The Official Thread of Chelsea FC

[Norf Tyrone]

Essien will now not play until the World Cup

Big, big loss, as has been Ashley Cole over the last few weeks and Bosingwa over most of the season as well. Saying that Zhirkov, Ferreria and Ivanovic (Possible Chelsea POTY) have done fairly well the last few weeks.

[Minder]

Norf - If youse make a balls of this league you are locking this bloody thread.

[Norf Tyrone]

Norf - If youse make a balls of this league you are locking this bloody thread.

I am locking the f**king house and throwing away the key. It'll be good bye from me, and goodbye from Martin Quinn.

[Norf Tyrone]

The problem for Frank Lampard is that it has not been an exceptional season.

Not by his high standards. Mind you, Lampard has scored a career-best
23 goals this season and managed just a mere 14 assists.

In his previous four seasons he reached the 20 goal mark so we take it
for granted and don't regard this campaign as anything out of the
ordinary.

Maybe that's why he has not been nominated for the PFA Player of the
Year award. The shortlist is Carlos Tevez (22 goals, 7 assists),
Didier Drogba (25 goals, 8 assists), Wayne Rooney (26 goals, 4
assists), Cesc Fabregas (15 goals, 13 assists).

Rooney, 24, and Fabregas, 22, have had such good seasons that they
have doubled up and been nominated along with James Milner (5 goals,
12 assists) and Joe Hart (10 clean sheets in 33 games) for the Young
Player gong, too.

Notice anything about those numbers. Lampard has better stats than
Tevez and Fabregas, has more assists than Drogba and Rooney put
together and the Chelsea and Manchester United strikers have only just
managed to score more goals.

Mind you, Drogba and Rooney are both strikers. Lampard plays in
midfield. To score as many goals as he has in Chelsea's push for the
Premier League title is remarkable.

His assist rate is sensational, too. He's always running, always
looking for the killer pass and is brilliant for Chelsea.

On Saturday at Tottenham, it was a bad result, bad defeat and a bad
performance. Despite leading the way, Chelsea have been inconsistent.

Not Lampard. Last season, there was a month when - under the hapless
Luiz Felipe Scolari - Lampard almost single handedly kept Chelsea
going. He was unbelievable. And yet still no nomination last season.

But his goal at White Hart Lane in the dying minutes to give Chelsea -
outplayed throughout - a glimmer of a chance of nicking a point was
just typical of Lampard.

It was a gruelling game and yet Lampard has the fitness to run into
the box to get onto the end of a cross and, somehow, he stretches out
a leg and pokes home. That took great stamina and energy.

Not just energy, either. But an amazing never-say-die spirit and
Lampard has that in abundance.

Lampard is the player who, when he joined Chelsea in 2001, we all
baulked at the £11m fee  paid to West Ham.

And yet throughout his Stamford Bridge career he has shown an appetite
and determination which has made him world class.

Every year Lampard delivers for Chelsea. And that's his big problem:
we've become used to it. We take it for granted.

I am probably going to vote for Wayne Rooney as my Football Writers'
Footballer of the Year. He's been exceptional. Cesc Fabregas, because
of the influence one individual has had on a team, is also in my mind.
But not even to nominate Lampard for the players' award is outrageous.

It's time Lampard's ability was appreciated. Chelsea and England will
miss him when he's gone. And yet despite all the doubters, because he
defies logic and age season after season, don't bet on that happening
anytime soon.

[nrico2006]

The problem for Frank Lampard is that it has not been an exceptional season.

Not by his high standards. Mind you, Lampard has scored a career-best
23 goals this season and managed just a mere 14 assists.

In his previous four seasons he reached the 20 goal mark so we take it
for granted and don't regard this campaign as anything out of the
ordinary.

Maybe that's why he has not been nominated for the PFA Player of the
Year award. The shortlist is Carlos Tevez (22 goals, 7 assists),
Didier Drogba (25 goals, 8 assists), Wayne Rooney (26 goals, 4
assists), Cesc Fabregas (15 goals, 13 assists).

Rooney, 24, and Fabregas, 22, have had such good seasons that they
have doubled up and been nominated along with James Milner (5 goals,
12 assists) and Joe Hart (10 clean sheets in 33 games) for the Young
Player gong, too.

Notice anything about those numbers. Lampard has better stats than
Tevez and Fabregas, has more assists than Drogba and Rooney put
together and the Chelsea and Manchester United strikers have only just
managed to score more goals.

Mind you, Drogba and Rooney are both strikers. Lampard plays in
midfield. To score as many goals as he has in Chelsea's push for the
Premier League title is remarkable.

His assist rate is sensational, too. He's always running, always
looking for the killer pass and is brilliant for Chelsea.

On Saturday at Tottenham, it was a bad result, bad defeat and a bad
performance. Despite leading the way, Chelsea have been inconsistent.

Not Lampard. Last season, there was a month when - under the hapless
Luiz Felipe Scolari - Lampard almost single handedly kept Chelsea
going. He was unbelievable. And yet still no nomination last season.

But his goal at White Hart Lane in the dying minutes to give Chelsea -
outplayed throughout - a glimmer of a chance of nicking a point was
just typical of Lampard.

It was a gruelling game and yet Lampard has the fitness to run into
the box to get onto the end of a cross and, somehow, he stretches out
a leg and pokes home. That took great stamina and energy.

Not just energy, either. But an amazing never-say-die spirit and
Lampard has that in abundance.

Lampard is the player who, when he joined Chelsea in 2001, we all
baulked at the £11m fee  paid to West Ham.

And yet throughout his Stamford Bridge career he has shown an appetite
and determination which has made him world class.

Every year Lampard delivers for Chelsea. And that's his big problem:
we've become used to it. We take it for granted.

I am probably going to vote for Wayne Rooney as my Football Writers'
Footballer of the Year. He's been exceptional. Cesc Fabregas, because
of the influence one individual has had on a team, is also in my mind.
But not even to nominate Lampard for the players' award is outrageous.

It's time Lampard's ability was appreciated. Chelsea and England will
miss him when he's gone. And yet despite all the doubters, because he
defies logic and age season after season, don't bet on that happening
anytime soon.

Agree about Lampard, should have really been in the running for this award most years out of the past 6 or 7.  Unbelievable goals record and especially for this season considering he started slowly enough and seemed out of sorts at his new role under Ancelotti.  Why did he ever get rid of the Jnr though?

[A Quinn Martin Production]

Nice move on goal difference today...worth 1/2 a point??

[Shrewdness]

It's worth a full point if it comes down to goal difference!!. Excellent response from Chelsea today showing no signs of any pressure, but in all honesty, did anyone really think that Chelsea wouldn't win that game today .......and that they won't also beat Wigan on the final day, and United beat Stoke.

As i said over on the United thread, it's almost certainly going to be decided next Sunday, bar sensational results on the final day.

[A Quinn Martin Production]

It's worth a full point if it comes down to goal difference!!. Excellent response from Chelsea today showing no signs of any pressure, but in all honesty, did anyone really think that Chelsea wouldn't win that game today .......and that they won't also beat Wigan on the final day, and United beat Stoke.

As i said over on the United thread, it's almost certainly going to be decided next Sunday, bar sensational results on the final day.

Still doesn't make up for Antrim getting a stuffing last night

[ross4life]

It's worth a full point if it comes down to goal difference!!. Excellent response from Chelsea today showing no signs of any pressure, but in all honesty, did anyone really think that Chelsea wouldn't win that game today .......and that they won't also beat Wigan on the final day, and United beat Stoke.

As i said over on the United thread, it's almost certainly going to be decided next Sunday, bar sensational results on the final day.

Still doesn't make up for Antrim getting a stuffing last night

Cheer up mate you could be a Roscommon man instead 

[A Quinn Martin Production]

It's worth a full point if it comes down to goal difference!!. Excellent response from Chelsea today showing no signs of any pressure, but in all honesty, did anyone really think that Chelsea wouldn't win that game today .......and that they won't also beat Wigan on the final day, and United beat Stoke.

As i said over on the United thread, it's almost certainly going to be decided next Sunday, bar sensational results on the final day.

Still doesn't make up for Antrim getting a stuffing last night

Cheer up mate you could be a Roscommon man instead 

ross4life, it's counties like Roscommon (I've got family there and always keep an eye on you) and Antrim that are the bedrock of the Association...keep the faith!

[Norf Tyrone]

So three weeks of 'finals' start tonight, as the young Blues head to Villa Park for the 1st leg of the Youth Cup Final. Lets hope mssrs MacEacheran, Clifford, Tore and Bruma can get the week up and going with a good result.

[ross4life]

It's a long time since Chelsea won a Youth Cup so will be a big deal if they win it?

What was the score in the 1st leg or is it a one off final?

[Norf Tyrone]

It's a long time since Chelsea won a Youth Cup so will be a big deal if they win it?

What was the score in the 1st leg or is it a one off final?

I think the last time Chelsea won the YC was the early 60s, so to bridge a 50 year gap will of course be a massive boost for the youth academy and the masterplan.

It's also Chelsea's 2nd youth cup final in 3 years, and looking at that squad four of those players have played for the Chelsae first team this season, and Ancellotti has already said they will form part of next year's squad. So again the system is in the direction of goodness.

The result was 1-1 by the way. Second leg on Tuesday.

[Norf Tyrone]

So, if you believe the hype it all comes down to this, and in truth it almost certainly does.
There has been much commentary all week talking about Liverpool's aproach to tomorrow, and the posability of them rolling over. However I don't expect this to happen whatsoever.

History has shown that back in 1995 Liverpool ripped King Kenny's premiership title right from his grasp, only for Andy Cole and company to kick it back into his pocket again. If they are willing to do this one of their own, there is no reason why they'll not want to do it to Chelsea.

The ability to do it is another question.

If Chelsea start and play with the tempo that they did last week, and on several occasions this season, they'll probably win. Only once this season have Chelsea had no game midweek and dropped points (A Joe Hart inspired Birmingham), and this could be a factor again.

At times Chelsea have produced puzzling displays (Villa A, Wigan A, Spurs A) etc where they looked really ordinary. However in all these games I believe they played the Wednesday pre which adds credance to the 'old legs' argument. This to a degree is true but I think the engine room (Deco, Ballack and to a lesser degree Lampard) needs an overhaul more than anything.

The specific threat, despite his iffy form, tomorrow is Gerard. In previous encounters Mikel and especially Essien have blunted Gerard's threat. However both of these players will miss tomorrow which leaves the question who takes Gerard now. Ballack has not got the legs, Belletti is a bit rash and leggy too. That would be my primary concern.

However the alternate is to play a positive game and not worry about Gerard, which will see Malouda take a central role again I'd imagine. JT will probably come back into the defence with Ivanovic probably taking the right back slot.

So far this season Chelsea have;
* Played the 'big four' six times and won all six.
* Scored 93 goals, and are in with a chance of breaking United's 97 goal record.
* Scored 7 goals on three occasions against decent oppostion, two of which are reknowned for the miserly defence.

All this with a manager in his first season in English football.

I am sure the Mancs will argue, and they are entitled to do so, but no matter what happens between now and Sunday week, I believe Chelsea have been the best team in the league this season. Only a bit of silverware required now to mark it.

[thebigfella]

So, if you believe the hype it all comes down to this, and in truth it almost certainly does.
There has been much commentary all week talking about Liverpool's aproach to tomorrow, and the posability of them rolling over. However I don't expect this to happen whatsoever.

History has shown that back in 1995 Liverpool ripped King Kenny's premiership title right from his grasp, only for Andy Cole and company to kick it back into his pocket again. If they are willing to do this one of their own, there is no reason why they'll not want to do it to Chelsea.

The ability to do it is another question.

If Chelsea start and play with the tempo that they did last week, and on several occasions this season, they'll probably win. Only once this season have Chelsea had no game midweek and dropped points (A Joe Hart inspired Birmingham), and this could be a factor again.

At times Chelsea have produced puzzling displays (Villa A, Wigan A, Spurs A) etc where they looked really ordinary. However in all these games I believe they played the Wednesday pre which adds credance to the 'old legs' argument. This to a degree is true but I think the engine room (Deco, Ballack and to a lesser degree Lampard) needs an overhaul more than anything.

The specific threat, despite his iffy form, tomorrow is Gerard. In previous encounters Mikel and especially Essien have blunted Gerard's threat. However both of these players will miss tomorrow which leaves the question who takes Gerard now. Ballack has not got the legs, Belletti is a bit rash and leggy too. That would be my primary concern.

However the alternate is to play a positive game and not worry about Gerard, which will see Malouda take a central role again I'd imagine. JT will probably come back into the defence with Ivanovic probably taking the right back slot.

So far this season Chelsea have;
* Played the 'big four' six times and won all six.
* Scored 93 goals, and are in with a chance of breaking United's 97 goal record.
* Scored 7 goals on three occasions against decent oppostion, two of which are reknowned for the miserly defence.

All this with a manager in his first season in English football.

I am sure the Mancs will argue, and they are entitled to do so, but no matter what happens between now and Sunday week, I believe Chelsea have been the best team in the league this season. Only a bit of silverware required now to mark it.

The best team will be who ever finishes top after 38 games whether it be Chelsea or Utd. That's how a league works, deal with it rather than posting shite about Chelsea deserving it for various reasons.