Decisive Moments: West Ham V Chelsea

[DYC. 7,542]

I noticed that these articles never get posted. So i thought, why don't i start doing it. I find them very interesting to read and I think they can cause some healthy discussions.

So here's Clive Walker's view:

I was not surprised to see Carlo Ancelotti make a few changes to the team. You have to assess the games just played and the games coming up, and evaluate the players' little niggles and knocks. This is when you want to use your full squad the most.Away from home in a London derby, there is always a doubt how it is going to go but on Saturday Chelsea did a professional job. I don't think the team played particularly well and were maybe a little fortunate to be 2-0 up early on, but teams can't afford to give us a two-goal start.

I was beginning to question Didier Drogba taking the corner when Michael Essien scored the first goal but it was obviously planned and I am all for ideas like that. It changes the opposition's defensive outlook because they would have been expecting to mark Drogba, so suddenly they are asking what to do now and sometimes that causes confusion. It was a super, well-timed jump from Essien and a simple goal in the end.

An early goal gave us a lift, not that we really need confidence boosts at the moment, but to get an early goal in an away game that was possibly going to be a little uncomfortable meant we knew we were 1-0 up against a team who are bottom of the table, and a team who aren't scoring goals. We were always going to take full advantage of that.

The second goal did feel like the World Cup all over again. People might question Matthew Upson's contribution but primarily the blame has to be on Robert Green. It wasn't even a hard shot and it wasn't a difficult one to take. Whether he has recurring nightmares from the World Cup and something flashed through his head that suggested he was going to spill it we don't know, but it was a disaster for him personally and obviously a disaster for West Ham and we reaped the rewards. You can say Upson should have cleared the ball wider but he was on the half-turn, he didn't know who was coming in to block and he had to get his foot behind the ball, which he did. How Salomon Kalou managed to send it into the back of the net I'll never know because he wasn't looking at the ball.

At half-time I think Chelsea said look, we are not playing that well but we have a good lead and we have an important game midweek, let's just see the game through. We were well-organised although the last few minutes were a little scary after West Ham scored, but by then it was too late.

You are always going to miss Frank Lampard because he is such an influential player but Ramires came in and did a good job if nothing too exciting. He was methodical but for his first game, that was a good way to see it through.

In Ramires we saw a player who is super fit and looks nice and lean, if maybe just a little lightweight at this moment for the Premier League. But that is something that comes from mental strength as well and I am sure he will build on the experience and get his body in the right position to hold the ball up and get his foot in at times. Fitness-wise he was 100 per cent, athletic, and still willing to work really hard when maybe one or two of the others were tiring.

It was interesting to see Essien run 50 yards to acknowledge Ray Wilkins when he scored the third goal. First and foremost it was a well-worked goal, started out on the left-hand side. Mikel played a lovely clip over the top to get it into the stride of Ferreira who just allowed the ball to die, he didn't take a touch before playing a sweet cross. Essien climbed early, held his shape in the air and buried it with power and direction. It wasn't a ball Green could come for, it should have been dealt with by his defenders. Essien gave Ray a huge hug and there must be something he has been telling Michael he is capable of doing, or they want to see more often.

If you are going to let a goal in then let one in when you are still going to win the game, although Petr Cech will be so disappointed. Goalkeepers always are when a run of clean sheets ends and if he is hypercritical about his punch, he might say it didn't go as far as he wanted. Having said that, the finish was absolutely sublime. Scott Parker put it in the perfect spot. Three inches higher it would have hit the crossbar. Frederic Piquionne's header when he was only three yards from goal and he hit the crossbar would have been a more disappointing goal to let in.

[DYC. 7,542]

'' I don't think the team played particularly well and were maybe a little fortunate to be 2-0 up early on, but teams can't afford to give us a two-goal start. ''

'' You are always going to miss Frank Lampard because he is such an influential player but Ramires came in and did a good job if nothing too exciting. ''

I said the same after the game and got a little stick...

[zolayes 14,489]

as to ramires build ,,,maka wasnt a giant ...except in his contribution

[DYC. 7,542]

as to ramires build ,,,maka wasnt a giant ...except in his contribution

You're right about Claude but he was stronger than Ramires is right now.

And if you can read the game as well as Makélélé could, a lack of strength really doesn't matter.

[zolayes 14,489]

You're right about Claude but he was stronger than Ramires is right now.

And if you can read the game as well as Makélélé could, a lack of strength really doesn't matter.

maka was much older and much more experienced

[eldo 868]

maka was much older and much more experienced

That is true. If you look on wiki, ramires has only around 160 appearances behind him, including internationals.

And you don't need to be massive to be strong.

[Wilson 358]

Sorry to go out of context, and no offense but couldn't you have just posted this in the match thread?

[zolayes 14,489]

Sorry to go out of context, and no offense but couldn't you have just posted this in the match thread?

I think he was perhaps intending to make this a regular feature...if so maybe it needs a thread

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Interesting read. The decisive moment was Green's calamity, which won us the game.