Chelsea vs Everton

[zolayes 14,489]

well said Blue Lion ...all is not lost yet ,,BUT it is time for the players to stand up and put much more effort in ...today I felt too many were just coasting .

I will defend them in defeat if I can see 100% effort ..today didnt see that ,,,similar to the Sunderland game ...

they should be told they are in the last chance saloon now ....

big games coming up and for once Im not optimistic about the outcomes ...

c'mon Chelsea you are much better than this.

[chrismada9 1,948]

I think Essien was wearing a poppy today in remembrance of that Double we won last season...

Considering our run of appaling recent form, it might be hard to stay positive. That being said, we just have to keep the faith.

It seems to me that Chelsea supporters are coming to a sudden realisation that we may indeed not win the title this season. At this moment in time it certainly looks that way.

However we cannot afford to stop believing. For all we know, we might steal a win at Tottenham next weekend and use it as a pivot to rekindle our title hopes. I simply refuse to believe that we will not win the title this season based on recent form. In fact, it makes me optimistic.

Why? Because, despite us showing the type of form that would make us candidates for relegation had the season started last month for the last month, we’re still in touching distance. Arsenal are two points clear and United have the opportunity to extend that to four should they win their game in hand, but let’s be frank – neither of those sides are world beaters. Arsenal are so vulnerable defensively that they are looking very susceptible to sustainable pressure, and as soon as they come up against an organised team they fire blanks. United may be unbeaten in the Premier League but they aren’t exactly setting the world alight, either. I fear facing neither of them, because I believe that we can beat them both on our day, injuries and confidence permitting, of course.

To me, it is clear what has to be done. Ancelotti, or more likely John Terry, has to go fucking mental at the squad. Three things are undermining our season – complacency. bad luck and a lack of commitment.

There are players on the pitch who simply do not deserve to be there – but by injury or reputation, they are automatic starters. You must put some of the blame on Ancelotti here – it seems to me he either has his favourites or simply does not have the balls to drop some of the big name stars. This must be addressed – the best way to do it is to drop players who are massively out of form or performing below par; the likes of Kalou, Anelka and Mikel. This will send a message out to the players who are simply taking the biscuit and do not seem to care as long as they get their £100,000-a-week wages every Wednesday.

That links in to another factor that is threatening to put our title challenge to bed – a lack of commitment. You can see it best in Drogba, Anelka and Malouda – besides when defending corners, those three players did not come back once to help out defensively and help out the full-backs. It meant that the midfield was swamped and we lost out in that particular battle, whilst Cech and the defence – who were all brilliant today, I can’t fault any of them – are having to work overtime. There are players in this team who are starting based purely on the name on the back of their shirts and the reputation that comes with it, and this must be addressed by Carlo stamping his authority, or, failing that, Terry showing why he is captain. Ancelotti is incredibly mild-mannered or so it seems, but someone has to blow their lid to show that this is simply not acceptable.

The third thing that is a factor in our poor form is bad luck. We should have been given a second penalty today and similarly Everton made some unbelievable blocks today, whilst the woodwork was also a defining factor. You can say that football is a game of karma and what goes around comes around, but some game-defining refereeing decisions are going against us whilst the woodwork is having a massive say in our season at the moment, also. We have been pitifully unlucky with injuries but that is a part of the game that must be taken with a pinch of salt – it was also quite predictable at the start of the season that we would struggle this season considering firstly the small size of our squad and all the transition over the summer, such as the myriad of players coming and going. It has been all-change and time is needed to solve this.

With all that being said, someone needs to stand up and point out the obvious – this is not good enough. Five points from the last six matches puts us sixteenth in the form table at the moment. We have not only blown a five-point lead but potentially allowed Manchester United to open up a four-point gap, should they win their game in hand, which they most definitely will at Blackpool.

Relegation form is unacceptable from a side trying to defend their championship. It must be acknowledged that defending a title is so much harder than winning it in the first instance. We saw that in 2005/06 – the second half to the season (April apart) was pretty average and we ground out results where we could, and we were able to rely on our early season form to win us the championship. However, with the league being so competitive and unpredictable this season, that is simply impossible.

Consistency is no longer a factor in the Premier League – the team that wins the title will essentially be the “least shit” out of us, United, Arsenal, City and (I hate to even mention them in this way, as title contenders) Tottenham. To say that the team that lifts the trophy is the one that drops the least points is a “no shit” sort of statement, but it is absolutely appropriate – every “big” team is dropping points at almost every opportunity. I think no more than 80 points will secure the league crown this season – a figure that would have been scoffed and laughed at even a couple of years back.

I believe that, as slumps go, we’ve hit rock bottom. Things can get worse on a results front – we might well lose our next three games and then almost absolutely be out of the title race – but even a single win against the three of Arsenal, United and Spurs could realistically spark our season back into life. Three wins from three might sound crazy considering what has gone before it, but in the most topsy-turvy Premier League season since its inception,

The return of Frank Lampard will most likely get us back on track, that is a likelihood – that man could single-handedly put us back in contention for honours this term. Many people say one man simply cannot make a team, but in Lampard’s case, it can. It is impossible to say when he will be back – and along with that, how long it will before he is back to his best, but that man is simply world class and we have missed him like a hole in the head this season.

Ultimately, we should not abandon hope. United and Arsenal are both beatable and they can be caught. Consider this – even if we lose to Spurs and United, we can realistically go the Arsenal and beat them. There is something in the North London air that Didier Drogba seems to get off on, and what better way to get a season back on track than a win at the home of your most bitter rivals?

Once this run of games is out of the way, our fixtures are comparatively easier than the other teams in the top four. We’ll have played Liverpool, Spurs, Arsenal and Manchester City away and faced United, Arsenal and Everton at the Bridge. Compare our run of games after the New Year to United and Arsenal, and we look like the team that will gain the most points next month, at least on paper.

This might be a shocking run of form but we cannot afford to give up. Keep the faith. Ignore the knee-jerk reactions. That being said, I don’t think it is fair for us, the majority of whom weren’t even at the game today, to criticise the fans who booed at the Bridge today. The performance was simply not good enough and people who pay £50 for a ticket are entitled to show their disgust if they are not happy with what they have paid to see.

All that being said – Carefree. It isn’t over until the Fat Lady sings.

Quality post Alex! Just quality!

[Fulham Broadway 17,317]

Feel as though its Uniteds to lose now. The defence was good -what a difference it meant having JT back. Ivanovich and Cole excellent.

Carlos substitutiions were a bit odd -was bosingwa injured ? As it was Ferreira struggled -Why take Anelka off ? he was having a good game.

One thing Mourinho could do was to get the players to control the pace of the game -eg 1-0 up you keep possession, bide your time then kill them off with a spurt of urgency. Being urgent all the time creates a sense of panic and misplaced balls. There was also not enough closing down when they were on the ball. All teams sense blood now and every team in the Prem will rate their chances against us, even at the Bridge.

Right thats the D &G out the way -Lampards return against the yids will add that composure -with hopefully some devastating passes and midfield goals. Though we cant just rely on one man -it'll mean the spine is back in the team. We might just raise our game against Yids, Redscum and Le Arse....

Oh and Cahill you're a dirty aussie cnut -you know you left your boot in....

[chrismada9 1,948]

-Why take Anelka off ? he was having a good game.

Anelka was woeful in the first half, particularly his passing. The only good thing he did was win us the penalty... he did nothing productive for most of game!

If there was anyone I wanted to see replace him, it would have been Sturridge, but he was never brought on, instead, Carlo opted for Ramires instead!!

I did say defending a 1-0 lead against a battering Everton team was risky business, and look what happened!!

[Fulham Broadway 17,317]

Anelka was woeful in the first half, particularly his passing. The only good thing he did was win us the penalty... he did nothing productive for most of game!

If there was anyone I wanted to see replace him, it would have been Sturridge, but he was never brought on, instead, Carlo opted for Ramires instead!!

I did say defending a 1-0 lead against a battering Everton team was risky business, and look what happened!!

Its odd how perceptions of a player can vary -thought Anelka was good, and Ramires right to come on, but more sense to take off Kalou....

[Term-X 7,891]

Deflating.

Although we can't put all our hopes on Lampard, considering it will take a team of players to breath life back into this season. Not individuals.

[eldo 868]

well said Blue Lion ...all is not lost yet ,,BUT it is time for the players to stand up and put much more effort in ...today I felt too many were just coasting .

I will defend them in defeat if I can see 100% effort ..today didnt see that ,,,similar to the Sunderland game ...

they should be told they are in the last chance saloon now ....

big games coming up and for once Im not optimistic about the outcomes ...

c'mon Chelsea you are much better than this.

If Arsenal and Man Utd draw and we win we are back on top.

Deflating.

Although we can't put all our hopes on Lampard, considering it will take a team of players to breath life back into this season. Not individuals.

Agree. We have very capable team when they are focused.

However Cole, Lampard, Malouda trio is simply deadly.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

I think if we weren't in this run of form we would see today's result in a different result. Draws in the last five seasons at home against Everton suggested this would be the inevitable result. I'm not overly concerned about the result - a point is a decent return against this calibre of team - but the performance was not satisfactory.

[Aesthetic Relic 301]

I'm going to avoid this thread and refrain from commenting (after this) because I'm scared of what I'll say. 2 statistics let us down today..

1) Ramires on for Anelka

2) Sturridge coming on in the 88th minute.

Goodnight everyone, I'm going to go get drunk at a party and allow football for the next month.

When Ramires came on he took Maloudas position in midfield and Malouda was pushed forward. I didnt see a problem with that.

Sturridge coming on in the 88th minute....dont see the problem with that either. Obviously the bench were aware that a considerable amount of injury time would be played and giving him 10 minutes to do something isn't such a big deal.

What we lacked today was someone who took the game by the scruff of the neck. We seem to try and walk the ball into the net when a simple foot through the ball would suffice.

[NattyBlue 44]

Deflating.

Although we can't put all our hopes on Lampard, considering it will take a team of players to breath life back into this season. Not individuals.

Agree, I don't see how Lampard is supposed to make us win the treble lol, we'll improve obviously but people were also under the impression that Essien being back would sort our midfield out, which it didn't

[Kostas 1,468]

Just read that Didier went to the Matthew Harding Stand and apologized at full time.

[Peace. 4,352]

Just read that Didier went to the Matthew Harding Stand and apologized at full time.

Where did you read this ?

It shows once again what a great man Drogba is.

[diskoviolente 425]

I think i don´t have to give my opinion on the match or the situation anymore. BL and other users did that in a well put way.

But on a slightly different note: i used to like Everton and their spirit making the best with what they have available. Today i lost my last bit of respect for them. They are bunch of dirty cnunts,

especially Cahill. what a proper cunt, same goes for Phil Neville, well to be fair to the boy, he is Garys brother and he is a sportsman, in a way. But still, he played dirty today.

Fuck them.

KTF !

[Joe Cool 388]

Everton should have been down to 9 men, hope the away fans coaches all slip off the road into a cliff and get crushed to death.

I lol'ed at that.

As for the result, I'm nothing but disappointed right now. Our front line is as useless as tits on a boar, we just can't get the god damn ball in the back of the net. It's really frustrating seeing this. We better get our shit together sometime soon....

By the way, some of the shit that Henrique spouts is unbelievable. That wanker isn't even a Chelsea fan.

[teignman 441]

Today was a poor performance to say the least. The forwards need to do what the name of their position implies, get forward. Also, the nonsense of hoofing the ball up the pitch was, in Carlo's words, a "scared" tactic. There also seemed to be a genuine lack of belief and desire amongst not only the players, but the support at the Bridge. Perhaps it is understandable due to our recent form, but you have to believe you can win every match. Otherwise, you have lost or drawn before the first whistle sounds.

I have also noticed in our recent run that sides have exerted more pressure on us especially in the midfield. We need to combat that pressure by making quicker, more incisive decisions. This is an area where Lampard would be of great value. However, his return alone would not guarantee us of breaking out of our doldrums. The team needs to play smarter, more aggressive football.

[Shane 2,275]

I think if we weren't in this run of form we would see today's result in a different result. Draws in the last five seasons at home against Everton suggested this would be the inevitable result. I'm not overly concerned about the result - a point is a decent return against this calibre of team - but the performance was not satisfactory.

Everton are going through a terrible run, In bad form or good form, This is a disapointing result, In the run of form we're in, Its a disater.

[Madmax 9,219]

Disappointing second half performance, disappointing result.

Lost the game with the substitutions.

We won the league last year by being positive, it isn't nice to see Carlo trying to hang on to a lead at home by bringing on Ramires and Ferreira, but I suppose it goes to show that's the kind of pressure Carlo's under right now. Paulo was brought on because of his supposed greater defensive acumen than Bosingwa, yet where did the goal come from? That's right - Baines. Ramires on for Anelka took the biscuit. Malouda was doing well in midfield, he should of been kept there. Sturridge on for Anelka would have been a better sub imo.

Reagrdless, we've blown our chance to go top, United and Arsenal become near must wins for us. Lampard isn't back, but that's no excuse, we should be winning against Everton with the side we put out yesterday.

I'm not going to defend players when I don't see them bleeding for the club. I'm disgusted with that second half performance, no two ways about it.

My whole week is fucked now

But still, KTF

[Laylabelle 9,535]

Everton are going through a terrible run, In bad form or good form, This is a disapointing result, In the run of form we're in, Its a disater.

Thats always been the case! Sunderland were in a terrible run then beat us lol

Had it been a few weeks ago we'd probably lost this one so least we've slightly improved

[Milan 17,958]

Ahh I will miss this game unfortunately. Hang on, I will miss exactly the same game for exactly the same reason like last year. Nice

Well... and the result is exactly the same like last year. Dammit!

[The Big Drog 1,110]

2 things to say about that

John Terry is bloody wonderful.

Kalou gives me a headache.