anything written in this website. You vindicate this guy when he was claiming each season that he wanted to leave Chelsea.
Chelsea supporters never accepted or loved him.
When he gives you trophy, you cheer him but as soon as he makes a mistake, you come out to kill him! Poor Drogs.
If I were him, I d left Chelsea even for a pay cut. It's really f**** disgrace!:)
Reply to Visitor:
Make your mind up, shit-face.
Are we vindicating him or out to kill him?
A bit slow today so thought I'd try a spot of extra curricular oleole blogging of my own. (Missus was out all day and I couldn't let the opportunity pass.)
I'd be pleased to know what you make of this: LINK
Cheers
Reply to fansincethesixties:
I agree with every word.
Platini is a disgrace...the job of the top man in European football encompasses many things and hence any comment must be completely objective. He has broken this rule so many times it's hard to see how he can survive.
Interesting read, fansince, and yes I mostly agree. In the abstract I'm quite sympathetic to Platini's populism -- I *do* think it would be better if the European game wasn't dominately so completely by a group of clubs which would now appear to have a permanent stranglehold on their domestic leagues and on the latter stages of the CL as well. But he seems to be addressing the situation in the most idiotically ham-fisted way, and using the most utterly conventional thinking, about on a level with the average caller to a radio phone in show ("Wot I fink is ... urrr ... them rich clubs is destroyin football, yeah? coz it's the people game innit?")
And yes, by translating his (broadly defensible) political allegiance to the idea of fan-owned clubs developing players from their academies into an (utterly indefensible) open favouring of one team over another in an important match, he loses any credibility as a leader on this or any other issues. [Sorry -- bad sentence -- what I mean is that it's ok to say he supports the Barcelona model vs the Chelsea model -- who doesn't really? -- but it's not ok to say he supports Barcelona over Chelsea when the two are playing each other.]
The only bit I don't agree with is the last paragraph. UEFA *will* come down heavily on Chelsea, and there's no contradiction in that: it's because they're going along with the wholse story about how we are the "anti-football", the evil ones, the enemy of all the values UEFA are supposed to protect. But of course it won't be to do with any reasonable analysis of what happened. (Witness the utterly ridiculous idea going around everywhere that Drogba's reaction somehow ought to be compared to Fletcher's after he sent off.) UEFA didn't lose control of the situation. The whole thing unfurled exactly as they wanted: the right team won, the baddies behaved badly, good triumphed over evil. The fact that this whole narrative has nothing to do with the actual match is irrelevant to them.
Reply to limetreebower:
Thanks for taking the bother to submit twice, LTB.
I replied over there [didn't want to clutter this with that].
Reply to ChelseaTony:
One of the biggest issues now will be getting a firm and objective ref for the final.
After the appearance and talk of favouring Barca, Manu will probably get the most lenient treatment possible on the night.
Another gift for SurAlF.
Reply to fansincethesixties:
I think there's no doubt we've done Utd a massive favour. Apart from softening Barcelona up, we've exposed them, and Guardiola for tactical naivety, which Slur Alex will exploit with aplomb.
As I mentioned before, complacency on their part, or biased/incompetent officiating will be the only thing that might be their undoing. But I'm sure the latter won't be an issue now. The fooballing gods have got their dream final, so what's the betting it's likely going to be a dull 1-0 scoreline.
LINK
Interesting update on Zola...... Unfortunately it is only the NOTW, but given that there other headline is that Ancelloti is having second thoughts, we can only hope!
Yes, I support the views expressed about Platini. I'm surprised he has managed to climb to that level with so little diplomatic nous. But isn't Kenyon on the board of Eufa? Don't we have any diplomatic clout?
In fact, Platini's romanticism about the football ideal is only really an updating of the myth about football's origins that, on closer inspection, doesn't actually stand up. The idea that football originated in small communities with players drawn from the local streets, arriving at matches on the tram alongside the fans, playing for a packet of Woodbine and competing in the Corinthian spirit is bollocks. The Corinthians themselves did uphold certain principles of fair play and amateurism (in the snes of not tasking money, not in ability) but they had nothing to do with the origins of the professional game which required a much more mercenary impetus to establish itself.
In Sheffield, the official home of football (oldest club: Sheffield FC and with Sheffield United's Bramall Lane ground having good claim to be regarded as the oldest site of football as it developed into the world sport - it was, give or take a few hundred yards the original site of Sheffield FC's pitch and was also where Wednesday played when first formed) this is borne out by the facts about the origins of football here.
From what I've read and heard from locals, the Blades when first formed recruited an entire team from Scotland to come and represent them. It was an entirely mercenary operation designed to maximise the income on the city's cricket ground through the winter.
I think if we examined other club's histories we'd find a lot less 'expression of local community' bollocks and a lot more 'business opportunity' ethics at the root of it. That doesn't mean the club can't become an expression of communal pride. Chelsea, for me, is a true people's club because it has always drawn on a large constituency of support from West London and beyond. (continued)
Total apathy and emptiness are killing me. Can hardly make myself to watch the game tonight. In spite of the fact that it is a big game and I really want us to bounce back and crash Arsenal, I fell really empty from inside.....
This was mainly because of its location - easy tube route etc - and its huge wide open terraces that seemed to welcome in the huddled masses with no other club to go to. Around where i grew up, Chelsea fans drawn from Slough, and all along the Thames Valley constituted a very dedicated and vocal support at home and away matches.
Today, we haves become a huge draw for fans from across the globe and, in particular, Africa where our strong African contingent of players has attracted loyalty from fellow countrymen. Certainly in Sheffield the most often seen Chelsea shirts are worn by African students. The best Blue's contact I have made up here is a Nigerian, originally from Hammersmith, now settled with a Welsh teacher in the city suburbs.
And while we're at it, just how idealistic are those Catalan exemplars of perfect football? In Spain, I'm often told by friends who live there, Barcelona are roundly derided by fans of other clubs for their arrogance, their pretensions and this cute public relations stunt of being the team that plays for UNICEF. Like the millionaire Bono, who cutely avoids paying taxes in Ireland (and by extension is therefore denying his wealth to irish schoolkids and the sick of his home country) there are often darker motives behind seeming acts of grand altruism - not the least of which is bloated self-aggrandisement. It never hurts record sales.
Barcelona may well be owned by their members, but so what? They have accountants who invest the money for profit. They appoint a President who appoints a manager, who buys players etc...who cheat and spoil and lose badly like any other team. They have great virtues in their development of youth and a certain style, no denying that, but essentially, its all just football, not a perfect recipe for an idealised sporting perfection. I could go on...
Barcelona are bunch of hypocrites... They say they play pretty football , but all they do against stronger teams is pass the ball around or pass the ball to Messi... I can't say they are bad team -Xavi, Messi and ...well, iniesta... are all great players but they don't have plan...
They are relaying on the individual quality.
We need protection. We really do... Mike Riley in England is obviously against us and in Europe ...well everyone!
I agree with Clive - Manchester United will have no troubles beating the shit out of Barcelona ... Their tactics is idiotic and defence shallow
I hate Man United more than any club in the universe. I hate Barcelona. So, who ever wins the CL , same shit for me.
On 27 of May I am taking my spouse and some work mates to cricket match 20x20. We are going to Lords cricket field. I do not care who wins CL and even, if they all break their legs during this final match I do not care. Don't get me wrong I do wish it to anyone I just show how much I do not care.
I do not wish it to anyone. I missed "not"
1-4 !!! THat was a great game, it showed how much insecure Arsenal is , and that we can play great, beautiful and effective football! Great goal by Anelka! Alex is really useful last couple of days and really good game by Malouda ( althought that goal was a pure accident) ...However -Drogba was lousy no matter he assisted Alex ...I mean, he didn't play badly, but he played the worst from all of our players...
KTBFFH!
Good Win....Something to smile..
Mid week results are still haunting...
LINK -
What do you think about it? Yeah ,I know Anelka is good , but Drogba is most likely going to leave for Milan I read ( and its about time- he was good this season, great player, but we need to refresh our team )
Call me old fashioned, but I see nothing wrong with grown ups giving pretentious kids a good spanking! ;-)
19 fouls to our 12. Just as in midweek and against Liverpool,these so-called footballing sides just turn up and try and kick us off the park, aiming to upset our slick counter-attacking game by persistant fouling.
Where can we look for protection?
Anyone got a number for UEFA?
(Saddened shake of the head)
Come out of the wheatfield Nelly,you're working against the grain.
Good game, well done!!! They are all heroes, these so called "footballing" inefficiently passing sides, when referees help them.
Keep The Blue Flag Flying High!!!!