Zola's Flick

Excellent win against a very poor outfit. Professional, job done, in to the next round. Hazard, Azpilicueta and Cahill were very good. Also impressed with Lamps' contribution yesterday. Good to see Didier return. Many of their old players like Melo and Sneijder have lost what they had though so I see them having a few years in the abyss, especially with such an average manager in charge. CAREFREE

Wow, Liverpool absolutely mauled Man United yesterday without even getting out of third gear. They look a serious threat to the title. Not worried about the Gooners though, they were poor at Spuds.

Didier's return to the Bridge... Thing is, I'm looking forward to that more than I am the game itself. We should win at home to these cos they are decidedly average outside of three or four players but I just have little faith in us scoring goals unless Hazard turns up. Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Mikel, Oscar; Willian, Eto'o, Hazard I think we'll go through but reckon it'll be a painful process. Either 0-0 and through virtue of the away goals rule or a 1-0 with JT or Cahill banging home a header. CHELSEA, CHELSEA, CHELSEA

Awful day at the office. Approach play was okay but we really struggled to find a way through their well-drilled defence. Defensively we were as firm as ever. Then... All hell breaks loose. A second yellow for Willian, really brainless foul, and we never recovered. Indeed, it instead handed the initiative over to Aston Villa and their winning goal was inevitable. Not sure if it was avoidable, however; it was simply brilliant by Delph. Ramires was pathetic and gutless. Horrible tackle. Deserved to go. Jose's dismissal was just a horrible piece of icing on a disastrous cake. No Man of the Match for us as no one on our team played well, just okay. Not sure I'll even bother going to Villa Park next season!

Love a visit to the ever-depressing Villa Park. Should be comfortable this. Aston Villa's home form under Paul Lambert, both in terms of results and performances, is utterly horrendous. They don't know how to play at home, cos their counter-attacking method doesn't work as well there due to the fans wanting them to attack teams, which in turn leaves them very open. Hazard will have a field day. Eto'o deserves to keep his spot up front in my view, played well against Spurs. Lampard to start again, scored two crucial goals here last season. I also think Salah is worth starting cos of how open it is likely to be, will suit him down to the ground. Oscar needs more resting if possible, ahead of the Champions League game vs Gala. Defence, Matic and Ramires will ensure we're solid. They just need to keep a grip of Benteke and the game is half won. Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic, Lampard; Salah, Eto'o, Hazard Tough away games for Liverpool, Arsenal and, to a lesser extent, Man City. Could open up a big gap with a win. COME ON CHELSEA! CAREFREE

Unfortunately I suffered a personal tragedy while I was in Istanbul so missed the Fulham game but glad to see we won convincingly with Schurrle's confidence given a huge lift. Thankfully Saturday's game will take my mind off recent events. I'd like to see: Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic; Schurrle, Hazard, Willian; Eto'o Eddie with free reign off the front man. Spuds are shit, absolutely diabolical and lucky to be where they are (Everton and Southampton have performed much better than them this season). We will 3-0. Get stuck in to these cunts! Come on you Blues!

I'm off to this, setting off tomorrow, staying there for a few days to make the most out of it. Hoping to watch the game and see the Blues win then off in to the city and nab a stripper if I'm lucky. As for the match, I think it will be a draw. Is very rare you see English teams go to Turkey and get a positive result. Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Mikel, Matic; Willian, Eto'o, Hazard is how I think we will line up. At least one away goal please, even if we lose. COME ON CHELSEA

Huge win that boys! Wasn't a great performance by any means but we dug it out again and that's what top teams do. Something wonderful about the two old boys, JT and Lamps, combining in the last minute to notch the winner in such a hard-fought game. Really did roll back the years. Defence was excellent, midfield much improved second half when Oscar went off (looks shattered), front three pretty poor. But we got the job done and that's all that matters. Terry MotM. BLUES

Important game seeing as Liverpool, Man City and Arsenal all have more winnable ones than us. It's essential we win all home games from here on out. JT being back is great news. I know we have Galatasaray midweek but we shouldn't rest players against a decent Everton team. They played well in their game at Arsenal but I'm sure Jose watched the tape of Liverpool's 4-0 win over them where fast counter-attacking football was the order of the day. Do the same as that and we should win. Lukaku out for them due to being a loanee from us so they look blunt in attack. My preferred XI: Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic, Oscar; Willian, Torres, Hazard I say Torres because he'll be up for this, he has a great record against Everton including the winning goal in this fixture last season and hates them from his Liverpool days so will be desperate to do well. Besides, Eto'o needs a rest judging by his recent performances. I predict a tight and nervy game but with us coming out as 2-0 winners. CHELSEA! CHELSEA! CHELSEA!

Poor result and poor performance. Not an ideal mix, at this stage of the season. I know every team is due a bad day at the office but with us having the chance to stretch a lead at the top and put pressure on those below us playing tonight there should have been an added incentive to win, and win well. Instead, from about the hour mark onwards we played as if we had the game sewn up. That gave West Brom the motivation they needed to deservedly get a point. Nothing hurts more than conceding a late goal like that, but we only have ourselves to blame for inviting so much pressure on. Hawthorns a bit of a bogey ground for us thesedays. Matic our man of the match for me, covered loads of ground and did everything well. Willian the only other Chelsea player to turn up for the full 90 minutes. Even Cahill wasn't at his brilliant best. Oscar was poor and is visibly tiring while it is quite clear that if Hazard doesn't play well we won't win many football matches. Well played to WBA, they dug in for their new manager and I hope they stay up. Title still very much up for grabs, albeit if Liverpool win tonight then it becomes a four-horse race. CHELSEA, CHELSEA, CHELSEA

Big game. Their new manager Pepe Mel has lost both of his away games in charge but got very good points at home to Everton and Liverpool (albeit with lots of luck against Liv). Our record at the Hawthorns in recent years is poor. AVB and Di Matteo both lost their jobs days after losing here - it's a poisoned chalice! Thankfully I think Jose is safe regardless of the result tomorrow night No Terry is a miss but we've been lucky with injuries this season so can't complain too much. Their captain and best defender is out (Olsson), as are their creative hub (Sessegnon) and Anelka, who would be bound to score against us! No complacency with team selection, I'd be happy with: CECH IVANOVIC CAHILL LUIZ AZPILICUETA RAMIRES MATIC OSCAR WILLIAN ETO'O HAZARD Their strikers are poor so JT shouldn't be missed in theory. Prediction: WEST BROM 0-2 CHELSEA (HAZARD, OSCAR) Come on you Blues!

What a fabulous weekend. Started in the boozer watching Arsenal get caned, leaving 1st place up for grabs then watched Hazard destroy Newcastle while Man City stumbled against Norwich, then capped off by seeing Man Utd draw to the team in bottom spot. Hazard was mesmerising. He really has come in to his own since about the start of December. Weird to think back to October time, he was having a real dip in form and wasn't starting every game. Now he's realising his potential and having a Robben-esque effect on us a la 2004/05. Long may it continue. We weren't at our best but it was always going to be tough to replicate the City performance just five days later. The most pleasing thing is we won anyway with each and every player putting a shift in. Shoutout to Cech for a couple of very good saves at important stages. Salah did okay when he came on, should have scored though. Top of the league guys, let's keep it up!

Big game. Win this and chances are we go level on points with Arsenal, who are at Liverpool. Playing Newcastle at a perfect time; Remy suspended, Tiote injured and Cabaye having just departed without any replacements being brought in. I'd like a couple of players to be rested but fundamentally a strong side out, we simply can't afford any more slip-ups at home. My XI: Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Cole; Ramires, Matic, Lampard; Oscar, Ba, Hazard But a very slim chance that is the team! Prediction: CHELSEA 2-0 NEWCASTLE - Ba to score a goal if he plays versus his former club. COME ON YOU BLUES

Well, well, well... what a night! I refrained from posting before I headed up to Manchester out of superstition, I didn't want to predict anything for fear of jinxing us in our most pivotal game of the season (if we lost the title would likely have been out of reach). Just the perfect away performance in a big game; goalkeeper did what he did had to, entire defence was a rock, midfeld kept it tight and contributed going forward, attackers put in a shift and created some good chances. Not a single player failed to turn up. Even Demba Ba made a significant contribution, winning that header from their corner straight after coming on. Fantastic response to the West Ham draw and shows that Mourinho is still the man for the big occasion. Great team display but three individuals I'd like to pick out for praise - Gary Cahill, Nemanja Matic and Eden Hazard. Cahill - was uber solid at the back, nothing got past him in the air or on the deck and he came close to scoring which would have capped his performance off nicely. Matic - what a way to reintroduce yourself to the Premier League in your first start in the league back at the club. Kept Y.Toure's influence to a minimum, linked the play and also came mighty close to scoring. Hazard - has definitely sorted out his consistency and is now looking like a big game player. Probably the third best player in the league now (behind Suarez and Aguero) and only going to improve. Man of the Match: Cahill. MVP: Jose Mourinho. CHELSEA, CHELSEA, CHELSEA!

Fuck me that was painful. Was so predictable. Dominated the home game as we have many others but simply couldn't score for shit. Except we've generally been able to get at least 2 or 3 which is enough for us to win. Not tonight. Far too many poor efforts on goal, did we even hit double digits on target? Can't blame West Ham for their tactical approach, it may serve them wonders in the long term. Just a highly frustrating night allround for us. Hazard was exceptional, bar his end product which was off colour. Disappointed with Jose for his post match reaction. Even more disappointed by Eto'o's attempts at conning the ref, really don't think I would like the guy if he played elsewhere. Still think we're in the title race but a loss on Monday and we may have to start looking over our shoulder cos Liverpool could be just a point off us. Better luck next time Blues.

Uninspiring signing but could be a very useful impact player off the bench. Still, far from convinced it was worth selling Mata and replacing him with this guy.

Revved up for tonight's game, after our recent form there is every reason to be uber confident of smashing these wet wipes! I just hope we actually smash a team properly like Liverpool and Man City have been doing a lot i.e. 4-0 or something. My preferred XI for this: Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic, Oscar; Willian, ANY ST, Hazard. Then, once we're a couple goals up in the second half take off Hazard and Oscar for rests ahead of the City game. Prediction: CHELSEA 3-0 WEST HAM - Hazard to score a brace or a hat-trick. C'MON BLUES!

Got to be honest guys, I am absolutely devastated by the news of Mata going to Manchester United. It is arguably Mourinho's most unjustifiable decision ever, to phase him out to the point of no return and, thus, a move to a rival of ours. I simply cannot get over it, as much as I tell myself to do so. He was a joy to watch for us, our best player in his time here as backed up by his awards at the club, and the trophies we won in the process. Whatever you do, don't blame Mata. He has been forced out. It is a World Cup year, and he needs to be playing. Man Utd can clearly offer him that, but so should we, because as well as Willian has done lately, he is no Mata. So sad

It's been an awful week as far as I'm concerned. There is simply no justification for selling the club's first or second best player - least of all to a rival. But tomorrow I will brush it under the carpet and out of my mind. As I hope the club shall do, cos we have a cup tie to focus on. We owe Stoke after they beat us recently. Strong team please, Jose. Along the lines of: Schwarzer Azpilicueta Cahill Luiz Cole Ramires Matic Lampard Schurrle Any of the strikers, probably best to stick with Eto'o cos his confidence will be high after hitting a hatty Hazard And I'll be happy. Predicting a 2-0 win with Hazard scoring one of them at least. COME ON YOU BLUES

Late to the party here, but GET IN! Delighted for Sammy Et. We were far from our best yet it always felt like we were in control of the game. Another strong defensive display. Absolutely hilarious to witness first hand how inept Man United are (then last night they showed it again). Unfortunately it appears we will be handing them a gift in Mata. Oh, and as for Vidic and Rafael - DIRTY CUNTS! Fucking hate that club. So glad we won! BLUES

We will absolutely cane these cunts. I feel it in me timbers boys. CONTRAST: We have been flying since the defeats at Stoke and Sunderland. Drew at Arsenal, beat Swansea, Liverpool, Southampton, Derby and Hull. A really tough run of games but, since Jose adopted his more familiar style of play, the results have been terrific. As for Man Utd, they have been rubbish whenever they have played one of the good teams in the league this season, most of their points have come against bottom half teams and even then they have been lucky in many of their games (anyone see their game at Hull? FIX!). Without Rooney and van Persie they are even more vulnerable. I genuinely think we can do what City did to them and win by three or four. I hope Matic starts. Him, Ramires and Oscar would be my midfield preference; it has a bit of everything. Whereas their midfield has... Tom Cleverley! I guess they might go with a Fletcher-Carrick combo, but that's well past its sell by date and you would expect Hazard to shit all over them. I'm so excited for this. I really hope we smash the arrogant arseholes. They act as if Jose would have 100% chosen them over us given the chance. Cech; Azpiliceuta, Cahill, Terry, Cole; Ramires, Matic, Oscar; Willian, Torres, Hazard Torres always does well against these too. I hope my confidence is justified. COME ON YOU BLUES

Their record against top nine teams this season: Man Utd 0-0 Chelsea Liverpool 1-0 Man Utd Man City 4-1 Man Utd Man Utd 1-1 Southampton Man Utd 1-0 Arsenal Tottenham 2-2 Man Utd Man Utd 0-1 Everton Man Utd 0-1 Newcastle Man Utd 1-2 Tottenham So no, they don't. Not under the rubbish David Moyes.

I was incredibly pissed by kick-off after an early start on the drinks so forgive me for not recollecting and thus relaying my version of events from the game sooner but having tried to remember and watching it back earlier here's my thoughts... Eden Hazard - what a fucking player. He's so gifted, but has been far too inconsistent so far to be considered in that echeleon of talent that boasts Messi and Ronaldo followed by top players such as Suarez, Ibrahimovic, Iniesta and Ribery. Well, if Eden can carry on playing for the rest of the season as he has done in the last month then he will be up there. It seemed that everyone was challenging him to turn up more in games, win matches on his own, and he's answered those calls by Jose, the fans and the media alike. He's fast turning in to Jose's reliable Robben matchwinner of 2004/05. Let's hope he keeps it up. He was sensational at Hull, his goal topped it off nicely. Rest of the lads did their job, pretty much all of them putting in a 7/10 performance bar perhaps Cech, although that's more because he had nothing to do hardly, and Torres who was poor until he clinched the goal that settled it which obviously lifts his mark up to a 7 in fairness. Perhaps Cole was a weak link in the first half, he got skinned a lot and generally it took us a while to get going but we didn't shed many chances to Hull even in the first half when we were far from our best. Excellent defending from the boys, as a team, and a job well done. BLUES

I'm off to Hull in a bit. Staying in a hotel tonight. Wish me luck - it's an utter shithull! Think for one of the very few times this season the team picks itself, be it for form or injury reasons (mainly the former). Cech; Azpiliceuta, Cahill, Terry, Cole; Mikel, Ramires; Hazard, Oscar, Willian; Torres. The only real selection issues up for debate tomorrow are Cahill or Luiz and Torres or Eto'o. I think Cahill and Torres are in better form and better equipped to deal with Hull's aerial prowess than the other two. Love Mata but Willian has been very good lately and deserves to start. Won't be easy by any means, I watched them against Man United; Hull definitely should have got at least a point but for bad luck. They also smashed Fulham. Having said that, the best team they've played at the KC this season is Liverpool, they won that but I think it was largely due to Liverpool underperforming on the day, cos Hull were shit themselves but had the rub of the green with a deflected goal and an own goal. I said we would win 0-2 at Derby with two goals in the last half an hour. BOOM! Prediction for tomorrow is a 0-1 win with the goal coming in the second half. BLUES

A great day out yesterday first and foremost. Derby has some good boozers. As for the game, delighted we got the win. Always felt the goal would come, I can't emphasise enough how happy I was that John Obi got it! Oscar lucky with his but his overall performance merited a goal, as did Willian's who unfortunately didn't score. Hazard did very well from the bench. With my man Mata out of favour it's looking like the Brazilian-Belgian attacking midfield three is our best recipe right now, they are all in good form. Very disappointed in Ramires for his dive, was right in front of me. Copped a fair bit of abuse and deservedly so. Defensively we were rock solid once again. Derby played well but we controlled the game. Hughes looks a tidy, intelligent player who clearly has great potential. Mikel my man of the match, probably not totally warranted for his performance compared to the Brazilian attacking duo but HE SCORED! So I'll give it to him for that. By the way, this is what I said in the pre-match thread - 'Pretty confident of a win but it won't be easy unless we score early. 0-2 with both goals coming in the last half hour.' #MysticMeg