BlueLion.

Quick straw poll. Be an optimist or a realist if you want... do you think we'll win the league? Personally I don't think we can; I maintain that the damage is already done. That being said, we do have a minuscule chance and with us still needing to go to Old Trafford I won't rule it out completely. However my head says no, and that's what I voted. Also, decide where you think the Blues will finish - I've gone for second place

You have to appreciate it was highly unlikely Torres would hit the ground running. We all saw Anelka only score two goals in his first half-season after we signed him, because it took him time to learn to play with his new team-mates and so on. Let's be a little more realistic and stop playing FIFA for a bit, because a goal a game is just burdening further expectation on him.

Until he can physically no longer perform, yes. Why? Because he is a Chelsea legend, who, in four games, will be playing his 500th game for the club. Based on sentiment and the fact he is still the best attacking midfielder in Europe, I see no reason why Mr Twenty-Goals-A-Season should be demoted at all.

Chelsea vs Manchester City Sunday 20th March, 2011 - Premier League - Stamford Bridge: 4pm kick-off - LIVE ON SKY SPORTS

Chelsea vs FC Copenhagen Wednesday 16th March, 2011 - UEFA Champions League Round of 16, Second Leg - Stamford Bridge: 7.45 pm kick-off - LIVE ON ITV SPORT

Thanks for commenting guys

You're doing a disservice to Puncheon...

Essien finally has two good performances and now he's criticised

Blackpool 1-3 Chelsea FA Premier League - Monday 7 March 2011 - Bloomfield Road Chelsea moved within nine points of Premier League leaders Manchester United thanks to goals from Frank Lampard and captain John Terry. It was Chelsea's talismanic skipper who opened the scoring inside the first twenty minutes as he powered home a tremendous header from Lampard's corner, whilst Jose Bosingwa and Ramires forced excellent first half saves out of Ghanaian international Richard Kingson as the Blues looked to close the gap on the league leaders, who lost 3-1 at Anfield on Sunday afternoon. Salomon Kalou then won a penalty which was comfortably slotted home by Lampard, before the England international doubled his tally with a composed finish after further creative play by his much-maligned team-mate as the champions eased into a three-goal lead around the hour mark - but on-loan Southampton winger Jason Puncheon reduced the arrears late on to offer a more respectable and balanced scoreline which at least gives some credit to the Seasiders. The only sour note for the champions was a second half injury picked up by Didier Drogba - but with Fernando Torres continuing to gradually find his feet in Chelsea blue and Petr Cech and Ashley Cole enjoying a merited victory on their 300th and 200th appearance for the club respectively, a whole host of positives can be taken from a functional winning performance. It was not quite the same high intensity that had seen Manchester United beaten at Stamford Bridge six days earlier, but Chelsea continued to build on a rich vein of form which has now seen them string together a hat-trick of impressive victories - largely thanks to another professional display that will offer great encouragement to a vociferous travelling faithful that equalled the vocal home supporters. And the wonderful atmosphere inside Bloomfield Road was testament to another gutsy performance by Blackpool, who were ultimately undone only by their opponents' sheer attacking qualities. The hosts had a number of opportunities in the first half as Cech made two excellent saves to maintain Chelsea's slender advantage, and even with only stoppage time remaining with the score at 1-3, Ian Holloway's side displayed the remarkable never-say-die attitude that has endeared the club to so many. With the North London duo of Arsenal and Tottenham drawing at the weekend, there was further opportunity for Chelsea to increase their stranglehold on fourth place as well as apply pressure on Arsene Wenger's side - and Carlo Ancelotti demonstrated his intent to attack with the 4-4-2 formation again preferred over the Blues' more traditional 4-3-3 approach. Yury Zhirkov, Didier Drogba and Jose Bosingwa were all given opportunities as the Blues coach made three straightforward but much-needed changes as the likes of Branislav Ivanovic and Nicolas Anelka were given well-deserved rests. Chelsea did not boast the same slick movement and incisive passing that eventually led to their triumph over Sir Alex Ferguson's side last week, but where Blackpool is famous for its gorgeous beaches, such a playing surface at Bloomfield Road would be better suited to beach volleyball as both sides were guilty of sloppy passing as the state of the pitch threatened to undermine an attractive pre-match billing. Undeterred, however, Chelsea soon took the lead through a tried and tested formula. Lampard's outswinging corner was met by the forehead of Terry, who from six yards powered the ball home and beyond Kingson. A captain's goal had given Chelsea a confidence-inducing lead; one that was almost doubled as Kingson flung himself to his right to palm a dipping effort from Bosingwa that looked to be creeping inside the far post. And whilst that effort was testament to the diversity of Chelsea's attacking threat, the Blues were quite lackadaisical defensively, and lapses in concentration at the back led to timely interventions from treble-centurion Petr Cech; who first touched the ball on to the post from Jason Puncheon's drive before tipping over a looping cross-cum-shot from Neil Eardley. The first half drew to an entertaining conclusion as Blackpool seemed to sense an opportunity, and their attacking exploits in the second half saw a continuation of the confidence they were demonstrating prior to the interval - though they rarely truly troubled Petr Cech's goal. Much of Blackpool's pressure was coming as a result of poor Chelsea passing that was no doubt hindered by the quality of the surface - but whilst Chelsea were pussy-footing around trying to play a tedious brand of football that to Arsenal fans seems to pose some sort of compensation for six trophyless seasons, Blackpool were pressing high up the pitch and frustrating their opponents. That frustration was capped when Drogba limped off after taking a blow to the lower back, but that cloud presented a welcome silver lining as substitute Salomon Kalou twice gave Frank Lampard the chance to secure a priceless victory. The first opportunity came as he was fouled in the box after a powerful surge into the penalty area. Ian Evatt - who scored an own goal in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge in a 4-0 hammering - again fell foul as he hacked down the Ivory Coast international. Lampard, who dispatched a spot-kick past Edwin van der Sar last Tuesday, showed nothing but a composed head as he coolly rolled the ball to Kingson's left. And Lampard's tally was doubled merely four minutes later when Kalou's trickery on the edge of the box played Lampard in - with the same inevitable result. Kalou might have increased the lead as the game drew to a dour conclusion that betrayed the attacking endeavours of both sides since the interval, but he hooked a volley over the bar from a corner from fellow substitute Florent Malouda. Seemingly contented with a three-goal lead, Ancelotti gave Josh McEachran a first-team opportunity as the excellent Ramires gave way to the young English star-in-the-making. That change altered the game's dynamic as Chelsea lost their midfield anchor, and Blackpool were beginning to find more space in the midfield as an unfamiliar midfield quartet was awkwardly shifted following the Brazilian's withdrawal. With Malouda operating on the left and Essien pushed to the right-hand side, the hosts soon began to find second wind and looked to at least achieve a consolation their performance certainly warranted. And that was delivered when Jason Puncheon hammered home expertly into the bottom corner from 12 yards. The clean sheet was surrendered as Cech was left exposed, yet it was the least Blackpool deserved as the home supporters saw their team register a late consolation - and a number of half-chances that fell their way during stoppage time that came as a result of sluggish defending from the Blues nearly saw the lead reduced even further. Goal-scoring hero at one end; John Terry was dealing in more familiar currency as his brave last-ditch tackle prevented Brett Ormerod from scoring a second for Blackpool - and whilst Alex Baptiste hooked an acrobatic effort over the crossbar, Chelsea held firm and were able to record a crucial victory that opens up some breathing space between themselves and fifth-placed Tottenham. A win over Blackpool should not be taken lightly; especially since the Tangerines have recorded impressive three-point returns at Bloomfield Road over both Spurs and Liverpool in recent months - and with a game in hand, faint hopes of a title challenge may still be entertained by Blues fans. Afterall, 'wishful thinking' seems to be synonymous with 'football fan.' _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Blackpool (4-5-1):Kingson (Halstead 66); Eardley, Baptiste, Evatt, Crainey; Puncheon, Southern, Vaughan ©, Reid, Carney (Phillips 72); Beattie Chelsea (4-4-2): Cech; Bosingwa, Luiz, Terry ©, Cole; Essien, Ramires (McEachran 74), Lampard, Zhirkov (Malouda 71); Drogba (Kalou 54), Torres The TalkChelsea.net man of the match was Chelsea's number 26, JOHN TERRY

I see no harm in playing Kalou out wide on the left. His creativity (and faultless work-rate, which is always overlooked) was key in the victory tonight.

That quip was mildly humorous the first time you posted it, but its becoming rather boring now. And in reference to Torres not scoring (bla bla bla), I personally don't give two shits. Why? Because a goal scored by John Terry or Branislav Ivanovic counts exactly the same. Hell, if we win all of our games until the end of the season thanks to own goals, I won't complain. Torres' first goal is coming.

When you consider Arsenal and United have to play each other and we still have to go to Old Trafford, the blind faith I possess underlines the fact it is still a possibility, though admittedly an improbability. I'm as much of a realist as you, but at the same time I see no reason why United, who are by no stretch an unbeatable team, and Arsenal, who lack the experience and quality (a luck, seemingly) necessary to win a title will not drop more points by the time we enter May.

You're kidding me? That finish was unerring and the likes of van der Sar, Reina and Casillas would all struggle to stop that.

Cech - 7 - a couple of excellent saves, very few goalkeepers would have been able to stop Puncheon's late strike. Bosingwa - 5 - he was good going forward, but defensively quite poor. He's played much better than that recently, I'm disappointed. Luiz - 6 - he was unspectacular and did what he had to do. That's what I like from my centre halves. Terry - 8 - excellent performance all-round, and a goal to cap it off. Man of the match without doubt. Cole - 6 - the opposite of Bosingwa, really. Great display defensively, but he seemed very reluctant to offer width going forward. Ramires - 7 - Mr Consistent was again the driving force. He remains under-appreciated despite this consistently fine form. Essien - 7 - Essien seems to have regained his fitness and as a result he's finding his form once again. A great box-to-box performance. Lampard - 6 - two goals, granted, but in fairness he did very little else. Zhirkov - 4 - as much as I love the guy, he was awful. His work-rate was non-existent and he was constantly giving the ball away. Ironic, since we all wanted him in the team. McEachran - 6 - composed performance, he doesn't possess the same defensive steel as Ramires and thus I thought we looked a little threadbare when he came on, but that is no reflection on Josh who played well in my opinion. Malouda - 6 - I don't understand the criticism of Malouda in this match; he came on and gave us some attacking impetus down the left and had two goalscoring chances. He did nothing wrong and he worked hard to cover Cole. Drogba - 5 - he seems interested one minute and couldn't give a shit the next. An indifferent performance, though he and Torres were both betrayed by a lack of service from the midfielders. Torres - 5 - like Drogba he was let down by the fact no-one passed to him. But this game is testament to the fact he and Drogba simply cannot play in the same side. Kalou - 6 - we saw the good and bad of Kalou with two assists but then him letting himself down on occasions with bad decision-making. He also missed a sitter in trademark fashion, but he certainly fit well into the system and did nothing to hurt his chances.

I absolutely, categorically disagree for obvious reasons; such as the fact we still have a game in hand. Fair point, but playing football on a surface like that is next to impossible. I can't wait to see how Arsenal do at Bloomfield Road.

Some of you cheer the fuck up, we just won and we are now (sort of, mathematically-speaking) back in the title race.

We have no width because Zhirkov is fucking everything up, and Ramires is naturally a narrow midfielder. The obvious change is to go 4-3-3 and put Zhirkov and Drogba on the wings.

When people said we're having a trip to the seaside, I think people were mistaking the pitch for the beach... its utterly horrendous; no wonder why we can't pass it around. BTW, JT has been immense.

I find it ironic we all wanted Zhirkov to play, yet he was easily the worst player on the pitch

Carlo's made some obvious but much-needed changes. I still wish Cole wasn't playing tbh.

FFS, really not in the mood for another tense 90 minutes and a shit-yourself-cos-its-only-1-0 sort of game.

No, I am referring to our two games in hand; Blackpool and Birmingham.

High as a Kuyt 6th Mar 2011, In Articles, by Alex Hinsley It's been a superb weekend for Chelsea supporters - and not even a single ball has been kicked by the Premier League champions, who visit Bloomfield Road on Monday evening. A draw for Arsenal and a 3-1 loss for Manchester United means that the champions can close the gap on their title rivals with victory over Blackpool tomorrow - and coupled with the fact that Tottenham could only draw with Wolves, and things look rather rosy from a blue complexion. Dirk Kuyt netted a hat-trick as Liverpool beat Manchester United 3-1 at Anfield - effectively opening the title door to Carlo Ancelotti's charges, who can close the gap to a mere six points between themselves and first place should they win their games in hand. First up is Blackpool at Bloomfield Road, before a home game against Birmingham. A combination of magnificent goalkeeping and some admittedly woeful refereeing saw Arsenal held at the Emirates by Sunderland; a result which further sweetens the weekend's footballing action - Chelsea will now be further buoyed by the fact only Manchester City won out of their potential title rivals and fellow Champions League contenders. And that win for City came only as a result of poor goalkeeping by the usually-reliable Ali al-Habsi as he allowed David Silva's shot to squirm into the net. This weekend was full of positives for Chelsea supporters. United's frailties - again exposed by a dogged Liverpool performance that was amongst the best team displays seen at Anfield in some time - indicates their route to a 19th first division title will not be as easy as many anticipated, and three defeats out of four on the road highlight the fact Sir Alex's unit are currently paling in comparison to the unbeaten world-beaters we were acquainted with a little over a month ago. Meanwhile, draws for the North London giants - Arsenal and Spurs - could not come at a better time for Carlo Ancelotti's side. Whilst Arsenal were denied blatant penalty calls and had a perfectly legitimate goal ruled out for offside, Spurs conceded an 87th-minute equaliser in an enthralling game at Molineux which ended 3-3. As a die-hard Blues fan, that could make three points tomorrow all the more sweeter. And with City struggling to beat Wigan at the City of Manchester Stadium, a Chelsea side that has recorded impressive wins over FC Copenhagen and United over the course of the last two weeks represents the only semblance of form and momentum that can be boasted by any of the title contenders. The Premier League trophy may be just out of reach of John Terry and company. I maintain the title was realistically lost in December, though Liverpool can claim the triumph of hammering home the final nail in early February - but the fact of the matter is that premature talk of finishing outside the top four should be abandoned immediately. That talk - largely emerging around the middle of our worst run of form for some 16 years - can largely be attributed to Chelsea fans believing that feeling sorry for themselves suddenly counts as pragmatic thinking. Instead, such is the fickleness of the football fan, that only the most pessimistic of Chelsea supporters would doubt their side's chances of finishing in the top four - and with Spurs demonstrating such enigmatic form and Arsenal continuing to make us laugh, who would bet against us at least securing third place with a degree of comfort and a handful of points to spare as well? Second place is a realistic target for this side - who, let us not forget, already can start planning for the UEFA Champions' League quarter finals - meaning that those people dismissing this season as a failure can quite easily be identified as spoilt glory-hunters. And mathematically speaking, nothing is to say we can't win the title. Go to Old Trafford in May and win in a potential title decider, and then hope and pray that both Arsenal and United continue to demonstrate the nerves that usually come in to play as the contenders reach the home straight, then imagine Tottenham beat Arsenal at White Hart Lane and West Ham away once again is a bogey fixture for United... ...then try and tell me we're out of it. Okay, perhaps that's just wishful thinking. At the end of the day (which, according to most footballers, is when everything in the sport seems to happen...), this season is certainly shaping up to be a lot better than most people expected. So when you've finished healing the bruised egos and licking the wounds inflicted by home defeats at the hands of Sunderland and Liverpool, perhaps you might join the band of carefree Chelsea supporters that still have faith in this team.

Agreed, he's wasting his time there.

I hope the players aren't as complacent as I'm being for this match I just can't see Blackpool posing too much of a threat without Adam or Campbell. Drogba should play just to have shots from range, Kingson isn't exactly what I'd call a quality goalkeeper...