A Lighter Shade of Blue

The image of Frank Lampard donning the pale blue colours of the Manchester City shirt is almost too much to bear.... it just feels wrong (so wrong that I have actually resurrected my blog while on holiday in a hot and sunny Spain).

I still find it hard to believe that a legend such as Frank Lampard was released from his Chelsea contract after thirteen years of devoted service, notching up 211 goals and becoming the Club's all-time leading goalscorer. Surely there should have been a more fitting end to this partnership.  John Terry said in an interview recently that he felt 'lost', when he arrived for pre-season training, without Lamps and Ashley Cole. I feel his pain!  I have tried my best to embrace the new players at the club and have watched every one of the ten pre-season friendlies (much to the annoyance of my younger daughter's Spanish boyfriend, who says friendly football matches are a waste of time - and yes he is still the boyfriend - two years on and they are going stronger than ever!).  

Unlike some angry fans I do not blame Frank and certainly don't hold him responsible for what seems like a betrayal of Chelsea and its supporters.  I blame the short-sighted policies of the Club hierarchy in discriminating against footballers over the age of 30. CFC give players over 30 a maximum one year contract, thus making their future at the club untenable.  In my opinion, mature players bring experience to the pitch as well as leadership and calm to the changing room. The combination of such seasoned wisdom and worldliness with the energy and exuberance of younger players is undoubtedly a recipe for success. I could be accused of sentimentality but I think each player should be treated on merit - Frank has not let me down yet.  On the other hand I could think of a striker who.....OK - low blow - I am not going there!

Anyway coming back to this season's team and the new additions:

Drogba: is back! (though he picked up an ankle injury last week)  I can't say I was totally surprised the enigmatic Ivorian returned to the Bridge - especially as his family had remained in Cobham while he was in Shanghai and Turkey.  I am also relieved he is back for a very stupid personal reason. A few years ago I changed my profile picture on Facebook to one of Lamps and Drogba.  This Summer, with Drogba gone and  Lamps leaving, I was thinking I should change my profile photo but then Drogba came back - so my photo lives on!! Maybe if I keep it there long enough Frank will also return to the club!

Diego Costa: my immediate response to the news of his transfer form La Liga topping Atletico Madrid was one of dismay, mainly due to his disappointing performance in the World Cup. Although his form could be put down to injury, Costa would not be the first promising centre forward to come to Chelsea and lose his mojo.  My husband (who for someone who claims he doesn't like football has become way too opinionated about the sport) has been telling me how Costa is going to be the game changer for Chelsea this season.  As much as I would like to say he is wrong, having watched the Spaniard in the last few pre-season games, I have to admit Costa looks impressive.  He seems to have the lethal combination of flare, intelligence, effortless pace, strength and a little aggression.  This is one of the few times I want my husband to be right!!

Cesc Fabregas:  my irrational dislike for Arsenal dictated my distaste at the news of the ex-Gunner coming to Chelsea, from Barcelona, where he never seemed to fit in properly.  Again having watched him pre-season I have to say he too looks impressive.  He is as comfortable at the back of midfield playing alongside Matic, as he is further up the field supporting Diego Costa in front of goal.  His vision and accurate passing have impressed me in particular.

Felipe Luis: the Brazilian Atletico Madrid left back was brought in as a replacement for Ashley Cole. Watching him pre-season I can see that he is talented and a grafter but find myself struggling to embrace him. This could be because I don't think Cole was replaceable or just because 'Dave' has been doing such a good job in that position that I find Felipe Luis surplus to requirement.  I know you should always have more than one player for each position, but young Nathan Ake has been doing a more than competent job as left back when played in pre-season.  I will be open minded about Luis but don't envy Mourinho having to juggle Ivanovic, Azpilicueta and Luis - three great full-backs for two places - I don't think any of the three deserve to be on the bench.

And as for Thibaut Cortouis - the Belgian goal keeper who is hailed as one of the best keepers in the world and is back at the Bridge after a lengthy loan spell at Atletico Madrid...  but Petr Cech has done no wrong.... should he lose his place in the team? I can't even start on this debate... only time will tell....

Bring on the 2014/2015 season

Salmon Fishing in Fulham

"All these years I've been feeding you fish, now you have to learn how to catch fish for yourself!"

It was with these words that my father stopped the drip feed of 'fish' I had come to rely on to bail me out of my irresponsible spending habits. At the time it was a shock but a lesson I am grateful he taught me - as I write this my palms are sweating in the knowledge that I still haven't plucked up the courage to teach my own daughters the 'fishing' lesson.  Girls if you are reading this please try to keep this thought close to your consciousness and don't leave it by the Nile.

No you haven't gone to a fishing blog by mistake - it is still football mad me here!  It was Jose Mourinho's post match press conference after our (eventually) emphatic win at Craven Cottage on Saturday that reminded me of my father's words.  The Portuguese manager claimed that he had not said a single word to the players at half time about his obvious disappointment in their lackadaisical first half performance against a struggling team that has been dredging the bottom of the League table for a few weeks now.  He said he needed at least 20 minutes to say what he wanted to say and as there was not enough time he decided to say nothing at all.  I imagine the fact that he deprived the team of their half time 'fish' is what enabled the players to 'bait their own hooks' and 'cast their own lines' into the sea of ' how to get your s*** together'!!

Andre Schurrle, caught the biggest fish of the day by scoring his first Chelsea hat-trick, all three goals inside 17 minutes.  Credit should be given to the whole team for upping their game, but especially to Eden Hazard, whose genius presented the goal scoring opportunities for Schurrle.

When asked about Schurrle's performance, Mourinho had this to say:

"He is this kind of player, he can score goals, he is very cold in-front of goal............in-front of the goal he is really cold, he is cold blood in-front of the goal and keeper and normally he is clinical, he is the kind of guy that makes the right choice, he can finish with a right or the left foot, so he did OK."

It has come to me recently while reading other Chelsea fan's blogs that perhaps my take on things is a touch on the negative side... I am going to endeavour to find a positive angle to view things.  So here is a great opportunity to practice this:

The 'old' negative me at this point would be criticising Mourinho for not playing Andre Schurrle more often, especially as in his post-match interview the Portuguese manager seems to give the impression that the German is one of the few players in the team who seems to be able to find the back of the net with ease - also this moan would tie in with my ongoing moan about Mourinho not rotating the team enough.

The 'new' positive me however can see now that Mourinho's tactic of leaving Andre Schurrle out in the cold for so many games was a very clever one - as a result now Jose can comfortably say that "in-front of goal he (Schurrle) is very cold"!

Well I tried!

There is so much to talk about this week other than 'fishing' in Fulham, I really don't know where to start.

I guess 'Hell' is as good as anywhere to start with!!

Chelsea's mid week Champion's League tie at Galatasaray saw Didier Drogba reunited with his old Chelsea team mates for the first time since his departure in 2012.  Mourinho's men started well, going one nil up in the ninth minute with a Fernando Torres goal.  The Spaniard has a good scoring record in European games (13 goals in 17 appearances).  Thanks to Mancini's interesting first half tactics, playing a very high defensive line and leaving huge spaces in midfield, The Blues had plenty of chances to kill off the game but were unable to capitalise on them.  They seemed pretty impervious to the hostile surroundings they found themselves in - I personally found the noise levels in 'Hell' extremely distracting and frustrating - especially as I couldn't hear the referee's whistle over the din of the fanatical home fans. (Mourinho did say if Chelsea fans at Stamford Bridge could muster even 10% of the energy with which Galatasaray fans support their team he would be happy - I have to agree with him - the East and West stands at the Bridge in particular need to work harder for their team.  They can't rely on the Shed end and Matthew Harding stands to 'catch all the fish' - maybe I'll get my dad to have a word with them!!)

After half an hour Mancini realised the error of his ways and made a tactical substitution replacing the newly signed young Bosnian right winger Hajrovic with a holding midfielder. The substitution had the desired effect and led to a more even playing field.  Chedjou's 65th minute equaliser inspired Drogba and his team mates (who were appropriately dressed in flame coloured shirts) to run for the finish line.  Mourinho brought on Mikel to shore up the defence and the last half hour was quite nerve wracking to watch.  The game ended 1-1 and Chelsea headed home with the advantage of an away goal and in the knowledge that they had at least neutralised the threat of their old friend and number eleven.

The team landed back in the UK at 6 am on Thursday morning and had two days of training before their Premiership clash with neighbouring Fulham who are trying to claw their way out from the bottom of the league, under the guidance of newly appointed German manager Felix Magath.

Oh wow I've gone full circle!!! That is the problem with playing every three days - the players can't keep up and nor can I...!!

I seem to have been going on and on but can't finish without mentioning a few significant events from the last week:

Manchester United lost their first leg last 16 Champions League tie with Olympiakos 2-0 with a rather pedestrian or should it be called a 'Moyes' performance.  Chelsea is the only premiership side not to have lost their first leg game in Champions League and to have scored a goal - luckily for us it was an away goal - wow this whole seeing the positive side of things is really starting to happen spontaneously!

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew lost his head or should I say 'used his head' against a Hull City player on the touch line. Pardew was angered when David Meyler shoved past him in order to retrieve the ball.  The hot headed manager has previous and should know better - I am saddened by his actions as I am a big fan of his and wish he could keep his temper under control.  Going back to trying to see the positive in things: at least I know the Newcastle owner is not ready to sack him yet as this would have been the perfect opportunity and excuse for the Sports Direct magnate to give Pardew the chop.

Atletico Madrid's assistant coach, Mono Burgos, also lost his head during this weekend's Madrid Derby.  Diego Simeone's number two, who is obviously fond of his food, had to be restrained by what seemed to be the entire Atletico bench (at least eight men) as he went for the referee who was having a howler of a game.  The game ended a 2-2 draw with Simeone's side establishing themsleves as a definite contender to win La Liga - ending a decade of  Barcelona and Real Madrid's dominating the Spanish League.  Mourinho may be comforted to know there is another 'little horse' trying to establish itself over in Spain.

Arsenal lost to Stoke City - thanks to a Jonathan Walters penalty - I recall him him missing a penalty against us just over a year ago (after he had scored an own goal for us as well) - so thank you Jon Walters for having such a good day against Arsenal and helping us increase our lead to four points ahead of the gunners.  Wow I am really feeling the positive vibe now!

Lastly, I almost forgot, well done Pellegrini and Manchester City for winning the Capital One Cup. No sorry can't muster more enthusiasm than one sentence - yes positive vibe slipping away - must run and try and get it back....

Who Scored Chelsea's Goal?

Yes, who did score Chelsea’s winning 93^rd minute goal against the Toffees at Stamford Bridge on Saturday??

I was at the Bridge for the early game, which had promised to be a spectacle between Mourinho’s  League topping side and a re-energised Roberto Martinez' Everton.  In fact it fell short of the mark.  I am boring myself going on about rotation of the team and considering the players had all had a week's rest it is probably a moot point.  So why did the players (with the exception of the back four - so pleased to have JT back in the team)  seem so sluggish and lacking pace?   Oscar in particular seemed to struggle, so much so that Mourinho substituted him at half time.


When questioned about Oscar's recent disappointing form the Portugese Manager suggested the young player was struggling with the English weather - I am sure the victims of the recent floods will be pleased to know there is so much empathy for them at Stamford Bridge. Mourinho swapped one Brazilian for another bringing on an 'injured' Ramires- I would never have guessed the midfielder was injured had I not heard Jose saying so in the post match interview. Ramires injected more urgency and pace into the sleepy home side.  In-fact it was one of his signature runs into space which rattled the experienced England defender Phill Jagielka into making a rash challenge and giving away the free kick which Chelsea scored from.

Frank Lampard’s free kick which resulted in Chelsea’s  injury time goal was the highlight of the match for me, other than Jose Mourinho stepping onto the pitch during the game when challenging  a startled looking Lee Probert!!  In the stadium the goal was initially attributed to John Terry but my other half texted saying on TV it had been given to Frank Lampard.  I assumed Lamps must be responsible for the goal if declared so on television as they have access to different camera angles and unlimited replays that could be slowed right down.   So I walked home from what had been a disappointing game with a spring in my step as not only had we managed to pick the pockets of an organised Everton (who deserved at least to get something out of the game), but also that the three important points we had won were thanks to Super Frankie Lampard.  I say I walked home, but I actually had to go on a detour via the market on the North End Road (which seemed way more threatening than a football stadium full of 41,837 fanatical fans)  in order to buy ripe mangoes.  My younger daughter’s boyfriend’s parents were over from Spain for the weekend and I got roped into cooking Sunday roast, and was given many unsubtle hints about how our important guests love mango and how better to serve it than on a home-made Pavlova!!! 

On arriving home I discovered the goal had been given to John Terry after all.  I eagerly awaited MOTD to watch the highlights of the game and have a better look at the goal.  The panel on MOTD debated at length who was responsible for the goal – they included an Ivanovic header and an own goal by Tim Howard as third and fourth possibilities.

It reminded me of a game of Cluedo: was it Frank Lampard with the foot in the green grass, or Branislav Ivanovic with his hair in the clear air, or John Terry with a boot in the six yard box, or Tim Howard with a glove in front of the goal??!!

MOTD invited the audience to vote who they thought scored Chelsea's goal after reviewing the re plays (which showed the ball definitely making no contact with Ivanovic’s head and seemingly no contact with Terry’s stretched out leg).  The audience vote went for an own goal from Tim Howard (with 2% of the viewer’s remarkably voting for Ivanovic even though he was the only one of the four options which had been ruled out completely – at times like this I have to remind myself that diversity is what makes life so interesting!)  I still choose to give the goal to Frank as it was his beautifully placed free kick which initiated the whole debate.

The ‘who scored the goal’ question also reminded me of (I am not only about to age myself but also give away my dreadful TV watching habits):

“Who shot JR?”

And more recently:

“Who shot Phil?”

(For younger readers, these phrases refer to story lines from the TV Soaps Dallas and EastEnders – if you’re still wondering what I am banging on about, in the words of my husband – when he is fed up of me asking him annoying questions – ‘Google is your friend!!’)

It seems appropriate to be talking about Soap operas in light of our enigmatic Manager’s latest shenanigans – I personally want to thank the ‘disgraceful’ reporter who secretly recorded the Special One’s words.  I am so grateful for the knowledge that Mourinho is aware that his strikers can’t score!

                                                                                                                                                                             

Building Bridges

On the eve of tomorrow's inaugural "Game for Equality" being held at Stamford Bridge, I find myself assessing my own take on the continued fight for 'equality' and against discrimination.

Tomorrow's lunchtime Premier League clash between Chelsea and Everton has been chosen to be the first 'Game for Equality' and sees Chelsea FC's Building Bridges initiative join forces with Kick it Out, Football v Homophobia, the Premier League and the FA to underline Football's commitment to tackle discrimination in all guises.  Building Bridges was launched by Chelsea back in 2010 to promote equality in the Club, amongst the supporters and local communities, working alongside schools and related organisations to celebrate diversity.

Chelsea's Senegalese striker Demba Ba, who has been the subject of discrimination in the past for his race and religion (he is a practising Muslim), and is the Club's ambassador for the Building Bridges campaign said:

“I’m proud to be asked to be the ambassador for this campaign as it is important we as a club stand up to all forms of discrimination. I support all work promoting equality, and believe days like this will help get the message out there. There is no place for discrimination. Our club and our communities should be open to all regardless of race, religion, gender or sexuality.”

Whilst reading about tomorrow's commendable initiative I started to feel very guilty about a recent and impulsive reaction I had experienced watching the Blues News feature on the Chelsea Women's football team.  They were heralding the arrival of this Winter's seventh signing for the Women's team and my gut instinct was: (I apologise in advance to my sex for what I am about to write!) 'why are they wasting their money on the Women's game?'  As much as I love Men's football, I really struggle watching the Ladies equivalent.  It is not for want of trying - my husband's niece is a very talented footballer and was even selected for the England U17 team a few years ago - her selection got me interested in Women's football - at that time it was not as readily accessible but I managed to watch the odd game or two and I could not last the full 90 minutes.  I can watch any football game with male players but can't muster enthusiasm for the Women's game.  The question is does this make me sexist?  Could I be accused of discriminating against my own gender?  Is it because Women's football is not as intense or physical as the Men's game? Am I just not finding it as entertaining?  Does that qualify as discrimination or personal preference?  I am not sure of the answers to these questions - deep down and in light of the recent focus on discrimination, I think I may be guilty of it even if it is against my own gender.  I hold my hands up.... and I apologise to my sex....

Discrimination is closer than we think - it is inside each and every one of us in some form or another.

The first step is to recognise it.

Having admitted to my own failings, I now realise it has been years since I watched the Women's game and my prejudice has fuelled the dearth. One Google search of Women's football and I came up with this interesting fact:

"Women's football offers itself as an increasingly viable sport in its own right.  The 2011 World Cup final was at the time the most tweeted event in Twitter's five-year history."

Thanks to Building Bridges my eyes have been opened to my prejudice but the big question is will I be able to overcome it?  I guess I will only know once the Women's season starts in April.

A Mourinho moan

Although I am a pretty sad to be writing about our unusually early exit from the FA Cup competition, I am by no means surprised.

Even before kick-off at the Etihad, yesterday afternoon, I had pretty much resigned to the fact that Manchester City would once again be responsible for ending Chelsea’s Cup hopes.  This wasn’t me taking my standard pessimistic stance, I actually had some valid reasons for my negativity.   Firstly, I assumed Manchester City would be out for blood after being humiliated at the Etihad by Jose Mourinho’s  ‘little horse’ some twelve days prior to the fifth round tie (this was confirmed by Vincent Kompany in a post-match interview who said: “we wanted revenge”).  Secondly, Chelsea’s starting line-up set off alarm bells in my head.  Contrary to the commentators who hailed it as a strong team, all I could see was that Jose had chosen the same old knackered 10 men to start as in the previous three matches – he obviously hadn't read my last post where I had criticised him for not rotating the team and resting players (or maybe he read it and chose to ignore it!!). The fact that this was a Cup tie made Jose’s choices even more unfathomable – it is customary in Cup ties for manager’s to rotate their team and start the second goal keeper.

Accordingly, Manuel Pellegrini had made four changes from the side which drew 0-0 with Norwich and six changes from the side which lost to Chelsea on the 3^rd of February.  Predictably, the 6 foot 8 inch tall Romanian, Costel Pantilimon, who had lost out to Joe Hart as first choice keeper, was in goal for City.  City had also benefited from a longer rest period between matches as their mid week fixture with Sunderland had been postponed due to bad weather.  Why on earth had Jose not started Mark Schwarzer in goal?  The ex-Fulham and Australian keeper has never given me cause to doubt him or his performance – I have never felt even close to the levels of anxiety I experienced when seeing Ross Turnball in goal – I feel like by leaving him on the bench, Mourinho was giving Schwarzer a vote of 'no confidence' – as he was to Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole, Oscar, Andre Schurrle, Fernando Torres and Demba Ba (well maybe not Ba!!).  Not starting Ashley Cole and Frank, in particular, irks me (assuming they are match fit as indicated by their presence on the bench).  Leaving them out of the team is definitely going to reduce their chances of being selected by Roy Hodgson for the World Cup in Brazil this Summer – it is most likely the last opportunity for these ‘thirty something’ year olds to take part in such a tournament.  Also in the absence of John Terry at the helm, I would always choose to start with the experience and leadership qualities of Frank Lampard – statistics back up this argument – the team always performs better when JT and or Frank are in the line-up.  I will take a few minutes out from Jose Bashing to applaud ‘Captain Fantastic’ (again! - see post form October 10^th 2013!!):  JT has been an inspiration in the team this season; his authority, character and solid and reassuring presence in the defence has been sorely missed the last few games – for me  David Luiz is an inadequate replacement.  Don’t get me wrong, I am a big fan of the flamboyant Brazilian with big hair when he plays in midfield, but I find him far too cavalier to be a reliable centre half.

Just one last moan about Mourinho – I found his recent comments about Arsene Wenger being a ‘specialist in failure’ far too personal and more importantly unprofessional. I appreciate that it is a tactic of the Portugese manager to play mind games in order to undermine his rival teams and managers, and I, like most of the British media,  look forward to hearing his 'war of words',  but I prefer it when he is more subtle in his derision.  I am not a fan of Arsene Wenger and accept that eight years with no silverware is not exactly an example of success but I don't think building a new stadium with limited funds while retaining Champion's League football year after year, is a sign of failure. I would rather Jose conducted himself with more dignity and professionalism. I think he went a step too far this time and his comments may back fire on him. I truly hope this is the last post which is dedicated to moaning (about Mourinho).

So before I finish my moaning post, I may as well make the most of it! Not only did Chelsea lose to Manchester City but they did so in the worst possible fashion – by being feeble and lack lustre and in the words of the ‘special one’:  “they were poor”.  I can unhappily say each and everyone of the eleven men on the pitch played a big part in the 'poorness' of the team's 'poor' performance.  Maybe I am letting the players off the hook too easily by blaming their second rate display on mismanagement and exhaustion.... I'll never know the answer to that.

Well I guess no one can accuse me of having blind faith in my team and it's manager!

The new owner of Fulham FC, Shahid Khan, is desperate to break Roman Abramovich's record of how many managers/coaches he can hire and fire in the shortest time possible.  I am sad to see Ray Wilkins lose his position as assistant head coach after only some 10 weeks but I did wonder how Khan could possibly find room (and justification) for Felix Magath, Renee Meulensteen, Alan Curbishley and Ray Wilkins!! I have always thought Wilkins was an important member of Chelsea's coaching staff and his dismissal back in 2010 started a downward spiral for the club.  I guess on the plus side I will benefit from his pearls of wisdom on his return to Sky Sports commentary.

I feel this has been a very negative post so I think I should end on a lighter note.  A quote borrowed from a fellow football fan's blog:

"Who said Arsenal didn't make a purchase in the transfer window? They bought Howard Webb!!"

Why????

Why did we work so hard to gain three points from the mighty Manchester City just to carelessly throw two points away onto a snowy pitch at the Hawthorns last night.

The Baggies scored an 87th minute equaliser through a Victor Anichebe header, neutralising Branislav Ivanovic's goal from the first half stoppage time.

I admit Chelsea's record at West Brom has not been great of late (having lost our last two clashes at the Hawthorns) and the Baggies nearly upset the Mourinho home record apple cart when they almost clinched a win at Stamford Bridge back in November - you may recall the stoppage time (and score equalising) penalty awarded to Chelsea for a tackle on Ramires (he dived!!) which sparked off the whole 'sorry gate' incident. I was hoping in the absence of Shane Long (who was starting to make a habit of scoring against Chelsea), and considering our recent form, it may be a straight forward win - but deep down I had the same niggling doubt that has been fostered inside me by our inconsistent and often inexplicable form over the last few seasons.

Going back to last night, I have to admit the Russian stream my husband had found me to watch the game did a lot to add to my frustrations, firstly because it seemed to mimic the Blue performance by stuttering at rather crucial points of the match and secondly because the Russian commentator sounded way too jolly and kept up his upbeat commentary as the Blues hopes of increasing their lead to four points at the top of the table faded away.

Pepe Mel's side basically parked the bus in the first half and Mourinho's men couldn't find a way through. Although Chelsea did seem in control of the game in the first half and early in the second, for me they were lack lustre and basically looked knackered.  After the match Mourinho said:



 "For 60 minutes there was only one team and that team couldn't kill the game."

He went on to add that they had sat too deep in the second half and attributed this sitting deep to:

"A little bit of a lack of personality."

I am going to stick my neck on the line here and not only criticise the 'best manager in the world' but actually blame him for last night's half hearted performance.  In fact I would go as far as blaming it on his 'lack of imagination' as oppose to the players' lack of personality.

I honestly think the eleven men who played against Manchester City last Monday evening gave everything and more.  Of those eleven, nine started against Newcastle six days later and ten of them started again last night after only two days break. I know the usual arguments of how they should be able to cope with a busy schedule but the point is that the match at the Etihad was no ordinary game - it took everything out of the players.  What is the point of having a squad with depth if you don't use them - why not rotate the team for last night's game?  Is the 'Happy One' also the 'Superstitious One'?  Is this his version of playing with the same 'winning' lucky pants without washing them?

TIREDNESS KILLS

Obviously that is a Government warning related to driving but the point is that fatigue affects one's judgement: to pass when you should hold the ball, to take an extra touch when you should pass, to sit too deep, to challenge too late, to pass too long, to pass to the opposition, to lose your temper when you normally have a cool head...... - the list is endless but includes a lot of the sloppy mistakes I saw our players making last night.

You may disagree with my take on last night's game and in a way I hope I am wrong as I really don't want to feed the 'doubting' monster that is growing inside me.

A Little Hoarse!

….is the sound of my voice, after 90 minutes of cheering on Mourinho’s ‘little horse’ at Stamford Bridge, yesterday afternoon.

The early kick off at Anfield may have been partially responsible for the state of my vocal chords.  Liverpool was hosting Arsene Wenger’s League topping side.  I was in my bedroom preparing for my visit to Stamford Bridge (layering thermals!) knowing the battle between the first and fourth place teams was about to kick off when I heard the familiar ‘boing’ of my husband’s Fotmob app on his phone, heralding a ‘goal’.   Surely the app must have confused it’s ‘kick off’ sound with the ‘goal’ one.   The match was being televised on BT Sport and I had to urge my other half to find me a stream asap –apologies to feminists out there but I am definitely dependent on his cyber prowess, especially as I am a technological ‘little donkey’!  Sure enough when the stream began the score line was already 1-0 to Liverpool after two and a half minutes of play (I later discovered Martin Skrtel  had scored from a Gerrard free kick in the first minute of the match).  The next nineteen minutes were possibly the most exhilarating burst of football I have had the privilege of watching during live play.  It felt like I was watching the highlights of the game on MOTD.  A rattled Arsenal struggled to settle against a surging Liverpool side that had raced out of the blocks and was relentless in it’s attack.  Twenty minutes into the first half Liverpool were already 4-0 up.  The match ended 5-1 and Mingolet was denied a clean sheet when Arsenal was awarded a 68 minute penalty – hardly a consolation.  The final score could have been 8 or 9 in favour of Brendan Rodger’s boys, had Suarez not hit the post and Sturridge and Sterling squandered a few easy chances.  The SAS (Suarez and Sturridge) strike partnership was not only firing on all cylinders but was joined by a couple of other ‘S’s – Skrtel scored two goals as did Raheem Stirling, who narrowly missed out on a hat-trick.  I’ll stop going on about it but I would urge you to try and watch at least the first twenty minutes of the game if you missed it.  I fear Liverpool is definitely joining the three horse race (two and a half according to Jose!).

So having shouted my head off at four goals shooting past Szczesny in 20 minutes, I headed off to Stamford Bridge in the knowledge that a win against Newcastle would see Chelsea leap frog Arsenal in the table. Whether we then went on to top the table would depend on Norwich City’s ability to contain Manuel Pellegrini’s no longer invincible side.

My older daughter, who was unamused at being dragged out of bed at 1 pm, accompanied me.  She had been very keen on going with me prior to her Friday night out.  She was ‘hanging’ and got even more disgruntled when a steward took away her bottle of water which she was sucking on as we entered the stadium.  We got to our seats in time to see Petr Cech receiving an award from Peter Bonetti to mark his record breaking clean sheet achievement.  As we waited for the teams to come through the tunnel, I stuffed an extra strong mint into my daughter’s mouth in order to mask her alcohol breath – but she rightly pointed out that we were surrounded by fans with ‘beer breath’!!

There were two changes from the starting line-up that beat Manchester City last Monday night, JT and Ramires were given a well-deserved rest (first league game this season where John Terry hasn’t led the team out), probably in anticipation of our midweek clash with West Brom.  David Luiz moved back into his centre half role alongside Gary Cahill, Frank Lampard came back into midfield and Oscar joined Willian and Hazard behind Eto’o. 

Newcastle United, who have been cast in the role of a club in crisis in the aftermath of the derby defeat by Sunderland and the departure of director of football Joe Kinnear and star player Johan Cabaye, started the game well.  In the absence of their suspended striker Loic Remy, Moussa Sissoko and Hatem Ben Arfa created chances that forced saves from Petr Cech, making the ‘little horse’ look vulnerable.

It wasn’t long before the ‘little horse’ found its feet and surged ahead thanks to the dancing feet of the talented young Belgian Eden Hazard. An energised Branislav Ivanovic, buoyed from his winning goal at the Etihad, return passed the ball to the feet of the Belgian International who had made one of his signature runs into the box, enabling him to score the first goal of the match. A few minutes later, Hazard impressively combined with Samuel Eto’o to score his second of the afternoon and  in the second half the Belgian converted a penalty awarded by referee Howard Webb, achieving his first hat-trick for Chelsea (I was thrilled to discover that as well as Thorgan, Eden has two more brothers – imagine four Hazards in our team!!). Mohamed Salah made his debut in the last 10 minutes of the game.  Although he showed promise, nerves got to him and he was unable to finish a couple of good chances.


As Howard Webb's whistle signalled our 3-0 victory, the distinctive voice of Neil Barnett boomed over the tannoy, announcing that Norwich City had held Manchester City to a 0-0 draw at Carrow Road.
 
The ‘little horse’ was top of the table!

For those of you who don’t understand the references to ‘little horse’ they resulted from Mourinho’s words when being pressed on Chelsea’s chances as title contenders.  The canny Portugese manager continuously insists his side are not serious title contenders this season:

“The title race is between two horses and a little horse that needs milk and needs to learn how to jump, maybe next season we can race!”

Pellegrini responded: “little, but very rich!”

That’s ‘rich’ coming from him!!

Mourinho’s Monday Night Master Class

Or maybe it should be:

'Mourinho’s Manchester City Massacre'

You may think a 1-0 score line doesn’t justify the use of the word ‘massacre’, but few of the statistics of this game are a true reflection of the scale of the victory. 

Looking at the numbers, any neutral would be excused for thinking that Chelsea had parked the bus and nicked a lucky goal on the counter attack.  When I first saw the line up before the game, with six defenders in the eleven man starting line-up, I too thought that Mourinho may have reverted to the Sam Allerdyce 19^th Century tactics in order to tame the Manchester City beast that has been ravaging any Premiership side that dares set boot on the Etihad turf.  City had won their previous 11 league fixtures at home and had not gone without scoring at the Etihad since November 2010.

Aside from the opening 20 minutes of the match, I can honestly say Chelsea was the better side (yes Manuel Pellegrini, the best team DID win), playing with solid and purposeful defence, as well as energetic and penetrative offense.  Nemanja Matic, who had his first league start on his return to Chelsea, managed the perfect balance of cautious protection and assertive attacking. The Serbian not only effectively neutralised the threat of the prolific giant Ivorian midfielder, Yaya Toure, but he also nearly doubled Chelsea’s goal tally when his long range shot rattled the bar (he was not the only one to play chopsticks with the goal posts, Cahill’s header and Samuel Eto’o’s strike also clattered the bar).   Although Matic was awarded ‘Man of the Match’, the accolade could have been given to a handful of Chelsea players: Gary Cahill threw everything and the kitchen sink at the 2011/12 League Champions; Eden Hazard impressed as always but did so with a new found belief;  Willian ran his Brazilian socks off with even a little more vigour (if possible) than his fellow countryman Ramires;  Petr Cech  made two tumultuous saves;  Azpilicueta made the immensely dynamic Jesus Navas look pedestrian at times; Branislav Ivanovic scored a thundering centre forward goal with his left boot from 25 yards out as well as throwing his marigolds at Cahill’s kitchen sink;  David Luiz played an uncharacteristically  controlled game, shadowing the dangerous David Silva; Eto’o put in a shift and JT conducted the eleven man band to play the perfect Mourinho symphony.   

The much hailed Portugese tactician, who masterminded the unexpected defeat of ‘the best attacking team in the world’, played down his role in a post-match press conference when he insisted that ‘Billy the masseur’ had given the team talk in Manchester before the game – when asked what Billy had said, Jose laughed saying he hadn’t understood a word of the Scottish shouting but the players must have as they had applauded the 'Billy rant'.  Perhaps Jose could have put Billy and his ‘team talk’ in a cab to nearby Old Trafford in order to assist the masseur's fellow Scot David Moyes, who is in need of some inspiration – even with the return of Rooney and Van Persie from injury and the addition of Juan Mata, Stoke city managed to defeat United for the first time in 30 years.

Enough with the Moyes bashing!  Going back to our glorious victory, I am embarrassed to admit I have not been so euphoric about a win since our Champions League campaign under Roberto Di Matteo.

My younger daughter’s Spanish boyfriend (who is now living with us and already complaining about the standard of ironing of his shirts – must admit that my busy schedule as a football fan means I have no time for ironing, so I sent his shirts out to be ironed!!!) has just pointed out to me that Swansea City have sacked their League Cup winning manager, Michael Laudrup – I am sorry it didn’t work out for the Dane – some say Swansea’s European campaign was the undoing of him – all I know is that in the last few weeks he has been looking like a broken man – I hope this is just a blip in his managerial career and not the beginning of the end.  Maybe in two days  time the club may reinstate him – isn’t that what Leeds did with Mcdermott?

THE 39 STEPS

Last night’s match, at a cold and rainy Stamford Bridge, was possibly the most frustrating 90 minutes (97 minutes!) I have had to endure….. A London derby against Big Sam’s faltering West Ham – it should have been a dead cert considering our recent form, and with Arsenal having dropped 2 points at St. Mary’s, it was the perfect opportunity for Mourinho’s men to advance their title challenge.

Chelsea had 39 shots at goal (the most by any team who failed to score in the Premier League since the 2003/4 season), in contrast to West Ham’s solitary attempt.  The match ended 0-0 thanks to resolute defending by the visiting team.

 

The young Spanish keeper Adrian was unbeatable and produced a string of brilliant saves.  He was assisted by a wall of defenders who showed such commitment, fearlessly throwing their bodies in front of the ball and any Blue opponent who happened to be in tow. Even the returning striker, Andy Carroll, spent more time in his own box than Chelsea’s and was pretty impressive in defence. Making his first league start of the season, the injury prone Carroll was a little rusty in attack and fortunately for us fluffed his lines in the goal mouth, squandering a possible and much needed three points for the Hammers.

Martin Keown eloquently described the Hammers performance as full of “determination, belief, desire, heart and the will to win” , not sure if it was a will to win or just a will to survive.  It was not a ‘pretty’ game of football but I have to admit that I stand in admiration of Sam Allerdyce, who used all his experience to create an impenetrable force that withstood the brilliance of the likes of Oscar, Hazard and the much improved Willian.  Even Super Frankie Lampard found himself ineffective after being brought on to impact the game (it is only fair to be honest at this point and say that Frank's failure to score was not solely due to West Ham's tactics, I am saddened to say he too fluffed his lines in front of goal….).

Anyway, it’s done…. No going back…. Now we just have to look forward to our next league game – and yes it is against the team that has been hailed this week as ‘possibly the best team in the world’.  I think that is an exaggeration but am a little cautious about refuting it outright – last time I cast doubt on pundits showering praise and plaudits on Gareth Bale, he went on to command the largest transfer fee in football history!

I must thank my younger daughter for assisting me today in the creation of the ‘word ladder’ which transforms the word ‘steps’ into ‘shots’ in 39 steps.  As soon as I found out Chelsea had 39 shots in last night's game, I was immediately reminded of the Alfred Hitchcock movie of the novel 'The 39 Steps'. Obviously the thriller has very little in common with a Chelsea football game apart from the number 39 (unless you chose to compare the novel's hero with Jose Mourinho: 'Richard Hannay, an all-action hero with a stiff upper lip and a miraculous knack for getting himself out of sticky situations' - the stiff upper lip bit lets the comparison down somewhat!!). Inside my warped brain I visualised a 'word ladder' which converted the word 'steps' into the word 'shots' in 39 steps - as a reflection of the frustration endured during the match, watching shot after shot be blocked or saved or missed - 39 times! 

The only problem was it can be done with as few as 3 steps: 

STEPS STOPS SHOPS SHOTS 

Thank you to my daughter for having the tenacity to persist with such a pointless (and frustrating!) task and finding a solution with 39 steps!  

Talking of frustration, the sight of Juan Mata running around Old Trafford being helpful and effective in their 2-0 win against Cardiff City was hugely frustrating!! He also confirmed two of Vincent Tan’s mythical beliefs: the colour Red and the number eight can be lucky for some!

Check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKug2aA_rCc#t=18 if you are missing Mata! Very clever.

“Sometimes there are managers who are not good enough for some groups.”

“But there are also some groups (of players) who are not good enough for the manager. In this case it is the second.”

These were the words of Paolo Di Canio when giving an interview about his time as Sunderland manager.  At first I couldn’t believe I had heard him correctly but then I guess humility has never been his forte.  Also everyone is entitled to ‘their own reality’.

It did get me thinking again about the subject of my last post, Juan Mata.  I guess in Mata’s mind it was the new manager who failed him as a player.  Just in the last half hour the blue Spaniard has been confirmed as a ‘Red’.  He said he couldn’t refuse an offer from a club as great as Manchester United (I don’t feel comfortable mentioning this but I can’t help thinking the Moyes Manchester United is a completely different beast to the Fergie United – I think Mata may find himself hostage to the myth that was Manchester United). I assume the club has guaranteed him much needed game time, which is imperative in order to earn his place in the Spanish National team for the World Cup this Summer.  I do feel a little sad at how everything has turned out for the Spanish playmaker – the internet is flooded with messages and videos from heart broken Blues who feel bereaved by Mata’s move up to Manchester.  Watching some of the videos of his best moments as a Chelsea player, I too found myself welling up…. I just wish he had respected the Club enough not to move to one of their main rivals – but I guess his ‘reality’ was that Chelsea had not shown him the respect he had deserved in the last six months.  Anyway I don’t want to get wrapped up in ‘rights and wrongs’, but I do wish Mata all the best for his future and am sure we will be witnessing the little magician doing what he does best in no time at all.

It seems an appropriate time to welcome the imminent arrival of Mohamed Salah, the 21 year old Egyptian midfielder from Swiss Champions Basel.  I am assuming his transfer will complete without any complications (in the guise of Brendan Rodgers!).  Salah is a talented player who has scored against Chelsea in their last three meetings with Basel.  I feel confident he will be a worthy replacement for Juan Mata and that the club is more than capable of handling any political challenges which may arise from Salah’s signing.

“Eto’o is now E’three”, I heard a fan shouting behind me as Samuel Eto’o entered history books by scoring a hat-trick against Manchester United last Sunday afternoon at the Bridge.  I was privileged to witness our 3-1 victory over the troubled Manchester side.  Chelsea started the game slowly.  I don't think going into half time with a 2-0 lead was a true reflection of the game, but in the second half the blues dominated and the final score was well deserved.  I feel compelled to mention the barbaric tackle made on Gary Cahill by Raphael, which only drew a yellow card from the ref who had already rashly red carded a frustrated Nemanja Vidic.  It does seem that Premiership referees are making more and more mistakes in response to the ever increasing pressures of the job. Anyway I can’t complain, the final result was great (it would have been a little better had Petr Cech kept yet another clean sheet which was denied him by our nemesis, Chicharito - who always scores against  us)!  Not only did Mourinho keep his unbeaten home record in the Premier League, but the win over Moyes' men marked Jose Mourinho’s 100^th win in the Premiership, setting a new record when he reached the landmark in double quick time – it took him 142 games, 20 less than Sir Alex Ferguson.  In fairness to Manchester United, they were missing Wayne Rooney and Robin Van Persie through injury but the team as a whole looked lacking in confidence.  Morale was low.
 

This lack of belief displayed by David Moyes' Manchester United became even more obvious in their midweek Capital one second leg semi-final against Sunderland.  I don’t have time to discuss the game properly as there is so much to say – if you get a chance at least try to watch the second half of extra time followed by the penalty shoot- out…. The pundits are hailing it as the worst penalty shoot-out of all time.  What is more alarming is that we are pinning our World Cup hopes on some of the players involved in this infamously horrendous display. (Note to Paolo Di Canio: the Black Cats were good enough to beat Manchester United with Gus Poyet at the helm....)

Well maybe the arrival of Mata will help boost morale at Old Trafford (and take some weight off the young shoulders of Adnan Januzaj, who has been carrying the team).  After all the arrival of Mesut Ozil did wonders for Arsene Wenger’s then faltering Arsenal.  It could go either way I think – depending on whether Mata’s acquisition was merely an act of desperation by a failing manager of a club in crisis, or a canny and considered move to bring in a needed playmaker who the club feels will fit into their ethos.  I tend to think the former to be the case, which could mean that the one-man rescue mission may fail but it is football after all so you can always expect the unexpected.

(I used to like M&M's till I saw this photo!!)

I am off to the Bridge again tomorrow for the Fourth Round of the FA Cup against Stoke.  I am again ever hopeful of a win.  (It worked last week!!)

Will Mata survive the Oscar season?

I just got back from a few days in Spain celebrating my other half’s 50th – the weather was uncharacteristically cold and wet giving us the perfect excuse to spend many an hour eating (of course I watched the Hull game, another clean sheet, congrats Petr Cech on the his record breaking 209 clean sheets and to Eden Hazard for being awarded his third consecutive 'Man of the Match').  One of our regular haunts was a traditional Spanish bar which not only had delicious tapas but also housed a couple of large plasma screens constantly broadcasting football games.  Not surprisingly the clientele was predominantly male and the atmosphere was intense; concentrated silence interspersed with raucous excitement.  It was the perfect place for any football fan!  Whilst plucking succulent, fleshy leaves, dripping in melted butter, from my ember grilled artichoke, I noticed the image of a boyish Fernando Torres, donning the distinctive red and white stripe of the Athletico Madrid shirt.  The TV channel was doing the usual fill before a match, showing historical clips from previous meetings of the two sides – which happened to be Athletico and Barca.  Seeing images of a young and happy Torres in his native land, looking like he was going to conquer the world, reminded me of the drama surrounding the Chelsea Spaniards…..

We have all got used to the hype surrounding Fernando Torres and his erratic form since he moved to Chelsea.  What has come as more of a shock to the footballing world is Mourinho’s treatment of Juan Mata, the two time winner of the Chelsea Player of the Year award. There are daily speculations of when Mata will leave Chelsea and which club he will be joining.

In contrast to the adulation afforded to Mourinho by Chelsea fans, Spanish fans don’t think much of the Portugese Manager after his stint at Real Madrid, where he managed to alienate almost all the players, starting with the legendary Iker Casillas.  The general consensus is that Jose hates all things Spanish (as would be expected of a Portugese!).  In fact when Mourinho returned to Chelsea last Summer, the Spanish tabloids ran stories on how his first move would be to get rid of Torres, Mata and Azpilicueta (the fourth Spanish musketeer, Oriol Romeu went under the radar as he was on a season long loan to Valencia).  My younger daughter’s Spanish boyfriend also felt compelled to regularly reinforce these speculations.  So I must admit it came as no surprise to me when Mourinho benched the Spaniards at the start of the season.  (There is also a rational explanation for such a decision – Spain had reached the finals of the Confederations Cup in Brazil  and the players had missed out on a necessary rest period – ironically Fernando Torres won the golden boot for scoring the most goals during the tournament!)

With time and Jose’s inclusion of Torres and Azpilicueta (or Dave as he is fondly known by the fans) in the team, I have decided that Juan Mata’s ‘Spanishness’ is not the problem!!  If anything,  when  Mourinho started selecting Dave as left back (even though his natural position is right back), in preference to Ashley Cole, one could almost make a case for Jose favouring the Spaniards.

The question dividing the footballing community is what is Mourinho’s issue with Mata?

Mourinho himself has made it clear that he prefers Oscar in the number 10 position.  He has also commented on Mata’s failings in a defensive capacity.  It seems reasonable that Mourinho would want his players to be effective all over the pitch and not just in the top third.  I have to be honest and admit that I myself have had my own issues with Mata.

Firstly, my older daughter, who is at least a foot taller than the Spanish play maker, is absolutely obsessed by him – she says things like ‘I want to have his babies!’ – I can’t mention any of her other desires as they are quite X-rated.  As a result of this strange fascination, it is hugely annoying to watch any Chelsea match with her featuring Mata.  I have endured two and a half years of her screeching ‘Juuuuuuuuuaaaaaaannnnnnn’ in the highest pitch her vocal chords will permit, every time the Spaniard even approaches the ball.  The side effects of her obsession have been the fact that Mata’s presence on the pitch has been highlighted for me whether he is living up to his reputation as a ‘magician’ or falling short of it.
 

My second issue with Mata has arisen as a result of this added scrutiny brought on by my daughter’s obsession.  Having watched him so closely, I found myself criticising him more and more often.  At times he looked as fragile as a feather, blowing over at the slightest contact.  Mata's insistence to use his favoured left foot, often resulted in his taking too many touches and missing important chances. I don’t dispute he has an amazing touch but  there were times when he would repeatedly lose the ball and not be able to win it back.  Until Mourinho’s arrival this season I thought I was going mad because all anyone would say about Mata was how amazing he was – no one seemed to be watching the same player as I was.  On the flip side, having recognised Mata’s failings, I never thought they were enough to justify his continuous presence on the bench.

August 27^th 2011 – Stamford Bridge – Chelsea v Norwich - 67 minutes Juan Mata makes his debut  - 90 + minutes Juan Mata goes on to score his first goal for Chelsea – I was at the Bridge – it was a sunny afternoon and Mata was full of promise (as was AVB and the other debutante Romelu Lukaku!)  - football is a fickle world…..

Talking of fickle – I’m off to Stamford Bridge tomorrow – Chelsea is hosting Manchester United with David Moyes at the helm.  I honestly don’t know which way it will go but am ever hopeful…..

Obi One can Obi....

....keep it up?!!  (I know very lame, but really wanted to go with the Star Wars theme!)

What a way to start the New Year:

Two consecutive wins, two successive clean sheets and John Obi Mikel scored his fourth Chelsea goal on his 300^th appearance for the club!

The hectic December fixture list has taken its toll on some clubs but so far Mourinho’s men have not only won their last four games (as well as drawing with Arsenal, which is no mean feat in the post Ozil Emirates Stadium!) but somehow seem strengthened and focussed by the intensity of the last few weeks.

As I am writing this post I have the Capital One semi-final between Sunderland and Manchester United on in the back ground.  Normally I would be watching such a tie intently but somehow the fact that it should have been us against United has made me reticent to watch.  Not saying Sunderland don’t deserve to be there  - just suffering a bit from what my girls call FOMO (for those of you who like me need to resort  to the Urban dictionary, it means Fear Of Missing Out)!

 GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!

Sunderland go 1-0 up in the added minute of the first half…………………. My default position to such news would be celebration.  It is not a secret that I have never been a big fan of Manchester United.  I am experiencing very mixed and unusual feelings of empathy for MU supporters.  This could either be evidence that I am truly menopausal or that I am not the kind of person who kicks someone when they are down.  It could also be sympathy for Moyes who is in the firing line.  I was always a fan of Moyes during his time at Everton and feel he was handed a poisoned chalice when given the impossible job of succeeding the legendary Alex Ferguson.  I hope the fans will be patient while he tries to fill a large pair of Scottish boots!

Goal L Yes Manchester United equalised and now I am feeling even more conflicted for having wasted my energies on the Red Devils.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!

Fabio Borini strikes in a penalty for Sunderland, 2-1 and now I am feeling………

STOP – I can’t continue this train of thought – it is far too annoying  but a great example of the consuming and exhilarating nature of football.  Especially this season, where no result can be predicted or expected.

This leads me nicely onto a bit of a political rant.  Through my life I have taken little interest in politics and have never been affiliated with any political group or dogma.  This could have been a result of having a Fascist father and a Communist sister!!!

(90 min at the Stadium of Light – 5 minutes Fergie time – Sunderland have parked the bus – Gus Poyet is looking even more crazed than usual – the Black Cats are hanging on by their newly sharpened claws thanks to Poyet improving their pre match preparation  habits – Full time – another loss for Manchester United (at least away from Old Trafford this time – two days ago they suffered their fifth defeat this season at Old Trafford – the Fortress is no longer……) I digress again – last time I promise – especially as the distracting match is over!!)

Back to my political rant:

The advent of the BT Sport Channel has been a catalyst for my rant.  Having subscribed to Sky Sports and Chelsea TV (Chelsea TV is possibly more of a luxury than a necessity) I absolutely begrudge having to pay yet another subscription in order to view what should be every sports fan’s ultimate right (admittedly I wouldn't have to if I had BT internet!). I have been privileged enough to afford my Sky subscription but have always wondered about those who can’t – every person with a TV in the UK already pays a licence fee to watch their television.  In these times of austerity it seems shocking that people are being deprived of the few pleasures in life.  To say the entitlement to Sport viewing is as essential as free health care may be going a bit too far – but I don’t think it is way off the mark – rising ticket prices have alienated many fans who would normally benefit from a weekly free therapy session venting their frustrations on the terraces.  And now the fans are being pushed out of their arm chairs as well.  With BT Sport having out bid Sky and ITV for all live UK rights to Champion’s League and Europa League in 2015 there will be no universally accessible European football on TV.  It is not just football – most lucrative sports are now pay per view….. fans are an essential component of competitive sport and the grass roots fans are being squeezed out……. Something needs to change……

FOOTBALL FOR ALL!!!

Rant over – my younger daughter’s Spanish boyfriend (yes the same one from last year – still going strong) has just asked me if I am writing a novel!  They are no longer in their love (some would say shag) pad!! – He is supposed to be back at University in Spain but miraculously I find him in our kitchen most mornings!  He is very pleasant to have around, especially as he regularly unloads the dishwasher, which is more than my daughters do (even though I leave post it notes out reminding them where the dish washer is!).  The only time I have an issue with him is when he bets on a team playing Chelsea and then loudly supports the opposition through the course of what is usually a fairly tense ninety minutes anyway!

Before the novel becomes unreadable, I must quickly mention my delight at the start of the Premiership’s involvement in this season's FA Cup.  It is good to see that most top-flight managers are giving the Cup the respect it deserves by fielding strong teams while giving youngsters a run out.  I was disappointed to hear Paul Lambert quoted as saying most Premiership managers could do without the cup if they were being honest.   I thoroughly enjoyed Chelsea’s cup tie with Derby and know Derby fans did too. The third round this season has again thrown up a load of David v Goliath ties in a way no other competition in the world can. Brendan Rodgers had the opportunity to kiss his son Anton as he walked off the pitch after their teams clashed in the magical competition.  Young Jamie Paterson scored a hat trick in Nottingham Forest’s 5-0 defeat of the struggling West Ham.  Swansea City made history again by defeating Manchester United at Old Trafford for the first time ever.  I could go on and on but the point is what is there not to like about the Cup???