I apologize first of all to all my readers for the lack of activity here. Especially to the large number of readers who subscribed recently. Bad health prevented me from writing a preview or a review of the Chelsea-Spurs game and also about how Robinho got hijacked to Eastlands. I would certainly like to pen my thoughts on these happenings now that I feel better.

I believe the match against Spurs was one in which the Blues ought to have won. There was no way Spurs could score except the way in which they did, as their forward line was toothless. There was a display of individual brilliance occasionally from the likes of Modric but Spurs never played well as a unit. Complacency was the thing that cost us two valuable points at home.

Everyone was surprised to find Belletti in the starting line-up. The last thing I heard about the Brazilian was that Chelsea were trying to offload him before the window closes. He played in midfield and scored the only goal for Chelsea from a Deco corner. I believe Mikel and Ballack could have made a difference.

The Chelsea players except maybe the defenders did nowhere near their best. Deco was overly cautious after the booking he received early in the game. Anelka underlined why he is "Le Sulk" and failed to capitalize the opportunities he got upfront. Essien didn't look like he was back to full fitness and it seems his recovery was rushed by the management. Many would feel a draw was a fair result as both teams failed to create enough chances but I think Spurs were lucky to get away with a point because their goal was purely luck while some Chelsea attempts on goal were cleared by woodwork.

After the disappointment from the Spurs match, the next thing to look forward to was the arrival of Robinho. I was pretty sure Robinho would land in London as he was of no use to Real and insisted on a transfer, and Calderon just kept muttering about Real's will to keep him although he was holding out for more money obviously. But Manchester City, fueled with money from their new owners, outbid Abramovich. Roman getting outbid is a rarity in itself, but Real doing shameless deeds in transfer market is certainly not a rarity these days. Kenyon did his reputation no harm by not having a "plan B".

Some would call Robinho a mere heartless mercenary but before making any accusation like that, we should consider the situation Robinho was in, and if he had any other option. Maybe Real had given him an ultimatum - Rot in Madrid or get 160K/week in Manchester. Even his mother, Marina, has said she does not know why he chose to go to City. Playing under Scolari and playing in Europe would have been a far better option if money alone was not a factor. Robinho was a prime target for Scolari and the club had failed him, but he didn't make a meal of it.

Real Madrid's story for rejecting all the four Chelsea bids for Robinho was that they had not found an adequate replacement. Robinho is probably having shawarma with the Sheikhs in Manchester, the transfer window is closed and the bastards of Real Madrid still haven't found their replacement.  Their latest story is that they were not happy with Chelsea's approach. Calderon is not only pathetic in dealing with transfers and club's outlook, he is even more pathetic in coming up with stories. He makes even Kenyon look like a saint. I just hope the loser and his team plays against us in the Champions League knock-out stages. Meanwhile Robinho makes his debut on 13th this month against Chelsea !!

Going through other happenings, the date for Chelsea's Carling Cup third round clash with Portsmouth has been announced. The game will take place at Fratton Park on Wednesday 24 September, with a 7.45pm kick off. Meanwhile, Michael Ballack has been withdrawn from the German squad for their forthcoming World Cup qualification matches against Liechtenstein and Finland due to the foot injury he suffered. Now, lets take a break and look forward to the World Cup qualifiers this weekend. Watch out for the one in which captain John Terry leads his England side to meet Croatia.

This article was originally posted in Living True Blue. Are you subscribed to Living True Blue's RSS feed? If not - subscribe

 

"Further to media reports, Chelsea Football Club can confirm we have made an offer to Real Madrid today (Thursday, August 7) for the transfer of Robinho." The Official Chelsea site made this announcement yesterday confirming that Chelsea has bid for Real Madrid winger Robinho. The possibility of Robinho arriving at the Bridge seemed less likely after Ronaldo decided to stay in Manchester and Sneijder got injured. But the confirmation by the Official site that a bid for Robinho has been made, adds another twist to the summer-long story.

Sky Sports News says that Chelsea have lodged a £19.7million bid for Real Madrid forward Robinho.Earlier this week, Kenyon had openly expressed the desire of the Club to sign the Brazilian winger. And Robinho, when asked about it, had refused to rule out the move. This could be Chelsea's last bid this summer and if the bid proves to be successful, we would see Samba magic at the Bridge soon.

 Chelsea are understood to be thinking about an offer from Roma for their winger Florent Malouda, who has failed to make an impact after arriving from Lyon last summer for £13.5m  Roma need to replace Mancini, who was sold to Inter, and was at first interested in a loan deal for Malouda. If the Robinho bid succeeds, Malouda may find himself in the Italian capital next season. Meanwhile the Pompeys from south coast are still said to be interested in Wright-Phillips and Redknapp believes Wright-Phillips would be another expensive buy like Crouch.

Moving onto other news, the Blues, back in London after thrashing the Rossoneri, have started the training sessions as scheduled. And one guy who is missing the party is Salamon Kalou. Kalou is in the Olympic squad of Ivory Coast, who lost their first group game in the Olympics as Argentina secured a 2-1 win. Ivory Coast will go into their next game against Serbia on Sunday with no points.

The article was originally published in Living True Blue. (subscribe)