Wow. This passes as 'journalism'. "It has been many a long year since Chelsea supporters looked upon those who swear allegiance to Tottenham Hotspur with an envious eye, but that might just have been the case this week. Carlo Ancelotti's Blues may be riding high at the top of the Premier League table and assured of a placed in the last 16 of the Champions League after this comfortable romp against an outclassed opponent, yet such serene progress becomes a little mundane when it is the norm. This game against Spartak Moscow was an anti-climax in comparison to the other Champions League game in London this week, which saw Tottenham see off European champions Inter Milan in truly exhilarating fashion. Unbridled joy flowed from the stands as Tottenham announced their arrival on the biggest of European stages and the buzz that carried over from a thrilling evening of football was still in the air as the press pack gathered at Stamford Bridge for an impromptu pre-match debrief from the night before. After a season when extortionate salary demands of disgraced star players and the sex scandals they seem determined to be a part of have provided a seedy subplot to the action, one scribe suggested the exhilarating passion that oozed from Tottenham's players and their enchanted supporters must have reminded Chelsea fans of what following their team used to be like and he may have had a point. A new breed of Chelsea fan has discovered a 'love' for this club in the era when Roman Abramovich's money has backed their ambition, but the Stamford Bridge diehards will confirm that their most cherished of memories following the Blues came long before this somewhat manufactured era. Their cup successes of the early 1970s and their 1997 FA Cup triumph are higher up the list of favourite moments in the eyes of a bulk of Chelsea fans who were forced to live through the grim times before their team reached the promised land. To the old guard who view Kerry Dixon and Peter Osgood as their heroes, the new breed who have started supporting the club belatedly are little more than hangers-on attracted by success. That Spurs have edged towards parity on the pitch with Chelsea without a benefactor who has funded their rise could make their achievements seem somewhat more pure, but it remains to be seen whether the rise of Harry Redknapp's men can be sustained in the latter stages of this season's Champions League. On this occasion, Chelsea barely needed to move out of second gear to dismiss a poor Spartak Moscow side and they could even afford a less than convincing first half before they took control after the break. Goals from Anelka and Drogba and a two more from Branislav Ivanovic brought modest cheers from a sell-out crowd who deserve credit for beating the London tube strike to attend a game that could easily have been missed given the transport chaos around the capital. However, this was not a night that will live long in the memory of anyone present. In many ways, it was a fixture the reeked of everything that the dwindling group of football romantics despise in the modern game. One team financed by a Russian billionaire whose backing has propelled his 'brand' into the unofficial European super-league against a team propped up by another Russian billionaire hoping to put his beloved team on the same pedestal as Chelsea. Spartak Moscow owner Leonid Fedun has much in common with Abramovich as both made their fortunes from Russian oil and they share a passion for playing fantasy football in the Champions League. Here, though, only one of the money men will be have enjoyed the experience. There may have been more goals in this game than the feast at White Hart Lane on Tuesday evening, yet those of us in the neutral camp at Stamford Bridge couldn't help but feel we had picked the wrong Champions League game to attend this week. " Soccernet Note that this is supposed to be a match report, and all it talks about is how supposedly Spurs usurped Chelsea's glory this week. Can't miss the jabs at the new supporters and the by now done-to-death 'Russian oil money' gag. Guess the 'reporter' is a closet Sp*rs fan and is afraid to admit it, considering how complete and utter tools fans of that club are known to be. It's a fucking disgrace.
