PL Recap: Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool

By: Jack | November 20th, 2011

It is not a question of the owner having patience. I have said we have set out to build something new at this club and the club is committed to what we are building for the future. …

The perspective is we have to win every game if we want to make this a title challenge. There is no running away from responsibilities, there is no calling this a year of transition. Our responsibility is to win the most amount of trophies and at the moment we are in all of them and that is what we have to believe and focus on.

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Undaunted

The above quotage is highly interesting. Call it stoic defiance from Andre Villas-Boas. It’s very much endearing. There’s no shying away from accountability or the pressure that comes with inheriting the managerial position at Chelsea Football Club. There are expectations, our manager says, and right now this club isn’t living up to its bill.

He’s right. Everyone involved must share the blame, too. Now, go out and fix it.

The Rundown
• We lost, our second consecutive at Stamford Bridge for the first time in the Abramovich era.
• The first half was the worst experience of the season for me.
• Didier Drogba, though he improved in the second half, has lost the plot.
• Ashley Cole is no longer the world’s finest left fullback.
• Liverpool just about deserved the points.
• I can’t believe I just said that.

Mindless musings from another dire afternoon
Here, Jack provides aimless rambles on today’s match. Disclaimer: Jack is not responsible for any offensive language, typos, or incomparableness featured in this section

What the hell was that? I’m not referring to the 20-plus minute span during the second half in which we resembled Jonah Hill immediately post-adrenaline needle in Get Him to the Greek. Or maybe we were Sergio post-hotel room arson incident. Either way, Liverpool were running for their collective lives at that point. What I’m talking about is the rest of the game. That first half in which we were akin to Hill mid-threesome with that chick from Mad Men and Russell Brand. We were shunned to the side, confused and angry, watching Liverpool have their way and without the means (or backbone) to do anything about it.

I’d argue it was worse to sit through than the second-half capitulation against Arsenal. I, for one, was at first simmering then resigned to another day of forced psychotherapy. The brief respite brought forth by Daniel Sturridge and a few others, namely Juan Mata and Ramires, served only to intensify the fury that erupted from this hollow shell of a man when the inevitable winner surfaced through Glen Johnson. Fucking Glen Johnson.

Chelsea can’t handle Liverpool’s Johnson. Of course. Ashley Cole, anonymous in the attacking third, was embarrassed by the former West Ham and Chelsea fullback. Then Florent Malouda was found wanting. Before you knew it, Petr Cech was picking the ball out of his own net ahead of a dejected John Terry. Cole, once deemed the world’s best left-back around these parts, has this season looked more like a high-mileage Datsun than an elite defender. Perhaps now we can understand why Villas-Boas showed real interest in Fabio Coentrao in the offseason. And speaking of England’s Brave John Terry, can anyone remember seeing the man look as frail, slow and vulnerable as he did today? He was egregious. You really have to wonder if he can survive playing the Villas-Boas style. Extremely worrying.

Removing Ramires also was a dire individual mistake, one that falls squarely at the feet of the coach. No Ramires and no Mikel? Villas-Boas effectively opened us up with that second midfield substitution. Yes, Raul Meireles was pushed forward in an attempt to find a winner. That doesn’t mean we should sacrifice a shield in front of the back four, though. I don’t think it was a coincidence that we kind of unraveled at that point.

As for those supporters who are already after Villas-Boas’ head, I refer you to my comment from today’s Rant Box:

Anyone calling for Villas-Boas’ head at this point is spouting rubbish.

This is a process, and it’s difficult to progress when your personnel is continually mucking up at an unseen rate. John Terry isn’t fit for this system on the last few games’ evidence; when was the last time you saw him put in a truly egregious performance like he did today? Cech and Mikel combined for a cock-up of epic proportions. Ashley Cole is not only succumbing to age but also the shear amount of games he’s played over the past 3-4 seasons.

Anyone who thought we were genuine title contenders at the start of the season – without the blinders on – was really not looking at the situation objectively. Basically the same side of the past three seasons plus Juan Mata. And while Mata is a great prospect, he alone can’t morph us into Barcelona. Did I think we would be this poor, or that we would be having such trouble? Of course not. But I certainly didn’t think we were looking at competing for the title.

Challenging for a Champions League place was always going to be difficult. This run through the end of December, which features a host of damn tough fixtures, is going to go a long way in determining how successful we are this season.

Moving on to more ramblings.

John Obi Mikel was at the center of a fucking firestorm after his mistake in the first half led to Liverpool’s opener. He certainly deserved to be questioned, but to be singled out, and for some supporters to all of a sudden suggest he’s always been shit is laughable at best. Sure, Mikel dwindled on the ball for far too long. But what was Cech thinking playing him a short ball in that position? Terrible decision. Furthermore, Mikel wasn’t the only one making individual mistakes. Terry made two in the opening 15 minutes only to be bailed out by his teammates. More troubling than the Mikel lambasting? That these individual lapses continue to emerge. Shocking stuff.

Is 4-2-3-1 the way forward? It appears so. Mata spent much of the opening half isolated. I can count the times he was able to get involved on one hand. Moved centrally at the start of the second half, the Spaniard roared to life and so too did the entire team. It’ll be interesting to see how Villas-Boas reacts to this, especially as we know that Fernando Torres enjoys working with Mata in that free role behind him.

And now for Liverpool. Still hate them. You know, I also think they were a tad fortunate to leave London with the win. However, I won’t begrudge them the points because of their excellent first half and just the overall poorness of our performance. Sure, had Branislav Ivanovic buried that header shortly after we leveled the match, things would have been drastically different. He didn’t, though. Fact is, King Kenny had his men prepared and they took advantage of the chances that were presented. They remained disciplined – something we can’t come close to arguing for our side – and featured much more fluidity up top. Shame, really, as we should have provided more of a test, without question.

But it is what it is. We have to tuck this away in the mental rolodex and refer to it for motivation as the season progresses. There is much to improve on (understatement of the decade). Here’s to hoping Villas-Boas is as up to the challenge as he seems to be. A midweek win in Germany followed by a nice display against Wolves at the Bridge on the weekend, and we’re back to feeling good. It’s a long season, my friends. Keep the faith.

Carefree.

Some Related Chelsea Posts:

Category: Chelsea Team News, Fixtures, Match Reports, Premier League

« Rant Box: Chelsea v. Liverpool | Home | Grace Period Is Over »

Wayne

Jack, are you afraid of that City game in a couple of weeks.... I am we need solution =(
Wayne

3 weeks*
Jack

Not afraid, but certainly worried. I think anyone in world football - bar Madrid and Barca - would be worried about City in their current form. We just need to go out and do what we can against them; they're bound to suffer a dip sooner or later.
Maysam

http://www.talksport.co.uk/spo...

I do not agree with him at all. but I do not mind even if Chelsea does not go to CL next season. I want AVB to do whatever he believes and let young players grow a little bit.
Maysam

Be patient ...
I just hope AVB change system to 4-2-3-1 and we do not play with high defensive line. but even if he does not, I still believe in him.
Devin Anand

I think it's high time we use the 4-2-3-1 with Mata playing centrally behind a striker. Would like to see the Alex Luiz partnership in the center at Bayer, and perhaps a rest for Ash would be wise. Still don't understand the substitutions, and more importantly, why AVB wouldn't drop the line back for the final 10 minutes. We weren't chasing the game at that point, so why keep ourselves exposed like that on the counter?
Tom

I got city tickets, and at the time i thought no worries we shall beat Liverpool and what not.

but the way its panning out to be is another 8-2 or 6-1 or 3-5 scoreline, this cannot happen at home not 3 league games lost at the once fortress bridge
that hurts the most. teams turned up to the bridge big and small, and it was seen as a win to get 1 point. now there coming for all three. not once in that match did i think we'd win.
Dan

1. Why has nobody proposed pairing Alex with Luiz? Everyone knocks on Luiz but let us not forget that bc of JT's play, he's basically playing in the center by himself and without much reinforcement in front of him.
2. Ancelotti's influence is still being felt. 95% of our possession is playing the ball horizontally. While possession heavy teams like UEFAlona play a heavy amount of horizontal possession, unlike them, we lack the creativity and cutting vertical through balls that create chances in the final third. What we end up with is a ton of possession just outside the opposing area before someone like malouda throws a pointless cross into the box that has no significant chance of creating anything. You can either play counter-attacking football and capitalize off of numbers, or you can play possession, in which case you need creativity. Sadly, we can't seem to play either.
Joshua Sutton

I'd prefer we have a manager talk straight to our players after pitiful performances. Check what Coyle said to Bolton: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/n...

Tired of sugarcoating the message so as not to offend overpaid millionaires who stroll through games as if they were already in retirement.
Brompton Blue

To say that we are suffering from some "teething problems" at the beginning of the AVB era is an understatement of the obvious. What is most worrying is that we appear to have lost the plot collectively - all at about the same time - and including the likes of the previously reliable Ashley Cole and Petr Cech. What to do about it??

a) Abandon the high defensive line immediately. It is not working - it doesn't suit JT, Alex or Ivanovic - it exposes OUR fullbacks instead of theirs and it costs us lots of cards. Let's play to our defensive strengths first and get back to keeping regular clean sheets - this builds confidence for the whole team. AVB must learn that he cannot impose a "high line" on this squad who are not suited to it in terms of age and/or pace. Play to the strengths that we have - not what AVB would like to have.

b) Dump Drogba. Drogs has occasionally been brilliant over the years, but his "sell by" date is fast approaching and he is now more likely to sulk than to win us games. If Torres is the future for our club then why didn't he start yesterday? Torres down the middle, Mata left, Sturridge right with Miereles in support would have given Liverpool a bigger test defensively. What was AVB thinking? Saving them for Leverkusen??? Get real. After the Arsenal game we need a home win. Didn't get it.

c) Axe Anleka. Great player in his day, but has now lost too much pace and allows defenses too much time to re-organise. Still too good to be a squad player - let him go in January with our genuine thanks and best wishes. Sturridge needs more starts.

d) Give Alex a run at CB with JT. David Luiz might be good box-office, but he is unreliable defensively and cannot be trusted.

e) Win at Leverkusen. Next premier league game is Wolves. At home. We want 4 or 5 goals and a clean sheet. Rebuild confidence and get ready for Man City. Big game.
Ray

Everybody is talking of Ashley...I think JT was worse...
As

I agree with you.JT was worse. It was deplorable.
best CB is Luiz and Ivanović now!
orthodoxyordeath

Ashley Cole still is the best, in my humble opinion. That being said, Drogs needs to go. Sell him and Nelks while there's still worth left in them this January.
mask

Poor fielding in games is costing chelsea. Why not just field alex and luiz as central defenders and let terry rest. then the midfield should have oriol....why did they get the players and yet are not using them.
Maysam

great article ...
Chenlsea

It is hard to sleep thousands of miles away in Chelsea, NY, no matter what I have done today to keep things in perspective.

The most I get in touch with the wrenching feeling of losing, I come to the conclusion that pot holes on the aging Chelsea ship more than AVB's brilliance can disguise. It is here and there, showing up everywhere, even Terry becomes marginal, Drogba only tangential.

This is time for Chelsea and Chelsea Fans to have emotional intelligence, to really figure out the way forward.

Chelsea can still beat most mid- to low-table teams, unlike Liverpool, because Chelsea plays better possession football than the pools and because Liverpool still just plays the classic English style of "kick-n-rush'. But against top team, Chelsea will have real trouble, because our edge is not so sharp anymore to break down tough defense, and our defense, or my our defense needs a thorough overhaul.

AVB is smart and he is adaptable. We clearly set it, he plays long ball bypassing Pool's midfield, but Drog isn't what he used to be.

The Gap really has been that we have a drought in youth talent ever since Terry.

AVB, we trust your intellectual capability and your tough mentality to pull it through.

Guys, I have been through worse. Boston Red Sox, my team ever since my college day in the 90s. 87 long fucking years before a Championship! and Boston Celtics, 18 years, Boston Bruines 40 years. They all broke their ducks. In AVB we trust.
Seth

can't help but agree with just about all of it. drogba looked at a loss for a majority of the match, Cole was beaten all too often (the winner, in particular). Mikel, my god.
Not sure how I feel about the 4-2-3-1. The few bright points for me? Malouda had a great game. I'm not a big Flo fan, but he looked good at times. Ramires too, I thought, had great moments -- he had several very good, very athletic challenges. The best buy we've made in the last two years? Certainly in that conversation, with Mata. It's horrifying to watch, excruciatingly frustrating at times. But I swear, if AVB is fired before season's end (barring some sort of terrific, Titanic-esque sinking), I'll fly to London and strangle Roman. Anyone who thought this transition would be easy has no idea what they're talking about. Oh, and I fucking hate Luis Suarez. Quality, sure. But that doesn't change the fact that he looks like a pig with down syndrome. Keep the blue flag flying high, for fucks sake.
Chenlsea

Seeing today's game, reminded me the darkest day of 2004 US Election, John Kerry lost to an apparent beatable George W Bush. It was a gut-wrenching moment foreseeing the world heading into four-more year of shit.. Being a Chelsea Fan, you have to be a little bit more philosophical about life, soccer and our own beloved club.
steven.

"Cole, once deemed the world’s best left-back around these parts, has this season looked more like a high-mileage Datsun than an elite defender."
a Datsun? that's uncalled for.
Bootle Bob

Rather a meandering and bland piece. Liverpool had quicker and more intelligent movement throughout. Chelsea seemed to be a team lacking direction and deserved to lose. Chelsea are now reaping the consequences of a managerial merry go round - nobody knows what to do.
Jack

A rather meandering and bland comment hilariously liked by the commenter himself.
App

Why are you so sad to check who clicked the like button.

I dont see anything wrong with liking your own comment, its not important. Its whats being said thats more important, and its hilarious how you just brush him off even though he made valid comments. I think you made yourself look stupid with that comment
Jack

The better question is: Why are you even here?
Jack

Apologies. This recap is all over the place, haha.