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The 2007/08 Chelsea Thread

Philip Rolfe

By Philip Rolfe,
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deez0r

deez0r

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1 Gianfranco Zola’s everything

In particular there was the gasp-inducing moment against Norwich in which the original ‘man with happy feet’ and the best player ever to wear a Chelsea shirt (possibly, also, the nicest man ever to do so) runs onto a corner to the front post and scores with a flicked volley off the inside of his right heel. Brilliant in the same way that the moment he gave Julian Dicks of West Ham ‘twisty blood’ was brilliant, or in the way that he walked through the Manchester United defence one cold winter’s afternoon at the Bridge was brilliant or in the way that he came on in Stockholm and won the European Cup Winners’ Cup was brilliant, or in the way that… Actually, you could compile one of these ‘Soul in 50 Moments’ lists using Zola-related incidents alone, which explains why his is still among the first names to be sung when things are going well – as they so often seem to be these days.

\o/\o/\o/

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deez0r

deez0r

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Hoping for tonight:

Cech

Belletti

TBH (rest Alex for weekend)

JT

Bridge

Maka

Essien

Sidwell

SWP

Malouda

Sheva (Pizarro getting some playing time near end)

Would love to have had Sinclair here for this match for some experience.

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bridgekings

bridgekings

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1 Petr Cech

20 Paulo Ferreira

33 Tal Ben-Haim

26 John Terry ©

18 Wayne Bridge

24 Shaun Wright-Phillips

5 Michael Essien

8 Frank Lampard

7 Andriy Shevchenko

14 Claudio Pizarro

21 Salomon Kalou

Subs: Carlo Cudicini, Alex, Wayne Bridge, Juliano Belletti, Claude Makelele, Steve Sidwell, John Mikel Obi, Joe Cole.

Valencia:

Canizares; Miguel, Albiol, Helguera, Moretti; Sunday, Vicente, Marchena, Silva; Morientes, Villa.

Subs: Mora, Manuel Fernandes, Mata, Zigic, De Lucas, Rodriguez, Sanchez.

Was expecting a weaker team than that tbh. Just praying we stay clear of injuries tonight.

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Philip Rolfe

Philip Rolfe

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God that was rubbish. In control but playing like a stereotypical Arsenal (I say that as it's not true so much now). Trying to be too bloody cute in the final pass, and not shooting. When Joey came on we looked miles better, he was my MotM for his half hour alone.

And cheap tickets for games is a great idea but you get a) the foreigners with all sorts of cameras b) everyone leaving early and c) moron fans who give it WHO ARE YA at Canizares all game. I question my sanity for going to games like tonight. Bloody cold as well.

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kingcav

kingcav

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Originally posted by beffrey:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Matt Cavanagh:

1 vote for 3 different players and poyple being clueless. that's about all the chelsea fans isn't it? icon_frown.gif

you ***** </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

who are you?

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Philip Rolfe

Philip Rolfe

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Originally posted by Benoit2:

When's the last time JT has scored a goal for us btw? Was it the opening fixture last season against Man C?

Yeah it was. Three major reasons for that. One is obviously he's spent a lot of that time injured. Another is the fact he's focused on a hell of a lot now by opponents. And then the fact our corners are absolutely dire. No idea when we last scored from one, certainly not this season. Will have been one of Ricky's from last year (he got like 5, stepping up for JT).

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Benoit2

Benoit2

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Originally posted by Philip Rolfe:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Benoit2:

When's the last time JT has scored a goal for us btw? Was it the opening fixture last season against Man C?

Yeah it was. Three major reasons for that. One is obviously he's spent a lot of that time injured. Another is the fact he's focused on a hell of a lot now by opponents. And then the fact our corners are absolutely dire. No idea when we last scored from one, certainly not this season. Will have been one of Ricky's from last year (he got like 5, stepping up for JT). </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I think Kalou managed to score one at home to Bolton at the end of last season. Or was that not a corner (or not Kalou's goal, but an own goal instead, dont remember too well)?

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kingcav

kingcav

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he's retiring in the summer despite having another year left on his contract.

maybe I'm thinking with my heart rather than my head, but we're far from out of the title race. we've played each of the 'big 4' away from home and now they've got to come to the bridge icon_cool.gif

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H.O.V.I

H.O.V.I

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Originally posted by Matt Cavanagh:

he's retiring in the summer despite having another year left on his contract.

maybe I'm thinking with my heart rather than my head, but we're far from out of the title race. we've played each of the 'big 4' away from home and now they've got to come to the bridge icon_cool.gif

How can you be out of the title race, your only 6 points behind with 21 games left.

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Poyplemonkeys

Poyplemonkeys

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He said far from out of the title race, not far out of the title race.

I agree. Personally feel we deserved a point yesterday, so it will be different at the bridge with Carvalho, Terry, Drogba and Essien back. Hopefully referee will be less of a shambles when we play United again, and we took a point away at Liverpool so we should be able to do at least that again. We do need to win all the games against them though. Gives us 10 points against the 'big 4' this season, and imo, that's the minimum requirement if you want to take the title. Winning all the home matches, and taking what you can away from home.

Essien back for Tuesday isn't he? Carvalho might be too, and Ballack might get a bit of time icon_cool.gif 'Mon the German.

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kingcav

kingcav

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Originally posted by H.O.V.I:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Matt Cavanagh:

he's retiring in the summer despite having another year left on his contract.

maybe I'm thinking with my heart rather than my head, but we're far from out of the title race. we've played each of the 'big 4' away from home and now they've got to come to the bridge icon_cool.gif

How can you be out of the title race, your only 6 points behind with 21 games left. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

a lot of people are now (stupidly) thinking that we are out of the race.

unless you misunderstood me.

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Philip Rolfe

Philip Rolfe

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Not looking forward to the next six weeks. Drogba, JT, Carvalho out for the rest of this month probably, then January and we get Drogba, Mikel, Kalou, and Essien bugger off. Which we've known all along, but this is the state of affairs

Cech/Carlo

Belletti/Ferreira

Alex/Ben Haim

JT/Carvalho (whoever's fit first)

Cole/Bridge

Makelele

Sidwell/Ballack

Lampard

Cole

SWP/Malouda

Shevchenko/Pizarro

Then maybe, maybe some impact from Sinclair and Sahar but don't hold your breath.

Goals from open play from those players in all comps? 23. From something like 26 games. We're devoid of creativity and especially attacking depth. Looking forward to Sheva and Pizarro for the next few games really doesn't appeal to me, so we absolutely must be buying a striker. Otherwise things are going rapidly downhill.

Not buying any positives from yesterday, we didn't have any cutting edge and Arsenal weren't bothered much at all. We've known all season what's ahead, what we didn't perhaps reckon on was Malouda turning into Ambrosetti, Pizarro being rubbish, and still not having Ballack.

Sign Mutu back pls.

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Ratinho

Ratinho

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I'll happily laugh at Ashley if he gets banned and abuse the f**ker constantly. However, if the worst thing he does after being abused for 90 whole minutes is flick the Vs like a naughty schoolgirl, a ban is harsh imo.

As you say though, they'll do him on disrepute.

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shanyi

shanyi

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Pizarro's had a bad rap, he's hardly been given any opportunities to show his worth other than a few ten minute run-outs from the bench, so it's no surprise his finishing has been meek. I'd like to see him getting a decent run in the team, even if he might not score as many as he should, he's got the strength and height to perform a Drogba-ish role and has shown signs of intelligent play, moving the ball around well and finding space for the wingers. I'll also reiterate that Shevchenko is clearly lost as a lone striker, he's OK if he's got someone to feed off but lacks the pace and power to really dominate a defence like DD does.

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kingcav

kingcav

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I've said it before, I think pitz is a great substitute for when drogba's not around. he's strong, powerful and 6' 2".

also ssn and other news agencies are reporting that terry's out for 'up to 6 weeks' whereas the chelsea doctor said 'a minimum of 6 weeks'.

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kingcav

kingcav

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with ricky and terry out, do you think there's any chance that mancienne will be recalled?

a strongish team for tomorrow please. I understand that sinclair is back?

cech

ferreira

ben-haim

alex

bridge

makelele

sidwell

lampard

malouda

pizarro

kalou

with appearances from (if available?) sinclair and ballack. that would be nice.

when is essien back btw?

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Philip Rolfe

Philip Rolfe

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Giles Smith. The Man. The Legend.

Wed, 19th Dec 2007

There may be grumbles and gripes after the weekend's result but columnist Giles Smith calls upon his fellow Chelsea fans to remember what is important.

You've got to love Arsenal, haven't you? Partly because the papers and the pundits are always telling you to. Beautiful side. Lovely football. Play the game the way it's meant to be played. Can't do it any other way. It's just not in their make-up, and so on.

Good news stories pour out of the club on a daily basis. Did you know that the football played at the Emirates actually reduces global warming? It's fantastic news and not only for the club's supporters, but for people all over the world. And not just people. Endangered species, too, including the giant panda and the Rwandan mountain gorilla, support Arsenal and wish them success.

Arsène Wenger? A saintly figure, clearly. And no money behind him at all, you know. Not a penny. When Arsène needs a new player, he has to save up bottle tops or grow one in his garden. Or, if not his garden, then the garden belonging to the youth department of another club in France.

Cost of the Emirates Stadium? £357 million, it says here. But that can't be right, can it? I believe the stadium came to David Dein in a dream. People in Ashburton Grove just woke up one morning and there it was, all organic and shiny and free. Because otherwise it's throwing a big lump of money at the problem, and that's just not the Arsenal way.

Arsenal's wage bill? More than £83 million a year, according to Deloitte Touche, but I don't believe that for a minute, either. I don't think any wages change hands at all at Arsenal. I think the players there do it entirely for love - love for Arsenal, and love for football, the way it's meant to be played - and maybe at the end of the year there's an outing - to the seaside or something.

And that's why I felt so positive after Sunday's match. Because, yes, we lost. But consider what humble, grubby little us had come up against. Not so much a football team - more a moral superpower. I mean, in many ways, it was a privilege just to be admitted to the same pitch, let alone to end up bossing the second half.

And how heartening it was, then, given the circumstances, to lose only very narrowly, to one enormously scruffy goal which, to be strict about it, ought really to have been ruled out unless we're going to agree that it's absolutely fine for attacking players to wrestle defending players out of the way while the ball is still in the air. (And I guess if Arsenal are doing it, give it time.)

In fact, we could easily have had a point, which would have been a truly cherishable thing, lacking, as we were, Drogba, Essien, Carvalho and (for the best part of the game) Terry.

Indeed, we probably would have had a point if only Shaun Wright-Phillips hadn't chosen the moment when he was one-on-one with Almunia in the 74th minute to deliver his first genuinely dangerous cross of the league campaign so far. But that's nothing to worry about. It's just a minor refinement on the training ground.

Some supporters will also point out that we were a touch unlucky when our captain broke his foot in three places midway through the first half. And I've heard a few people say quite dark things about that particular incident, even going so far as to suggest that it might have been (how can I put this?)… deliberate.

But that's clearly impossible, because it's not what Arsenal are about. Read the papers: they're not about stamping on people and getting into punch-ups. They're about emulating Real Madrid at their finest, while simultaneously lowering the average age of their first XI to 15-and-a-half.

So, more than likely Eboué was in the middle of one of those fast and exciting, quick-passing moves that Arsenal specialise in, and Terry's foot happened to get in the way. Serves the captain right, really, for trying to stand there when something beautiful and morally unimpeachable was going on.

So if anyone needs to say sorry, it's probably us. I don't know whether the club intends to issue a formal apology to Eboué and to Arsenal in general over the incident, but by all means read this as an unofficial apology on Chelsea's behalf, expressed in the humblest terms.

And thanks for letting us play, too. We were flattered to be invited.

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Poyplemonkeys

Poyplemonkeys

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Indeed, we probably would have had a point if only Shaun Wright-Phillips hadn't chosen the moment when he was one-on-one with Almunia in the 74th minute to deliver his first genuinely dangerous cross of the league campaign so far.

Whole article pretty funny but this bit actually made me laugh out loud and people staring at me in the office now icon_frown.gif

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