The Big Drog

Its time to go, if our league position isn't back enough, those 2 legs against Man Utd were the final straw.

Bloody awful.

Personally Id like Cech Ivanovic, Alex, Terry, Cole Ramires, Essien, Lampard, Kalou(?) Benayoun Torres But in reality I think we will see Malouda play on the left wing with Drogba or Anelka playing alongside Torres up top, also Im 50/50 as to wether I think Alex will start or not, I really hope he does because I dont want to see Bosingwa play against Man Utd again. A huge, huge game and in all likelyhood, Ancelotti's job is probably on the line.

My local football club that I play and coach for were were going over to Man Utd, reason being that John O Shea used to play at our club and lived (and his parents still live) in the local area, got to go and train at Carrington and then go to the Man Utd vs Fulham game.

I was at the Man Utd vs Fulham game yesterday, was delighted when they announced the starting line ups when i heard Gael was getting a start. I thought he was Fulham's best player on the day, technically you can see how very good he is, creative, skillful and fast, next season in a Chelsea team that will have the fast Torres leading the line instead of the strong Drogba, I think Kakuta it will help Kakuta in his quest to nail down a starting spot at Chelsea, his display yesterday showed that this guy could save us a lot of money, such is his talent he played left wing, right wing and behind the striker at various points in the game and his quality always shone through, he should get a crack at the first 11 next season.

All the same, Mourinho was able to bring in players who fit his vision of what the club should be and if you are being given talented players like Ramires, Luiz and Torres then you should be able to do something with them.

Perfectly said, at the moment we are a team with no indentity, for supporters like us who are on the outside looking in, its practically impossible for us to distinguish a particular style in our play, we dont seem to excell in any area. That comes from 2 things, the first being that because of the constant managerial switches, no manager has been able to stamp his identity and style on the side the second is that Ancelotti isn't a visionary and appears entirely content with the current lack of style in our play.

What tonight brought back memories of was the first leg if the Inter vs Chelsea tie from last years Cahmpions League, we looked fairly toothless offensively and got caught out badly defensively.

As much as I like Carlo, if we dont get the result we need at OT then I would say that it is time to go. Just the other night, Mourinho gave a lesson in tactical mastery against Spurs and his Madrid side won in style, Roman will be fully aware of that, in contrast tonight we looked bland and entirely out of ideas, there was no clever tactical switch, no shock inclussion or surprise, it was predictable in terms of selection, shape and performance. I think there has always been a question mark about Ancelotti's tactics (and substitutions) if Roman isn't completely behind him then its better than we let him go early in the Summer so that the new manager can bring in his own players who are loyal to him as we look to rebuild our squad.

Damn Im gonna miss this one. Anyway I think this game is the perfect opportunity to reintroduce Yossi Benayoun back into the side so that he will have a bit of match sharpness going into the game at OT and that could give us a completely new option. If Alex is fit then it would definitely be worth starting him too.

Cech 6.5- Did well with what he had to deal with, important touch to deny Hernandez. Bosingwa 4- Awful, defensively so inadequate at this level, got forward but lost the ball far too much. Ivanovic 5.5- Decent display, had a couple of problems with attackers running at him. Terry 8- Superb in everything he did tonight, led from the back. Cole 6.5- tried to get forward when he could, solid defensively. Ramires 6.5- Did well out wide, should have won a penalty. Essien 6.5- He got better as the match went along, still not up to his own high standards. Lampard 5- It wasn't a good performance from super Frank, not good at all. Zhirkov 5- Entirely ineffective, if the choice is between him and Malouda Id rather not choose. Torres 6- Movement good, glimpses of his speed, got into great positions, unlucky to score but will still be made the scapegoat by the media because he is a high profile name. Drogba 7- The best of all of our attacking players, looked the most likely to do something special, wrongly taken off. Anelka 5- He just keeps dropping too deep. Malouda 5.5- Decent but never got at Valencia enough. Mikel 5- Wrong substitution, chasing a game in which we showed very little creativity, he is not the right man to bring on.

From a Chelsea point of view it was pretty awful, in more ways than one. Defensively it was suspect, offensively it was lacking, tactically it was bland. First the Man Utd goal, I said it several times that Bosingwa was my only real worry in our starting 11 and there he was tonight and he had a shocker, an absolutel nightmare, what was he doing for the goal? How can you give away the ball that many times playing in a position where there isn't much pressure on you, he looks like a man on his way out of Stamford Bridge in the Summer and he knows it. Torres got into some good scoring positions, had 2 very good chances and didn't take either but Im not going to be too harsh on him because there are circumstances surrounding him which are hindering him, all the same though, I thought Drogba was very good tonight, strong, dangerous, Im not sure why he was the one taken off, judging by the facial expression Drogba didn't seem to know either. Lampard was poor, Nic Anelka was poor when he came om (I would have opted for Kalou) in terms of good performances both Ramires and Essien did well and at the back John Terry was quite magnificent. The frustrating thing is that if Luiz wasn't cup tied, if Alex were fit then Bosingwa wouldn't be on the pitch, Ivanovic would be at right back and that goal probably doesn't happen. Offensively it was lacking, we created a few opportunities but not enough in the second half and no clear cut ones, at the quater final stage of the Champions League that is not good enough. Tactically it was what you would expect, personally I thought maybe springing a 4-3-3 on Man Utd would have been unexpected and would have allowed us to dominate the game more than we did. Last night Jose Mourinho unleashed several very clever tactical maneuvers, tonight we saw none from Ancelotti. All of that being said, the incident at the end was as stonewall a penalty you can get, its a clear penalty, Ramires knows it, Chelsea players know it, Evra knows it, Chelsea fans know it and Ancelotti certainly knows it, once again on a big night in Europe, the key decision goes against us. Anyway the tie isn't over yet, sure we are at a disadvantage, even if we had scored from a penalty we would have needed to score at OT anyway, I pray to God that Alex is fit and that we are not forced to watch Bosingwa's imitation of a football playing at right back.

Im so nervous, glad that Zhirkov not the nod on the left wing, glad that its Drogba up front with Torres, delighted that Yossi Benayoun is back and is a good addition to have on the bench, glad that its Park starting instead of Nani so maybe Bosingwa wont be asked as many questions defensively. Id definitely take a 0-0 as it means they wouldn't have an away goal but I think we could win this 1-0.

Cech 8- Made some great saves, in particular from a corner in the second half where from a point blank range header he got a minor touch on it to tip it onto the bar. Bosingwa 4- Im not sure if I want to see him play Chelsea again. Luiz 5- Probably his worst game in a Chelsea shirt, though he was playing on the hopeless Bosingwa's side of the pitch and has never had to deal with a team like Stoke before. Terry 5- A rare bad game this season. Cole 6- Got forward when he could, defensively a bit suspect. Ramires 7- One of our best players on the day, not sure why he was taken off early, defensively solid, always a threat going forward. Essien 5- Had his best game of the season against City but never came close to reaching that level today, didn't dominate the game in the way we know he can. Lampard 5- Didn't have a telling impact, struggled to control the game. Malouda 4- Not good, not good. Anelka 4.5- He got the 0.5 because it was a nice assist for Drogba, that aside tghe rest of his play was poor. Drogba 8- Looking like something close to his best, his physicality paid dividens in a big way, scored a great goal, his link up play was at times sublime, his work ethic unquestionable and unlucky not to have scored 2 in the second half. MOTM Subs: Torres 6- Looked lively when he came on, created a couple of opportunities and was fast in everything he did, promising signs. Kalou 5.5- Couldn't have the same impact playing out wide as he does when he plays through the centre, still played a couple of clever passes in and around the Stoke area. Ivanovic 6- I was going to give him 5 but decided to give him an extra mark simply because he replaced Bosingwa.

I agree with 5354, there is some deadweight in thie squad that needs to be gotten rid of. Bosingwa was awful today, really awful. Malouda has been poor for months, Nic Anelka's special power of slowing down time (and our build up play) is hardly something we require and his touch was very poor most of the match. All 3 of those could probably be gone in the Summer and I dont think we would miss them at all if we get the right replacements. The big positive was Drogba, playing like the powerhouse we all know he can be, he was excellent today in every aspect, unlucky to hit the woodwork twice in the second half, including a quite spectacularly executed twisting volley with his weak foot, after that performance he will be pressing hard to start on Wednesday night. Cech was brilliant in goal, Ramires was excellent when he was on, I can only assume he was taken off as a precaution for Wednesday because he was easily one of our more threatening players going forward. Torres impressed in the 30 minutes he had, some really good moments and best of all looked very fast when he was executing them. The back four was not so solid, Ivanovic was missed in a big way at right back as Bosingwa looked lost, Luiz struggled to deal with 2 workloads instead of one and has probably never in his life come up against the aerial bombardment of a team like Stoke, a rare poor performance from Terry too, Cole was probably the best of a bad lot on the day, Essien neevr came to grips with the game and Lampard struggled to have a telling impact. Bad result, probably out of the title race now for certain but we have got Wednesday night to look forward to and if Torres plays for 90 minutes like he did for the 30 today and Vidic plays the way he did against West Ham today, it could be soemthing special.

Stoke's goal was a defensive nightmare. Bosingwa caught far too high up the pitch and loses the ball so cheaply, as a result Luiz is dragged into the right back position, he gets bypassed, Essien is dragged into the centre back position, he is bypassed and then its an easy shot to goal. We got back into the game after that and started to dominate. Drogba has been excellent, some wonderful passing, defensively solid under Stoke's high ball, great work ethic and a perfectly timed run to latch onto Nic Anelka's clever cross and the right finish, a timely reminder of what a great player Drogba has been for us down the years. Ramires has also played very well down the right, full of eenrgy, making some great runs. Aside from the cross, Nic Anelka's touches have been poor, Malouda has been poor and Essien hasn't looked at it either.

Could you imagine it. David Luiz, Ramires and Neymar, the spine of the Chelsea team and the spine of the Brazilian national team, wouldn't it be a little bit special and Neymar is a special player, the next great Brazilian player and has traits that we do lack in our side at present (skill, unpredictability, can go past players at will) what a wonderful signing it would be.

Free transfer for one of the greatest midfielders of his generation? Why not, still has so much class and would add something to the squad. btw absolutely loved The Office vid from Mad Max, great refrence.

Happy birthday Ramires, was delighted when we signed him having been a fan of his since seeing him play for Brazil in the Confederations Cup, its taken time but he has really found his feet in England.

Cech Ivanovic, Luiz, Terry, Cole Ramires, Essien, Lampard, Zhirkov Torres, Kalou Ok the controversial choice in that is Kalou but I thought he did pretty well against Man City. Against a Stoke side that is well organised, physically strong but not particularly fast, the pace and sheer unpredictability of Kalou could definitely be useful.

He is a fantastic centre back, arguably the best young centre back on the planet. Perhaps the rash tackles have got to be toned down very slightly, but no more than very slightly. If you try to take away the aggresive way in which he plays the game then he is like every other defender around and we have all seen that he can be so much more than that. While he has the readingand covering skills of a Carvalho, in playing style he seems to be far more similar to his Brazilian compatriot Lucio. Like Lucio, he likes to step out from the back four and nick the ball ahead of the attacker, like Lucio he has no problem with charging out of defence with the ball and carring it up field, like Lucio he is physically very strong and like Lucio he is quite fast. Defensively he has come in for a bit of criticism but he was excellent for the most part against Fulham, solid against Man Utd and Blackpool and entered a defensive masterclass agaisnt Man City, sure his methods might by a bit unorthodox but if you are to strip that away from him then you are to strip away his originality and turn a unique and great player into a generic centre back. You've got to let him play his natural game because his natural game is very special.

Cech -6.5 : Didn't have much to do but what he did have to do he did well. Ivanovic -7: Defensively very solid and supported the attack too.\ Luiz - 10: I dont usually give players a 10, it has to be something pretty special to warrant that number but today was something special from the Brazilian centre back, defensively as good as you're ever likely to see, his passing from the back was excellent, his goal superb, has the reading of the game and positional sense of a Carvalho and the speed, power and tackling of a Lucio, phenomenal. Terry-9: On any other day he would have been my pick for motm, a captain's performance, quite adequate really with Capello watching on, justified Capello's decision with a top class performance. Cole - 8: Excellent today, bombed forward with vigour, defended very well. Ramires -9.5: Again on any other day he would have been the star man, his best ever performance in a Chelsea shirt, such a wonderful player, takes his defensive responsibilites seriously, has endless amounts of energy, offers drive to the midfield, versatile and a dangerous attacking threat, a key player for Chelsea for years to come. Essien- 8.5: His best Chelsea performance in months, he was everywhere in midfield as he dominated the game in a way that only Essien can. Lampard-7: Performed admirably beside the robust Ghanian, supported the attack well, didn;t shirk defensive responsibilities and used the ball cleverly. Malouda- 5: Not great, got into some good positions, looked up for the game but his final ball let him down time and time again. Kalou-7: Gets a lot of stick, some of it deserved, some not but he does offer something different, very unpredictable (to himself as much as the opposition) but can go past players and is very skillful. Torres-7: Never gott he chance he was searching for today but his eye catching movement off the ball, a few wonderful touches (including a quite marvellous backheel late in the first half) and the return of his speed as well as his work ethic today which saw him chase back and win the ball a number of times means that this was his best performance so far in a Chelsea shirt and looks like he will eb a hit at Chelsea once the goal comes. Drogba-7: Fantastic when he came on, delivered a beauty for Luiz's goal, so strong in possession, really looked up for it, still a hugely important player at Chelsea. Anelka -6: Had a few moments where Chelsea looked to threaten on the counter as City drove forward in search of an equaliser, not as productive as fellow sub Drogba but decent. Zhirkov-5.5: Never had a chance to really get into the game, had one really good run at the City back four and doubled up in Adam Johnson for the final few minutes.

Absolutely tremendous in so many ways. Considering the importance of the game and the quality of the opposition Id go as far as to say that was our best performance this season. From an attacking standpoint it was always going to be difficult to break them down as they are very well organised but we did create chances in the first half and most importantly of all we dominated the game, unlike previous recent meetings with City where we would give away the ball cheaply in dangerous areas, our use of the ball was much better today and we always looked like we carried a threat. Defensively it was something approaching a masterclass, City break so quickly and have so many dangerous players but our positioning was spot on, we tracked the runners, we very rarely let them get in behind us and when they did we swarmed on them. Malouda aside, you could probably say everyone played well and everyone played their part. Cech's handling was spot on and he made a good save early in the first half from a low Yaya Toure drive, Ivanovic was beast like in his approach, never let him Serbian compatriot, Kolarov, get the better of him, Terry vindicated the on watching Capello as he delivered a performance worthy of the captaincy for club and country, Cole stormed down the left flank and defended very well against Milner, Essien entered his best performance in months as he dominated in midfied despite City having the extra man in there, he was fast, he was strong, his passing was excellent, it was the return of the bison. Lapard alongside him was very good also, gave the attack the support it needed, tackled well. Kalou was unpredictable as ever and had some really good threatening moments and Torres looked up for it, never got the great chance he craved but he had some lovely touches, looked fast and worked very hard for the team, his best performance in a Chelsea shirt by a long way. How good did Drogba look when he came on? Menacing, strong and a great delivery for the opener. Of course I've left 2 names out of that intentionally. The Brazilian lads, David Luiz and Ramires, are the future of Chelsea, there is no doubt about it. Both only 23 years of age, both have so many years ahead of them in a blue shirt, not only were they the goalscorers today but their play was top notch, Ramires entered his best ever performance for Chelsea as he did the work of two men on the right hand side of midfield but also in the cnetre of midfield when he wound up in there and his attacking play, which he was not renowned for when we signed him, is so crisp, so fast and the goal so skillful, magical. But the star of this show was Chelsea newboy David Luiz, giving one of the best defensive performances I can remember, anything that fell in the box, Luiz was on the end of it, literally nothing, ball or man, got past him today, it was incredible, I've run out of superlatives to describe it and the goal magnificent, simply put there is a new hero at the Bridge. COME ON CHELSEA!

How cool is it that on Talk Chelsea we have a thread wishing Torres a happy birthday, its still tough to get your head around, so happy he is here.

Pepe might be shitting himself but Ricardo Carvalho certainly isn't.