Chelsea rolling, TFC trolling

Wile Carlo's Chelsea is showing rest of the league how it's done with another 6 goal performance, Preki's Toronto FC can't buy a win on the road.
Sure, we can blame shady ref or diving bastards from Panama. We can blame plastic pitch, lack of supporters or the fact that it was Tuesday it won't change a thing. CONCACAF is a joke.

To those whom somehow managed to watch TFC's game till the end, MLSE should be sending free tickets to the upcoming CCL matches. It was as painful as watching Ovrebo's 'refereeing' against team that shall not be named.

Preki should be questioned about whole team motivation and squad selection. Having 2 reds didn't help and some would argue that he was right to field bunch of kids instead of first team. With Mista supposedly lacking game form, what's better way to regaining in other than playing?

Where do we go from here? In regards to Chelsea, it's Stoke at the Bridge. Quite a few expecting another 6 goal performance. I'd ask them to get off their high horse and be a bit more realistic. Anything above 2 goals is a huge bonus, don't get greedy!

TFC... well, it's a date with Real Salt Lake. Surely we won't loose 3 games in a roll...

Few thoughts on todays "performance"...

While we had a few chances early in the game, where I felt, referee deserted us on couple of occasions, we couldn't recover from a goal.
Once again, we've looked uninspired, one dimensional and tired on the road. Bulls of Red were pressing the ball as soon as TFC player would touch it. Lack of creativity and cohesion, turned to be annoying habit of giving ball away to the opposition by the Toronto players. At times, we've even passed to the imaginary winger... only if you could see him, running as hard as he can, sweating...
Constant giveaways and what seem to be low self esteem were true nemesis tonight. Not energy drinker, DP's.
What is a dismal display of an offensive power by TFC tonight, speaks volumes for Preki's offensive "coordination".

Carlo cleaning out the house

It's been a while since my last post. At times I am unsure that I'll continue "writing here", will see.... World Cup ended and there was welcome break of no footy each Saturday. This however has been replaced with Toronto FC games. Once I've discovered U-Sector, I've never looked back. Been to every game but one and plan to attend as many games as possible in future. In any case, Carlo decided to clean the house. Riccy, Ballack, Deco, Belletti and Joey Cole are all gone. No need to go on repeating about what was said in papers for reasons and reactions. Life is life, let's move on.
Yossi comes this way as Liverpool found a nice way to fund Joe Coles expensive stay. Ramires is on the brink of signing with us, which would be quite welcome move. Mikel can't nor should be playing every single game. Also should mention that he's much younger than 'departed ones'.
Personally I'll miss Riccy the most, he's been fantastic workhorse and made JT look so much better. Hopefully Alex (whenever he is back from his injury) and Ivanovic will be able to deal whatever opposing teams will throw at them.
Community Shield game went in Manure's direction. It didn't surprise me and I was expecting 1-3 scoreline. 4 losses in 4 games for Chelsea in pre-season friendlies... alarming sign or a smoke screen? Time will show.

Championsky!

How sweet it is to be a Champion. Fantastic ending to the fantastic season. It was great race till the end, Chelsea ended up on top, deservedly.
Carlo is proving to be a real deal, finally we have a manager whom can be crowned as a King of London! Finally we see United in the rear view mirror, being second in the league... meaning nothing than a fact that they have lost it.
Well done to whole Chelsea FC organization. This is just fabulous to be a blues supporter, only pity is that I am not in London ;)
But the job is not done yet, we have one more hurdle in front of us, FA Cup final... oh how sweet would it be to do a double! History is being made in front of our eyes...

Spurs down Citeh

Decided to watch Spurs vs Man City last night. It was a typical delayed-reality viewing. Avoided internet all afternoon, disabled sport updates on my BlackBerry... It was a 10pm showing (repeat) here in Canada.
First period was a bit of a snoozer, teams exchanged few chances but nothing came of it. Game did resemble battle for 4th place. Adebayor kept on getting offside (as many Arsenal fans will gladly point out), hard to believe that he's supposed to be highest paid player in England... Citeh are becoming a poster child for a milking cow, only instead of milk they give out cash....
What's up with Mancini and that scarf of his? Ok, you wear it when it's cold, but now? Rest of the Citeh management/ownership also wear that thing... if these people can't grasp when to wear a scarf, how are they supposed to run a team? :)
Man of the match to me was Peter Crouch. The man resembles bicycle frame but he's got magical feet! Lennon started the game, but failed to impress, perhaps his fitness level is off, not sure if Capello will be picking him for WC.
In any case, don't want to go on forever about this game, congrats to Spurs for "almost" making it into Champions League, Harry deserves it. Next season we'll see what Spuds are made off while having to play more games. Welcome to the big boy league kids.

Gary's inability to grow mustache

It really disturbs me the fact that Gary Neville of Manure aka Man Utd can't grow a bloody mustache. Is he plucking them facial hairs away one by one? Seriously, what's his problem?
We all know he's got a big mouth and quite a few people deem his a moron, including his ex-teammate Carlos Tevez. Well, about Carlos we shall talk some other time ;)

P.S. Image (c) Telegraph

We'll meet Avi in FA Cup Final

Something has to be said about Avram Grant's ability to get to finals. He went as far as Champions League Final in 08, we all know how that ended. Pompey dumped sorry Spuds out of FA Cup, which sets all blue Wembley final and a possibility for Avi to loose yet another final ;)
Both games were played on "famous" Wembley pitch, it resembled Japanese TV show, players were sliding all over the place, clumps of pitch were flying, refs missing penalties... I am not going into too much detail of both Semi's, let's say I am happy that Fortune smiled upon us this time!
I was pleasantly surprised to see Drogba come off and Anelka take his place, kudos to Carlo, he sees what Avi seen, Drogs and Nic play better without partnering each other. Not to say that Didier didn't play his part once again, he was the one who scored first goal, which changed whole game, we all secretly knew that Villa will fold if we score.
This weekend got even better once I found out that ManU has dropped points at Blackburn, Fergie hastily declared that we have "easy game vs Bolton"... perhaps a play to relax our players, surely Carlo will not allow that to happen, will he?
I am also hoping that Spurs can give us a bit of favor and beat or tie Arsenal this week.. something that I am not counting on. Surely Wenger will wince and cringe and do everything he can to rally his troops, they need positive result after being dumped from CL by Barca.

Still in line for a double

It has been difficult to see Jose's Inter "killing" Chelsea at the Bridge. Promise is a promise, Jose certainly promised to do so year ago and finally delivered on that promise. This loss was very difficult for each and single Chelsea fan as we've been reminded what we've been missing so much, Jose!
Next League game we've tied against Blackburn, clearly team was still affected by exit from Champions League. What made things worse is that we've managed to drop as low as 3rd in standings, thankfully that didn't last too long. After couple of amazing results, we were facing United at Old Trafford, mission impossible as some would suggest. You could see why, United only lost to Villa this year.. not a bad record if you ask me. In any case, we've emerged as well deserved winners. Some would question officials, Drogba's goal was clear offside, then again Nevilles shoulder barge should have been a penalty. Some would suggest that United deserved a penalty too, but I'd say to those people that diving is a bad karma :)
Kudos should be given to Arsenal, they seemed down and out after we beat them, yet they are only 3 points back, only time will show if "Wenger Knows". Messi have demolished them in the second leg and I should note that Robben scorred a spectacular goal against United to ensure Bayern's progress to the semis of CL.
So here we have it, atop of the league at Easter and facing Villa at Wembeley this Saturday (FA Cup Semis), we're still in hunt for a double!

Mixed bag of nuts

It has been quite a few weeks. We've lost to Everton, in a hard though battle. Bounced back by progressing to the next round of FA Cup. Week later, Everton goes on and beats Manchester United, while we take advantage and beat Wolves. If not for Petr Cech, surely we'd not be sitting 4 points clear on top of the League.
In other news, apparently Ashley Cole's marriage is over. According to some "newspapers" in England he's prime rib, ready to be consumed by Barcelona and/or Real Madrid. You see, he's supposedly angry at a supposed fine by a club due to improper conduct...
He's listed at 25 Million pound.... For best left back in the world? Clearly whoever came up with that number didn't sniff enough glue.
Speaking of Spain, it appears Dani Alves welcomes trade talk from Chelsea. I'd not mind seeing him in blue, that's for sure.
Jose Mourinho, current coach of Inter (whom we play tomorrow (Wednesday) in Champions League) cant' stay out of trouble. He's managed to get himself suspended and fined. You see, he's been on ref case for some time now and is doing very good job getting under their skin. In fact so many in Italy are fed up with Jose they will be supporting Chelsea tomorrow. Even current coach of AC Milan will be on our side. How touchy, perhaps he better concentrate on beating United instead...
Ancelotti has been quoted saying that most Italians will be cheering on Chelsea tomorrow, to which Jose suggested that Carlo could be part of anti Inter clan. naturally, Carlo has distanced himself from such suggestion.
I do wonder if those two will ever see eye to eye, probably not.
Tomorrows game is picked as the one to watch, but guess what, here in Canada it will be not that easy to find on TV. Setanta showing another game and regular channels are full of Olympic junk... Internet stream it is!

Wenger knows!

Arsenal fans have a banner that states, "Wenger Knows". I do wonder if it will disappear soon.
Chelsea, once again, beat Arsenal this past Sunday. Since then, quite a few Gooner sites/blogs started to point blaming finger at Wenger! Others even saying that Wenger should go! Could it be true that Wenger's time at Arsenal coming to an end?
Those who call for his resignation, should be careful as to what they wish for. Thinking that new manager will automatically improve your team is quite foolish. Sure, team might perform well first couple of games, but there are no guarantees it will last. Just think of Scolari... such a great start and look at what happened later. Shamelessly dropped as a manager, only months into his new gig.
I am also a bit selfish and glad to see Arsenal struggle. They have been knocked out of Carling and FA Cup's and now are "outsiders" for the EPL crown this season. With 13 games to go, they do have a chance, but if they loose against Liverpool on Wednesday, watch out Arsene.
Only salvation this season would be Champions League glory. But, unless injured bodies will start coming back, it's hard to see Arsenal progressing too far in the competition. Surely Wenger knows it!

After Chelsea game this Sunday, Le Prof moaned about refs and accused Chelsea of "not giving a demonstration of football". I suppose his teams demonstration of football was so much better, hence the result.
I did enjoy Carlo's response, he said that "Football is attack, defense, keeping possession when you need, and results also".
Surely Wenger knows that Ancelotti is right, yet he will whine on and on, must be his age or something. Or is it frustration? He knows that his teams of late, play pretty passing football, but have hard time coping with more physical teams.

Wenger knows that Arsenal is one man team! Even when Fab and dinky commie are playing, they are completely different beast with RVP in the starting lineup.

Wenger knows that his policies will be scrutinized, especially if they fail to beat re surging Liverpool tomorrow.
Failure to bring in troop replacements will also be questioned, 36 year old relic can't be the answer to his flailing defensive line.

But it's a OK, Gooner folk! Keep on blindly believing in him. Don't question him. Adore and worship him. Let him continue as is... non Arsenal fans surely enjoy current state of affairs ;)

The King is dead, or is he?

Here we are, Capello has bowed to the pressures by his Overlords.. Terry has been sacked as England's captain. Rio is next in line and God forbid he does anything wrong.. (some would argue he does many things right to begin with.) In any case, here you have it, those who cried for Terry's sacking got their wish. Now what?
It's amusing to me, that Terry's "affair" is yet to be proven (I might eat my own words eventually), yet we're jumping to all kinds of conclusions. English media are scavengers, worse than divorce lawyers and used car salespeople. They will create things from thin air without any proof, if you don't believe me just read trade speculations...
But it's not just papers, it's the readership, people who eat all this crap day and night.. after all, England is trash paper central and there is good reason for that.
It's amusing to know that adultery sites are booming in UK, yet Terry is being crucified for it, may I stress once again, for his alleged adultery.
Even if he did cheat on his hottie wife, we don't know the half of it. How do we know Bridge didn't know about his ex and John? We just assume.. As Kid Rock's song goes: "F*ck them, they don't know the half of it".
I wish people would just stop believing everything that's written in papers. Do we live in Soviet Union and read "Pravda" (Truth) news paper? Let's get real here.
Not for one second I believe that John will not give his 100% for National Team. Not for a second I believe that there will be any serious rift in the dressing room. IF Wayne and John have an issue, let them duke it out in the corner, man to man, surely it will get settled. If dogs can do this, surely they can too ;)
I also think Capello is much smarter than many of us think he is. If we're to learn anything about Capello, he can admit to his mistakes, just think of Beckham saga...
Yes, The King is dead, or is he? I say play on John, prove Capello wrong, doubt Rio will last long.

John's perfect answer

"Classy" paper News of the World broke news of alleged Terry's romance with Wayne Bridge's ex- girlfriend. (Everyone knows that NotW is nothing more than bunch of profiteering scum). We surely don't know all of the details, but it's a mess and it's making all kinds of headlines in England. You see, John is married..
With adultery websites booming, it's no wonder there is so much attention to this. Personally, I could care less about such issues. I don't care if my neighbor sleeps with his wife or cousin. I don't care if Tiger sleeps with his wife or some sluts. I don't care if Bill Clinton likes to snowball Monika or not, it's not my business. All I know, footballers are human and expecting them to be perfect is just idiotic. Yes, kids look up to them, but would it not make sense to keep the trash away from papers? Shield them from all the sex talk? Isn't it all about actions on the field?
Speaking of actions on the field, John had perfect answer to all of his "critics", he scored winning goal. Once again he proved that he can put away off field matters, that he can deal with pressure, that he's the best man for the job as Chelsea and England captain.

Liverpool unveil new Europa League Kit

It is a bit ambitious, as they might not even make it to top 6 next season but nonetheless, take a look at it here.

SFSG

SFSG - So Far So Good.

I have been pondering if I should keep on blogging, at times it seems as a colossal waste of time, then again it's hard to just shut up and say nothing ;)

We've started year quite well, considering we have Drogba, Kalou, Essien and Mikel missing. It's unfortunate that Essien went under a knife. He will be missed. Ballack will have to play role of defensive midfielder, he is not suited to be a winger due to lack of pace, getting old.
5th round of FA Cup has been secured, we've trashed Sunderland 7-2, our biggest win of Abramovich era! Interestingly enough, Carlo decided to play 4-3-3 vs his beloved diamond... guess diamonds are not forever ;)
Youngster Sturridge has 3 goals in 2 FA Cup matches, good production from a good prospect.. only if he'd be more humble! His cockiness can be very annoying.
Anelka is fit again and as good as ever, he has found his home and playing arguably best football of his life, but there are rumors of his contract negotiations stalling. I do wonder if it's just paper talk vs reality. Speaking of contract talks, Joe Cole is also dew new contract. There are rumors of his potential move to Spurs... yeah right, dream on Spuds fans :)

I was also thinking of sharing articles that catch my attention, not necessary Chelsea related, football in general. For example, I found it amusing Jose declaring, "We could only have lost by having six people on the park, as even with seven, we would have won." Read more

We've briefly dipped to 3rd in the league due to match schedules and a postponement but after beating "Unbeatable" Birmingham yesterday we're back in first place with game in hand, SFSG :)

Somehow we still remain atop the league..

After tie with bottom feeders West Ham, Carlo declared:
“We didn't play a good match. What happened in the first half was not good.
“The second half was better, but we came up against a strong team, a tough team, who put a lot of pressure on our midfield.”
Is it just me or this is becoming a recording...? C'mon Carlo! We all watch games, we all can see that we're not playing well. Since loss at Man City, we've been struggling against any teams that has pressure on our midfield. If not for Frank Lampard's heroics, we'd be talking about a loss.
Carlo also mentioned fatigue. Players are tired... once again, bit of obvious news there, but aren't other teams tired too? Surely, some teams might not play as many games as not every team is competing for all of them Cups, but also let's consider the fact that some teams have injury crisis bar none. West Ham is one of those tams. Yet, we see fully motivated team doing all they can do to salvage every point. We had a golden chance to go 6 points above Man United whom struggling on their own. I am starting to think that Carlo has issues motivating players, could it be language barrier or is it plain and simple as our players getting old? So many of them are playing out of their preferred positions.
How I miss days of Robben and Duff terrorizing defenses. We need someone to step up or purchase someone capable of magic, during winter transfer window. We can only rely so much on our Right/Left Backs to offer width. Yet, Carlo remains adamant that we do not need any new signings... Secretly I hope it's a smokescreen.

Finally a win

What a nervous place Bridge was yesterday evening! We've outplayed Pompey, but yet again we found ourselves level after, yet another, set piece blunder. It seems luck is going totally against us these days. Anyone who believes that we're going to be "totally fine" when African Cup starts must be deluded. Without Drogba, we're totally different team, much weaker.
When you think about it, ANY team would miss Drogba. Whatever you think of him, opposing teams count their stars when he is not in the starting lineup.
In any case, we've finally gotten valuable 3 points in the game that was supposed to be a total blowout, after all, Pompey are bottom dwellers and we're league leaders! It's amazing what a loss can do. After our Carling Cup exit, we've not been the same. Loss at Man City highlighted our fragile state. Petr Cech and defense are fighting to regain some sort of composure during set pieces, an ugly flaw that has crippled our team. And when you think that not that long ago we were boasting quite impressive shutout record at the Bridge, it's quite mind baffling that we're so poor as of late. then again, it's all about confidence! not just ours, opposing teams.
Every team watches us and will try to exploit our flaws, it's part of the game. There is no reason for us supporters to give them more ammunition. Booing own team is exactly that ammunition that opposing teams seek. Instead of cheering our team, we opt to silently eat our own fingers and moan about every time our player looses the ball. Bridge resembled a cemetery yesterday.. quite amazing feat when you take in consideration that there were 40000+ spectators... why bother going to the game then?

0 for 2 for Carlo

After beating Arsenal, life looked rosy. We were cruising on top of the table and starting to open pretty good gap between us and United.
Then came Carling Cup tie against Blackburn...
Carlo decided to imitate Wenger and play kids! Sure, a noble gesture to give them some playing time, but was there such a huge need for it, especially when we have all but meaningless game against Apoel in Champions league? Sure, some kids will not be able to play, but I'd rather see Jose like mentality. Play first squad, get a few goals ahead, then introduce kids. Instead, we start weak, then rush into decision to replace 3 players during half time. Love and behold, Kalou is injured, we go down a man, fight back to force penalties, but loose. Should have Kakuta been last to take penalty? Another point to debate.
Hughes didn't make this mistake, while playing strong squad, they have dismantled Arsenal and we ready for us. It's amazing what confidence can do, isn't it? Citeh's work rate was incredible. We were all but bullied all game long. Terry and Carvalho had no better ideas but to pass back to Cech, who in turn would kick ball and we'd eventually loose ball possession. Citeh were fantastic. Tevez and De Jong were playing like a madmen. I think everyone, but Carlo has anticipated a physical game, otherwise, why was Deco playing again? He is not good when it comes to physical games, nor he is good when he doesn't have time to sit on the ball. Deco also drifts in and out of the games and usually doesn't start playing well until clock hists 70th minute mark.
There is no need to moan about ref calls nor about potential hand ball that lead to first goal by Citeh, there is a reason to whine about Carlo's tactics and team selection.

Winning ways continue..

It's good to see that winning ways continue. 4 goals against Wolves, in a game that saw Essien rise to his best. 2 goals for him was not enough due to all chances he had, but there is no reason to dwell upon that. Win is a win! 3 more points in the bag, so far we sit pretty on top of the table.
Porto game was a bit of a bore. This is probably due to fact that both teams have already qualified for next stage and we were playing almost for the bragging rights (and hopefully weaker opponent). Once again, Anelka has proven to be the nemesis of the Portuguese team.
ManYoo managed to loose to Besiktas at the Old Trafford aka "Theater or wet dreams" but they have picked up whole 3 points last Saturday in the league play.
Liverpool has been eliminated from the CL.. good riddance. Surely 'pooh' fans will go on about lack of Chelsea history and about how many CL titles they have won, in the past. Let them gloat about that, there is no denial past glory. I'll concentrate on our current situation and remind them that they are in second tier "Europa League" now.
I was also surprised by the Arsenal's defeat to Sunderland on Saturday, it must be November. We have fantastic chance to give them second league defeat in 2 weeks this Sunday, should be cracker of a game!

2 weeks of bliss

It's been 2 weeks since we've beaten whiners United. Once again they have proved what sore losers they are. Everyone whined about "controversial" free kick from which we've scored only goal of the game. They forgot to whine about Ninja Evan's karate kick that broke Drogba's rib.
Lamps got away with a potential penalty against us when ball stroke his arm, ref nor linesmen missed it.
I watched game twice on Manure TV, its' amazing how biased commentators are. Especially that old geezer "commentator" who keeps on whining about everything and keeps on saying "dear me". Example? Carvalho gets chopped after the whistle by one of the lumberjacks that play for United... Ol' geezer goes on not about the fault but about how many times Riccy rolled on the ground.. Soviet propaganda machine would be jealous of Manure TV... second time on (week later) they chopped game to pieces.. gone was ninjas kick, and so many other chops by the lumberjacks.
No wonder so many United fans are as whiny as their manager and players, by far worst team from this regard in EPL.
All this said, it's nice to know that for whole 2 weeks they can't do anything about it and surely will have a extra pint or two if Everton can manage to snatch a point from them.
Liverpool and Rafa hosting Citeh this weekend, not even sure whom to place a bet on. So many injuries for reds to deal with.. At times I feel sorry for them, then again, at times I love it ;)
International break brought in more controversy than ever. Henry's hand ball and calls for a replay, once again highlighted need for some sort of video replay. Surely Blatter will not bend to the pressure and maintain that it's just part of the game. Yup, all we can see now is that if you cheat you win.. "fairplay" my a$$. Feel Irish pain today, it's a horrible way to loose.
Russia's dream of playing in South Africa next year was smashed to smithereens when 2 players got red carded. On for being kicked, other for pushing out of the way opposing player that was "warming up"... It must have been Ovrebo in disguise, surely there can't be yet another inept referee!
Tomorrow we're going against Wolves, with Drogs, Lampard, Ballack and Deco missing, we might see some young blood in action. Even Kakuta made it to the bench.. could it be his debut?

Double, double

Nope, it's not related to Pizza chain. Folks it GTA (Greater Toronto Area) will be familiar with it. We've had 2 fantastic doubles in the game vs Athletico.
Whole game was a bit of a bore to me. First half was frustrating to watch. all but one header, Kalou looked out of place. Joe Cole was completely invisible, but then again, it would be very hard to repeat his performance from previous game. There was no space given to run around the field and perform tricks, nor we could shoot from distance. Drogba did came close to scoring first from a well struck free kick. Did you notice his technique? He likes to side-foot the ball now, I did read somewhere that he is trying to imitate Ronaldo and at times it is working. Keeper did well to save dipping shot.
Petr Cech once again had a brain cramp and decided to go for a ball which would have been cleared by the Chelsea defender. He tends to make bonehead decision once in 3 games, hopefully he has gotten it out of his system as ManU is visiting Bridge this Sunday.
It must have been a stroke of genius by the new Athletico coach to not start Aguero. Once he came on, game has changed in favor of Spanish team. I must admit that this time he did look much better, a player that might be worth all of them millions of pounds we were willing to pay for him this past summer. In any case, his first goal was nothing but pure class. Beautiful volley from an attempted clearance header. Petr had no chance. Deco had similar chance later on and failed miserably...
We were very close to our first defeat in Champions League this season, Aguero's goal came in late. All Athletico had to do is hold on for 10 minutes! Then there was Drogba. He turned game on it's head, scoring twice in 7 minutes. Power, speed, control were displayed by him in both instances, certainly a delightful double.
To Athletico credit, they didn't give up and continued to press for the equalizer. Aguero was as industrious as ever. He does seem to have tendency to go down fast when confronted by opposing defenders, but it worked for him in this game. Once again he won a free kick in teh dangerous position. What came next was another example of his quality. Well placed shot over the wall curled into the corner of the goal. Petr had no chance once again. Yet another delightful double, even tough this one came from the opposing player.
Game ended shortly, single point was enough to ensure Chelsea progress to the last 16 of the Champions League. Well done.