Milan

Okay, we haven't been playing at our best, especially up front, but their form is definitely nothing we should be afraid of. To be honest I can't understand how on Earth they are top of the league, having been performing like a mid-table team. They are most likely going to be Champions this season but make it somehow more difficult for them, beat them and show they need to deserve to get our title.

I bloody hate this player so I really hope we will just be discussing only his potential ar... why even discussing, now in February and him - please don't continue this topic

I am so sorry and devastated. What is a Chelsea loss compared to such a thing... I really really hope you will get well soon, fingers crossed. Be strong.

I am just looking at some stats and during 2005/06 campaign, we won 18 out of 19 home league games. That season we only drew with Charlton at home. 12 clean sheets as well, 9 goals conceded. Simply stunning.

This Saturday marks another special anniversary for Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho. It is nine years since one of the four teams he has managed since 2002 - Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real - lost a league match at home. The last time the self-styled "Special One" experienced a league defeat with a side that he coached was on 23 February, 2002, when Porto were beaten 3-2 by Beira Mar. Even then, Mourinho could claim extenuating circumstances given his Porto team were down to nine men by the end of the game and played for 65 minutes with less than 11 players. Jorge Andrade was shown a red card in the 25th minute for a challenge on Beira Mar midfielder Bruno Ribeiro, with Cristiano Rocha's ensuing free-kick putting the visitors 1-0 ahead. Benni McCarthy equalised for Porto just before half-time, before Beira Mar striker Fary Faye restored his side's advantage early in the second half. Despite midfielder Deco's 74th-minute dismissal, midfielder Carlos Paredes pulled Porto level at 2-2, before Faye's second goal for Beira Mar in the 85th minute ensured defeat for Mourinho's side. Since then, Mourinho has established himself as one of the best coaches in world football. And one man who appreciates the Portuguese's qualities is BBC Radio 5 live pundit David Pleat. "Mourinho is very thorough in his preparation and in his methods," said the Englishman. "He arranges the coaching sessions and doesn't leave it to others. It's obvious that his players have great faith in him. "He exudes confidences and that percolates through to the players. They play with no fear." Pleat describes Mourinho as "imaginative, thoughtful, inventive and creative" and brackets him with other managers that have changed the way football is perceived - coaching greats such as Ukrainian Valeri Lobanovski, Hungarian Bela Guttmann, Italians Helenio Herrera and Arrigo Sacchi, and Dutchmen Rinus Michels and Louis van Gaal. All of those coaches, like Mourinho, either had low-key professional playing careers or, as in Sacchi's case, had never played professionally. "If you haven't been successful as a player then if you become a coach you have to work harder," said Pleat. "Coaches like Mourinho were prepared to work at lower levels and then be promoted," added the former Tottenham and Luton manager, referring to Mourinho's apprenticeship under Sir Bobby Robson at Sporting Lisbon, Porto and Barcelona as well as Van Gaal at the Catalan club. "You can see that with young English coaches like Paul Tisdale at Exeter, Eddie Howe at Burnley and Sean O'Driscoll at Doncaster. You can see their philosophy on Saturday in the way their team plays - it is obvious what they have done during the week in their training sessions. "Brighton manager [Gus] Poyet also stands out as a coach in England. You can tell that his players know exactly what they have to do - they are very well drilled." Mourinho has long been associated with the concept of "transition" in a football match - the idea that the opposition is at its most vulnerable when it loses possession. "At corners, Mourinho would always keep three players up," said Pleat. "That avoids the penalty area becoming too crowded and allows the goalkeeper a clear run at the ball but it also provides his teams with great counterattacking opportunities." The former Spurs manager points out that Mourinho has been fortunate to have taken charge of four strong sides packed full of high-quality international players and, in the case of Chelsea, Inter and Real, backed by ambitious owners ready to invest plenty of money to develop the squad. Luck has also played a part in Mourinho's unbeaten league run, no more so than on 25 August, 2002, when Edgaras Jankauskas's 97th-minute equaliser gave Porto a 2-2 draw against Belenenses. Since that defeat against Beira Mar in February 2002, 147 home league games have come and gone. Of those 147 matches, 122 have been won, with Mourinho's teams scoring 331 goals and conceding 87. But Mourinho's sides have long been associated with a never-say-die attitude. At Chelsea, goals in the last 10 minutes from Didier Drogba and Michael Essien respectively gave the Blues 1-1 draws against Birmingham and Arsenal in 2005 and 2006. "Mourinho has always been very astute in the way he has used substitutes and the way he maximised Essien's versatility was striking at Chelsea," said Pleat. "Essien would often start in the centre of midfield but, if things weren't going well after half-time, Mourinho would put him at right back and allow him to bomb forward." Portuguese defender Ricardo Carvalho has also been key to Mourinho's home league invincibility, playing for his compatriot at Porto, Chelsea and now Real. "Carvalho is an excellent reader of the game and is prepared to come out with the ball," said Pleat. "English centre-backs tend not to do that but it is a great way to take advantage of space. "When a defender steps up, it allows you to create two-on-one or three-on-two situations - what we call overload." Given Mourinho's remarkable unbeaten home league run - and Real's 100% record at the Santiago Bernabeu since he arrived at Madrid - spare a thought for Levante. Hovering in the lower reaches of the Spanish league, they prepare to face Real in Spain's capital at 2000 GMT this Saturday. And keep an eye on the weekend of 16 and 17 April, when when Real will have to negotiate Barcelona at the Bernabeu. MOURINHO'S HOME RUN Porto: P38 W36 D2 Chelsea: P60 W46 D14 Internazionale: P38 W29 D9 Real Madrid: P11 W11 KEEPING THE RUN ALIVE...JUST 2002 Porto v Belenenses Jankauskas 90+7 FT 2-2 2005 Chelsea v Birmingham Drogba 82 FT 1-1 2006 Chelsea v Arsenal Essien 84 FT 1-1 2009 Inter v Atalanta Cambiasso (equaliser) 80 FT 4-3 2009 Inter v Siena Sneijder (equaliser) 88 FT 4-3 BBC Sport

Tickets for the 2011 UEFA Champions League final at Wembley will go on sale on Thursday 24th February, but they are the most expensive in the competition's history. It is the first time the new arena, which was finally re-opened in 2007 following seven years of rebuilding, has hosted Europe's biggest showpiece, with the 86,000-seater Stadium set to be at full capacity on May 28th. The sale will end of March 18th, giving the general public the chance to get their hands on two tickets per person from an allocation of 11,000. The tickets are the most they have ever been for the occasion and Uefa expect income from the Champions League final to top £14million, £3m more than last year's final in Madrid. Applications must be done through European governing body Uefa's official website, and despite the vast costs, demand is still likely to exceed supply, and a lottery system will be introduced to decide who is successful. Prices Tickets available are priced at: Category 1 - £300, Category 2 - £225 (or £338 for an adult and child package), Category 3 - £150 and Wheelchair - £80, as well as a £26 booking fee. The last European final to be held at the ground was in 1992, where Barcelona beat Sampdoria 1-0 thanks to Ronald Koeman's winner It was to be the last year the trophy was called the European Cup before it was rebranded to the Champions League. Uefa's director of competitions Giorgio Marchetti said the prices were comparable with other major finals and were justified. Marchetti said at the ticket launch at London's City Hall: "The prices are based on the type of event and when you compare it to other events we don't think that the Champions League final is overpriced. "We do not want to squeeze every single penny out of the market. "We have to benchmark this event against other comparable events, like for example the final of the Euros and the World Cup. "Last year there was already a significant increase compared to the previous editions but it's nothing to do with being in London and it is still priced below comparable events." Marchetti added that president Michel Platini wanted more children to attend the game, and this was why a "youth package" had been put in place. "That's also why we put some tickets from children at a discounted price," he added. "That's a 50% discount for the child." Nasty question He also responded to fierce questions about the expensive administration fee, insisting that there were "costs involved." When asked why there was no administration fee for the women's Champions League final, that takes place at Craven Cottage two days before with tickets available for just £5, Marchetti felt that the two games could not be compared. "That is a nasty question," he responded. "I hope you don't think the men's final and women's final have the same target of people. We are not making a profit, we have different targets and objectives for the women's final. "This is the market price. Do you think we would have trouble filling Wembley if the prices were higher? You think it would be different? "We try to strike a balance between the interest of the supporters and the interest of the event. Why should we price the tickets lower than what we think is a fair level?" skysports.com

Same here. I believe our game would look different and be faster. He could change it definitely.

Very well said.

Don't even talk about it! Horrible thoughts

The problem will be the pressure and the stick he will get during awyy games. For such a sum of money he is expected to be a real killer and match-winner. He will, I'm sure. But these first weeks and months he needs to cope with the pressure. And once he gets his first goals, he will bang them suddenly.

Sure he is happy, I don't doubt about that. Just give him time to settle in our team properly. We can't expect him to score a hattrick in his second game for us and after just two weeks training with us. He will be a Chelsea star, I am not afraid.

I am not surprised at all. I remember some statistics showing the table based on the current form, I mean the table after the last six or eight games. It was revealed in December I think and Chelsea stood no chance, we were last.

Enough said. Although with our luck in Europe, we would get out of the competition in the semi-final so no need to think of the final We simply can't finish behind Tottenham, we can't.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on83SG06flY

I was saying it to myself during the game as well - how on Earth could Anelka hit him?? It was a promising counter and Anelka hit their laying player.

skysports Oh come on

Just imagine he will sign a new contract, and again, and again which would keep him here until the late age before moving to Czech Republic for the final year. Let's say, he will wear our shirt for another 10 years? Epic.

And with Dempsey's penalty, replays showed Drogba was clearly in the box when the spot-kick was taken, but Mike Dean did not order it to be retaken. Hell, if he did, can't imagine the stick he would get here I have also read Chelsea players lost the ball 28 times. That's unbelievable.

Oh right, our support was stunning. I really do love our travelling fans. Singing Nando's chant for about ten minutes was lovely, it must have given the boy a confidence and feeling he's home.

better and more important question - why he was there, definitely not only because of watching a west london derby

It must have been a horrible feeling when he realised it is a penalty, in his full debut and in the last minutes. Sigh of relief I am sure. Never mind, a brilliant performance. I don't even want to know what he will look like when gets used to the team.

what an awful feeling would David Luiz have had if the penalty was a goal, thank god he missed (just lol at the rebound) Petr and David Luiz MOTM, Nando was pretty unlucky but I am sure once he scores his first one, he will bang them suddenly easily by the way, that Gudjohnsen's sliding tackle, I loved that

2 points lost, but at the same time one gained shortly - FUCK

LOL IDIOT PETR IS GOD!