Rant Box: Chelsea v Arsenal
By: Jack | May 9th, 2009
A London derby is in the cards. With third place in the Premier League at stake no less. And all I can really say is, eh.
No doubt Chelsea’s tumultous midweek adventure has taken its toil on more than just this supporter. But I’ll be damned if I’m simply not particularly interested in this weekend’s top four clash with Arsenal. I’d gauge to say a siege on the Emirates might relieve me of my hangover, though.
Both clubs will no doubt be a tad punchdrunk from the week’s earlier occurences. I’d rather expect Chelsea, however, to come out fully ready to unleash all that pent-up aggression and anger on Wenger’s youngsters. I know I wouldn’t want to be playing Chelsea at the moment; I’d expect Voyeur feels the same.
Simply avoiding defeat should ensure the Blues of third place and automatic qualification to the knockout stage of the Champions League. But a win, an away win to Arsenal, is on the horizon for Hiddink me thinks.
I’d expect our Dutch master to pick an unchanged side from Wednesday, unless these Drogba rumors are substantiated — I highly doubt it. Sidenote: Three points here and I’d love to see Hiddink go with youth the rest of the season, sans the FA Cup final. Stoch, Di Santo, Mancienee, perhaps Kakuta? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
Starting XI
Cech
Bosingwa – Alex - Terry - A.Cole
Ballack – Essien
Anelka - Lampard - Malouda
Drogba
Prediction
Can’t see a defeat here, especially with the likelihood of Arshavin missing the match for the Arsenal. A true thumping could be in order for Wenger’s men. 3-1 to the Blues, a mild tonic for what has truly been an egregious week.
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Tags: Arsenal, Chelsea Team News, Didier Drogba, Fabregas, Fixtures, Frank Lampard, Match Previews, Premiership, Rant BoxSubscribe
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Comments
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Great win today lads. I was pretty shocked but Chelsea were worth the win in my opinion. They looked like they could score during every attack.
Posted from
Ireland
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wow, beating arsenal is easy! How the feck did we let them beat us at the Bridge again?
Posted from
United States -
Scholari wasn’t it? or was that later? I must be on ChelseaFC time. Decided to sleep at 9 thinking i’d catch the repeat,woke up 10 minutes before the match started. And good lord did the first 20 minutes scare me, our d was so sloppy
Posted from
United States -
If only Chelsea coulda finished like that against Barca lol
Posted from
Australia -
Oh and since im a milan fan i’d like to plead to you not to sell us Drogba
Posted from
Australia -
Isn’t it ironic?
The summer of 2002 is one I don’t recall with any pleasure. I had to get time off work to get out of the office to watch the Azzurri clash with South Korea in the World Cup. I remember wishing I hadn’t bothered.And yet all the memories have come flooding back to me following Chelsea’s elimination from the Champions League. The same finger-pointing at the referee, the same conspiracy theories, the same bitter recriminations. Except it has all been turned upside down.
Let us recall what Italy fans were told after they lost out in the Far East. “Get over it,” was the main message. “You didn’t take your chances – so don’t blame the referee. You are just making excuses.”
Well, great Blues of Stamford Bridge, how about taking that advice?
How many times have I seen an Italian team which based its game on stout defence and great organisation go out to a late goal? We are usually told it serves us right. So why does the same not hold true for an English club side?
The conspiracy theory about UEFA not wanting an all-English final is laughable. Magnificent as the match referee was, how could he have foreseen Iniesta’s late, late thunderbolt? Without that, remember, Chelsea were heading to Rome. And how does the ludicrous red card for a Barca player fit in to the theory anyway?
Of course, those of us long enough in the tooth to remember South Korea will recall who was sitting on the bench that day. Yes, it was Mr Hiddink. So when he says the referee on Wednesday night was the worst he has ever seen it is hard not to think he might have a slightly selective memory. Byron Moreno was streets ahead of Tubby Tommy Ovrebo in the controversial decision department. He managed to send a man off when he should have got a penalty. Now imagine if that had happened to Didier Drogba…
http://rinaldisblog.blogspot.com/
Posted from
Australia -
monomatt it was the wrongly allowed offside goal.. great win by the chels tonight! and patcock i wouldnt worry, drogba wouldnt be interested in moving to a second rate eufa cup side..
Posted from
United States -
‘And how does the ludicrous red card for a Barca player fit in to the theory anyway?’ Abidal come out and said he clipped anelka. anymore theories champ…?
Posted from
United States -
How hilarious is it that patcook, after ridiculing the hell out of our club, posts a link to his blog? Haha.
Posted from
United States -
Patcock.. pwned!
Posted from
Canada -
‘And how does the ludicrous red card for a Barca player fit in to the theory anyway?’ Abidal come out and said he clipped anelka. anymore theories champ…?”
Thats not a quote from me you dope. Thats not my article I just posted a copy of it here.
Posted from
Australia -
Jack | May 10th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
How hilarious is it that patcook, after ridiculing the hell out of our club, posts a link to his blog? Haha.
How hilarious is it that its not even my blog, you numbnuts?
Its actually the blog of a guy who writes for the Football Italia magazine and website.
But im not suprised a chelsea fan doesnt let the facts get in the road of a good rant, just like the chelsea team hey? “pwned” as “thefamilyofronharris” would say
LOL
Posted from
Australia -
Keep telling yourself that, pal.
Posted from
United States -
@patcook, when you quote something it’s sometimes useful to actually use quotation marks, that’s what they were there for.
This will save you the time of hurling insults at everyone who quite rightly assumed you typed the text in your post, you complete “numbnuts”.
Posted from
United States -
You know, my friends that are CSK Chelsea supporters are saying that there is no justice in football. Especialy after that Barcelona match.
I keep telling them:
“A team that has no history and is taken over by a billionare. Who then buys players like if they were mines filled with gold and diamonds and who never develop youth. When a team like that cant win a Champions league…. shit! You cant get more justice than that. Its a constant reminder that there is a football God indeed.”
Posted from
United States -
@ apuzzo – no history? chelsea has been around since 1905 and never once has the team been outside the top flight of english football. now, correct me if I’m wrong, but that’s over a hundred fucking years of history you idiot.
you think chelsea doesn’t develop youth? chelsea’s youth program is one of the strongest in the whole country. youth players from everywhere in europe dream of coming up through chelsea’s ranks – and if I’m not mistaken, chelsea fields more english talent than any of the other major clubs in england (lampard, joe cole, ashley cole, john terry) and john terry even came up through chelsea’s youth system.
I suppose you think thierry henry and leo messi came up through barca’s youth, right? give me a break. I’m sick of you barca supporters spewing your delusion that you’re the better team. news flash – we ran your asses all over the field. but when UEFA wants a united/barca final, UEFA gets one. and four penalty appeals, two of which were crystal clear, can’t stop it.
Posted from
United States -
Dude, number one im not a Barca fan so check that off your list. Chelsea’s youth program is one of the strongest in the country??? Comapred to who? Man united, who steals youth players thanks to labor laws? or is it Arsenal? A team that wouldnt know silverware if it sat on their lap and called them daddy. Both teams are better than you at development. I guess u mean compared to teams that dont have your surplus.
Umm how many players other than John Terry are in the starting XI that have come up the ranks? If you cant admit that some clubs are developers and some just get lazy and buy, and that you are one of those lazy ones, then you are blind.
You guys are just filled with sour grapes. Barca was the better team and they won. You can say u “ran the field with them”, whatever helps u sleep at night in you Chelsea jersey. Fact is, you couldnt make ur own success, you had to buy it.
Conspiracy theories are just an excuse for losing.
Posted from
United States -
“chelsea’s youth program is one of the strongest in the whole country. youth players from everywhere in europe dream of coming up through chelsea’s ranks”
Posted from
Germany -
Chelsea’s youth Program sucks!!
VIVA BARCA!!!
Posted from
United States -
i second that!
except for the whole, barca rulez thing. You guys are gonna get spanked by manure.
Posted from
United States -
Finnegan, all due respect but while Messi and Henry didn’t come up through the Barca youth system (though we did support Messi’s medical treatments and put him in the Barca system, admittedly for the reason of his immense potential), we do use a significant number of “system” players.
Valdes, Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Krkic, Pique, Busquets, Pedro and Victor Sanchez have all been used this season, and the first 7 on this list are significant parts of Guardiola’s choice eleven, in addition to being Spanish or Catalan. Next season, Gai Assulin (unless a big side buys him) and Botia will also feature.
Chelsea does indeed field English players, and people for whom such things matter can be buoyed by that. Liverpool is another example of a big club that does.
But youth programs are the cornerstone of a club, I think, in that they assure quality talent coming up through the ranks, testing and challenging incumbent players. Sergi Busquets was a very pleasant surprise for us this season.
We may well lose to Man U, but that’s a different question, right?
And yes, you did run us all over the field. The match was yours to win. But you closed up shop. Drogba was raising hell, and you were also winning the midfield battle. I could barely watch, frankly. But please don’t blame Hiddink’s tactical decisions on a UEFA conspiracy. Chelsea and its supporters have too much pride and honor for that. It came down to allowing a match to come down to a piece of individual talent, which is always dangerous against a talented side.
Are we the “best in the world?” Impossible to know for any club, Champions League aside. But we are talented, as is every club that gets deep into the Champions League draw.
Posted from
United States -
“chelsea’s youth program is one of the strongest in the whole country.”
That says alot
“youth players from everywhere in europe dream of coming up through chelsea’s ranks”
Lol sure
Posted from
Australia -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1UihUqHKbU
It will still live long in the memory of all football fans as the day when even Roman Abramovich couldnt but a penalty
Posted from
Australia -
@patcook: that’s right! You can’t buy penalties. That would make football a very strange game indeed. But we gave Barca a good game and if the refereeing had been a bit better (over the 2 legs) who knows what could have happened.
@finnegan: our youth system isn’t that brilliant. It’s ok, but considering the money we’ve invested it should be generating more talent. but it’s a work in progress. Arsenal and Man Utd’s youth systems have been in place for donkeys years ours is relativity young.
Posted from
Australia -
Is it true Strummer supported Chelsea FC …
… and if so, just how keen a supporter was he?
And what about the rest of The Clash?
http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/07/joe-strummers-team-in-uefa-cup-final/
Posted from
Canada
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