The Big Drog

Forget them. Bitter. We are Chelsea FC, tonight belongs to us, I couldn't care less what anyone else thinks. The Chelsea lads tonight were nothing short of heroic, just like they were against Barcelona, just like they were against Napoli, just like they were against Valencia. Those players, the Chelsea staff and and background team deserve all the praise in the world, they have cemented themselves in the history of the club and tonight is a night that will hold a very special place in every single Chelsea fan's heart.

My pick for MOTM is Didier Drogba. Rather ineffective for the best part of 88 minutes, had a few nice touches but generally looked isolated up top as Tymoshuck was given the freedom to challenge in front of him, safe in the knowledge that Boateng was behind him and no Chelsea player was close enough to run in behind if Drogba did win the flick on. Despite the rather subdued 88 minutes, this is the man for the big occasion, this is the best lone striker of his generation, this is the greatest player in the history of Chelsea FC and this might well have been his Chelsea swansong and it only takes one moment. A charge to the front post to get on the end of a well delivered Mata corner, a thumping header past Neuer before he barely has a chance to react, it was the moment Drogba has been waiting his entire career for, a moment that brought tears to his (and my) eyes. Almost turned villain when he gave away the penalty but there was no stopping this fairytale. With memories of Moscow visible in every single Chelsea fans minds, the great man stepped up and took the important penalty kick and dispatched it to win us our first every Champions League. It would have been a travesty had the big Ivorian's career ended without a Champions League winners medal and with this being, possibly, his final chance at glory, Didier made it a personal crusade to deliver the big prize. Remember Valencia at Stamford Bridge? A stirring Drogba performance, single handedly powered us on to beat the Spanish side. Remember Napoli at Stamford Bridge? Dead and buried but Drogba didn;t think so, inspirational performance, rolling back the years to drive us on to beat Napoli. Remember Barcelona at Stamford Bridge and the Camp Nou? Supreme, powerhouse performance at Stamford Bridge as he bullied the Barcelona back four and scored a vital goal and then put in an incredible shift in which he seemed to play in almost every position at one point or another. And now, remember Munich, against the might and history of Bayern Munich, Didier Drogba has fired Chelsea into Europe's elite bracket, a performance that will surely cement his place as Chelsea's greatest ever. (Just wanted to get this in the Drogba thread)

You need a great goalkeeper to win the big prizes and, luckily, we have the greatest goalkeeper. However Petr Cech is so much more than just a goalkeeper, he is a leader, he helps marshal the back four, he is a calming influence in his willingness to come collect cross-ins and his excellent kicking, he is an inspirational figure. It must be such a bonus for the lads in the team to know that in our goal is one of the finest goalkeepers of his generation (imo the finest). His 3 penalty saves tonight typify the man, great passion, wonderful skill, an inspiration.

As I said in an earlier post, what an incredible night, what an amazing victory, what a superhuman effort from our lads, not only in this game but over the course of the campaign, we were perilously close to going out of the competition as far back at the group stage but the squad showed fight, they showed hunger and they showed togetherness to drive us on to our greatest every victory, our greatest ever season. Tonight was a massive ask. Against an ultra talented Bayern Munich side that knocked out Real Madrid, in Bayern's home stadium, with 4 suspensions (including our captain and leader, John Terry) and 2 centre backs with dangerous hamstring injuries (made worse by them having to play 120 minutes) and a 22 year old left back playing his first Champions League game at left wing, this was truly a mountain to climb. Because we were afforded more possession against Munich than we were against Barcelona we were never going to be able to just sit in the same shape as we did against Barcelona because we had to push men forward occasionally and so Bayern had chances. Full credit to the side, we maintained our shape for the most part and towards the end of extra time they seemed limited to shots from outside the box. You couldn't fault a single Chelsea player. Petr Cech, outstanding. Great save earlier in the match with his leg to tip Robben's shot onto the post. Vital penalty save from Robben in extra time, two terrific penalty saves in the shoot-out. Heroic. Jose Bosingwa, stuck to his task well, had the occasional dip in concentrating but for the most part did much better against Ribery than the vast majority expected. Gary Cahill, massive credit to the lad. He's only been at Chelsea 6 months, he has gone from Bolton to a Champions League final and he was excellent at the heart of the Chelsea defence. David Luiz, Tremendous, absolutely tremendous. Playing with a hamstring injury, he was solid and his penalty (after Mata missed his) was so crucial, an absolute superstar. Ashley Cole, I remember earlier in the season a few people writing him off, I've always been a big Ashley Cole fan and, for me, he has always been the best full back in the world and he showed it tonight, it was a masterclass in full back play and, along with Terry, Lampard, Cech and Drogba, nobody deserves a Champions League winner's medal as much as him. John Obi Mikel, I've not always been on the Mikel bandwagon (as most on here who know me would tell you) but he has won me over these last few months and his performance tonight is exactly why. Strong, commanding, the Nigerian was a big physical presence in front of the back four and a very calming presence on the ball. I'd heard it said before that you couldn't win a Champions League with Mikel in your midfield, it turns out you can and it turns out he can be one of your best performers too. Frank Lampard, inspirational leader. Fought and scrapped in the midfield, maintained the shape of the side, did well on the ball and scored a cracking penalty too, delighted to see him lift the cup with JT, you would be hard pressed to find somebody who deserves a CL winners medal more than him. Salomon Kalou, yes he frustrates but he always works hard, he helped Bosingwa cover Ribery and Contento and he was a decent outlet on the ball too. To go from being left completely out in the cold earlier in the season under AVB to start a Champions League final, he deserves a lot of credit. Ryan Bertrand, the surprise choice at left wing, acquitted himself very well in his first Champions league game, doubled up on Robben very well. Juan Mata, stayed high up the pitch, when he did get the ball his passing was crisp and clever and his delivery for Drogba's late equaliser was excellent, missed a penalty but it didn't matter in the end. Florent Malouda, did well when he came on, worked hard to track Lahm and keep an eye on Robben. Fernando Torres, did very well when he came on, looked really up for it, sharp and quick it's very promising going into next season. Also it was a terrific sight to see him parade around with the Champions League trophy, he came here to win club trophies, he has just won the biggest of them all. but my pick for MOTM is Didier Drogba. Rather ineffective for the best part of 88 minutes, had a few nice touches but generally looked isolated up top as Tymoshuck was given the freedom to challenge in front of him, safe in the knowledge that Boateng was behind him and no Chelsea player was close enough to run in behind if Drogba did win the flick on. Despite the rather subdued 88 minutes, this is the man for the big occasion, this is the best lone striker of his generation, this is the greatest player in the history of Chelsea FC and this might well have been his Chelsea swansong and it only takes one moment. A charge to the front post to get on the end of a well delivered Mata corner, a thumping header past Neuer before he barely has a chance to react, it was the moment Drogba has been waiting his entire career for, a moment that brought tears to his (and my) eyes. Almost turned villain when he gave away the penalty but there was no stopping this fairytale. With memories of Moscow visible in every single Chelsea fans minds, the great man stepped up and took the important penalty kick and dispatched it to win us our first every Champions League. It would have been a travesty had the big Ivorian's career ended without a Champions League winners medal and with this being, possibly, his final chance at glory, Didier made it a personal crusade to deliver the big prize. Remember Valencia at Stamford Bridge? A stirring Drogba performance, single handedly powered us on to beat the Spanish side. Remember Napoli at Stamford Bridge? Dead and buried but Drogba didn;t think so, inspirational performance, rolling back the years to drive us on to beat Napoli. Remember Barcelona at Stamford Bridge and the Camp Nou? Supreme, powerhouse performance at Stamford Bridge as he bullied the Barcelona back four and scored a vital goal and then put in an incredible shift in which he seemed to play in almost every position at one point or another. And now, remember Munich, against the might and history of Bayern Munich, Didier Drogba has fired Chelsea into Europe's elite bracket, a performance that will surely cement his place as Chelsea's greatest ever.

Tears in my eyes, this is the greatest night of my life. Unbelievable game, I can't believe what I've just seen. Every single Chelsea player over the course of this campaign has been a credit to the club. It was so special because you can see how much it means to us Chelsea fans and to those Chelsea players and to Roman Abramovich. COME ON CHELSEA!

Tears in my eyes, this is the greatest night of my life. Unbelievable game, I can't believe what I've just seen. Every single Chelsea player over the course of this campaign has been a credit to the club. It was so special because you can see how much it means to us Chelsea fans and to those Chelsea players and to Roman Abramovich. COME ON CHELSEA!

Like everyone else on here I'm ridiculously nervous. I am still in disbelief that we are playing in the champions league final tonight having beaten Barcelona over 2 legs. The lads have done us proud to get this far, they will go down in history as Chelsea's greatest ever team, a champions league winners medal would be the icing on the cake.

Obviously he won't be joining us. Good player, lots of potential but I do think some on here are overrating him, reading a few comments on this forum you'd swear he was a messi/ronaldo hybrid.

If this were to happen it would be fantastic for all involved. Fantastic for Chelsea because we get a genuinely top class player in a position where we lack quality. Fantastic for the player who gets to play for a top club in a top league. Fantastic for Porto as Im sure they will be reimbursed handsomely.

Your complaining about that? I love the Summer period, it's a magical time as the realms of delusion and reality get completely contorted and the scousers' eyes grow larger and larger, like a little girl writing a list to Santa, with the arrival of each distinctly average footballer and by the start of the season they simply cant contain their sheer excitement of the upcoming season because, finally, after more than 20 years, this season, not last season, not the season before that and certainly not the season before that, no, this season will be their season! It's my favourite time of year and provides endless amounts of entertainment and never fails to throw up a few quality lines that you can quote back to them once their league form goes belly up (usually before January)

Man Utd fans said the same thing when they had to play EL earlier this season and then they were torn to shreds by Bilbao.

I dunno man, whenever I've seen him play I've never been convinced by him, never rated him and never thought he was good enough for our club. Though, as you rightly say, it was a terrific pass to Shelvey, if the whole goalkeeping thing doesn't work out (which seems to be case) maybe he can give the Andrea Pirlo role a whirl.

He definitely should have scored, it was a sitter. That being said, I thought his overall play was actually pretty good. Showed good strength in the air and a bit of pace, always looked to receive the ball and made a few clever runs, despite only being on the pitch for around 25 minutes I thought he was our second best player on the night (behind Ramires). Id like to see him get a loan move next season. I would also like to see the board carefully think out where that loan move should be to, our history with loan moves is generally terrible. I think this guy has a lot of talent, he is a big physical presence with pace, his technique needs a bit of work but he has a lot of raw talent, a season of first team football at a decent level would be the best thing for him.

I gotta ask mate, what made you think he was good?

No doubt about just how important Drogba is in the big games.

Give some of the young lads a run out and a chance for a few players who will be leaving in the summer a farewell run out.

For all of mikels flaws I'd have him in a heartbeat over essien.

Disappointing end to a disappointing league campaign, whatever way you look at it 6th place isn't good enough. We've put our eggs in the champions league basket, I hope it pays off.

I didn't expect much from the game, we haven't got a lot riding on it realistically but even so the general apathy on show from the Chelsea players has been nothing short of disgraceful. In fairness I have a bit of sympathy for terry, given that he is playing twice in 3 days with cracked ribs but some of them out there aren't worthy of wearing the Chelsea jersey. No matter how little is on the line those players should still be trying to do the club proud and they aren't.

I didn't expect much from the game, we haven't got a lot riding on it realistically but even so the general apathy on show from the Chelsea players has been nothing short of disgraceful. In fairness I have a bit of sympathy for terry, given that he is playing twice in 3 days with cracked ribs but some of them out there aren't worthy of wearing the Chelsea jersey. No matter how little is on the line those players should still be trying to do the club proud and they aren't.

Im not campaigning for a statue to be made of Mikel outside Stamford Bridge, Im simply saying that he has played well the last few months (which, I think, it is generally accepted that he has). To be fair, Mikle is a bit younger than Malouda, Florent did have a couple of very good seasons in France when he was younger. However Mikel's role is different than that of Yaya Toure's. He isn't a box to box midfielder, he could never play as a box to box midfielder like Yaya Toure does. If some mystical force gave me the power to control Chelsea's transfers and offered me the chance to offload Mikel for Javi Martinez then yes, of course, I would accept that. However if the (far more realistic) deal is that we would offload Mikel and have to pay 30 million for Martinez (30 million that cold be spent on positions that need to be improved upon far more than holding midfield) then Id rather just keep Mikel. Anyway who says Martinez would join, lots of top clubs are interested in him.

I think that if Alonso wasn't all that great then he would have been transferred out of Madrid a long time ago, as it happens he is one of the most important players in their team (as seen by the very high number of appearances he makes) oh and he also starts for reigning World Cup and European champions Spain. Mikel isn't a great defensive midfielder, he is certainly a good one.

As for Mikel, being someone who has never been on the Mikel love train I can absolutely sympathise with those who berate him. Yes he is slow across the ground, yes he is still plodding in possession and yes his positional play does sometimes seem somewhat perplexing. But full credit to him, he has been quite excellent since Di Matteo took over, the last fe wmonths have been the best of his Chelsea career.

I dont like bursting bubbles but you do realise that for the last few years Xabi Alonso has been playing at Real Madrid without Mascherano beside him, playing primarily as Madrid's deep lying midfielder, not only does he do a key job on the ball but he does an essential role off of it. While Khedira is the legs of the midfield, Alonso shields the back four, not really through a terrific amount of running of tackling but through clever interceptions and intelligent positional play. I think Xabi is doing quite fairly alright without Mascherano, considering he has been a key figure in real Madrid's La Liga triumph this season.

Terrific. An excellent display in the first hour, controlled the game and looked very threatening going forward and got the breaks. Sat back the last 30 minutes, a bit lucky but all in all we defended well and fully deserved the win on the day. Petr Cech's save is one of the best I've ever seen. While there was some eyecatching displays from the likes of Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Juan Mata and Ramires, my pick for MOTM is, of course, Didier Drogba. The great man does it again. This is the 4th FA Cup Drogba has powered us onto winning, again he scored the winner and his general play completely backed up why he is still Chelsea's main man and still one of the finest big game players on the planet. The big Ivorian loves Wembley, his record at the home of English football is incredible and this was yet another performance to add to the collection of those wishing to justify Drogba as Chelsea's greatest ever player. Fantastic for Di Matteo, fantastic for the club, made all the sweeter by beating Liverpool in the final. In a season that looked set to be all doom and gloom, we have come out of it with an FA Cup, roll on Munich,