Match report. ManU 3-1 Chelsea

People will remember this game for the missed chances rather than the ones taken as Manchester United were eventual 3-1 winners in a highly enthralling game at Old Trafford. 3 first half goals from Smalling, Nani and Rooney saw Andre Villas Boas lose his first League game in charge of the Blues as Chelsea were made to pay for some sloppy defending and yes, errors from the linesman.

Both sets of fans were in good voice as Chelsea were dominant in the first few minutes of the game but things were to rapidly change as United went ahead courtesy an offside goal from Chris Smalling who scored a header from an Ashley Young free kick. 

The goal didn’t dent Chelsea’s attack as they came close to scoring when Anderson’s misplaced pass fell straight to Torres who missed the target after a scuffle with Evans.

Chelsea had another chance in the 14^th minute when Mata’s corner was neatly headed by Ivanovic only to be saved by United’s goalkeeper.
It was all Chelsea in the first 20 minutes of the game as Chelsea had 6 attempts at goal compared to United’s 1. But the scoreline suggested something totally different.

United looked to break Chelsea on the counter in the 26^th minute as Rooney had a poor shot after the ball was worked into the box.

A minute later, De Gea made a heroic save as Ramires looked to score off a brilliant low cross from Torres who was fed the ball after some nice work from Mata. United managed to hang onto their lead as Chelsea kept piling on the pressure.

Chelsea had half a chance to equalize in the 31^st minute again when Torres, who had a bright 30 minutes, looked to score off a bicycle kick via a Sturridge cross but missed the target.

Chelsea’s 10 goal attempts in the first 30 odd minutes of the game proved futile as Nani scored a screamer of a goal from just outside the box after cutting in and getting past Mata. Cech was just a spectator as Chelsea went 2-0 down.

Wayne Rooney added to Chelsea’s misery as he scored a sitter after receiving a ball that ricocheted off Nani and fell straight into his path. United ended the half with 3 goals to nothing.

While talks of Chelsea doing an Arsenal were still on, Chelsea scored within 60 seconds of the 2^nd half after a brilliant through ball from Anelka (who was substituted in place of Lampard at the start of the 2^nd half) found Torres who flicked the ball neatly over De Gea. Torres got his much needed goal and Chelsea were right back in the clash.

A dominant Chelsea looked for a 2^nd goal and came close when Mata’s shot was intercepted by United’s goalkeeper after Sturridge found him.

What was to follow was drama as Nani’s shot from just outside the box hit the post and got deflected straight at him and he made the most of Bosingwa’s challenge and went to the ground as Manchester United were awarded a penalty. Rooney, who had scored earlier in the match, did a repeat of John Terry as he slipped and missed from 12 yards out. Chelsea were awarded a lifeline.

Torres showed his class again in the 71^st minute when he created a chance for himself inside the box and shot directly at De Gea who saved, but the ball was deflected back to him and his resulting shot went over the bar. Little did he know that what was to follow a few minutes later was the biggest embarrassment of his Chelsea career as he failed to hit the target from an open net being 7 yards out after Ramires fed him a great ball.

The missed chances were to continue as Berbatov missed an opportunity in the dying stages of the game to send Chelsea packing as his weak shot was slid off by Cole after he was given an easy chance to score by an unselfish pass from Rooney. He missed and Chelsea avoided an embarrassment.

And as the final whistle blew a few minutes later, United overcame Chelsea 3-1 in a mouth watering clash and maintained their 100% start to their Premier League Campaign.

United-Chelsea. Talking points...

As Chelsea look all set to face United tomorrow, here are a few things Chelsea need to worry about before the trip to Old Trafford : 


1. Drogba. His absence at the front and while defending set pieces and corners will be felt. 


2. Torres' worrying form. Will he step up against the likes of United's defence tomorrow? Yes, he assisted the 2 goals against Leverkusen, but the same old question will arise, can he step up? And to be perfectly hones, I don't think he will. Prove me wrong Torres! 


3. Chelsea's nervy defence. Bosingwa has every chance of getting owned against the likes of United's wingers and Chelsea' Center Backs also need to be at their best which they haven't till now.


4. Lampard. He's the essence of our midfield. Any misplaced passes and we will get caught in the counter attack. Lampard has to be at his best tomorrow.


- Abhishek Easwaran. 

Pre match interview.

Pre match. Answered a few questions asked by a friend. A sort of an interview :

1. What are your thoughts on the game this Super Sunday?
A : Over hyped. Both sets of fans have their share of glory hunters who hype this. Only the true fans know that this game means nothing at the end of the day. 

2. What do you think of the signings Chelsea has made this summer?
A : Decent. All I'm left wondering is how are we going to fall inside the FFP rule. 

3. Chelsea have a new manager this season in Andre Villas-Boas. Do the
fans have faith in his abilities looking at his past achievements?
A : I have faith in any manager at Chelsea. Right from Ranieri, I've been an ardent supporter of every manager we've had. AVB is a little different from the rest, he's ex Chelsea and knows in and out about this club. Plus from what I've seen in these few games, his half time team talks remind me of Mourinho's time. Best part about AVB? He never speaks ill of other teams and players. 

4. Chelsea sometimes bear the look of an ageing squad which is in need
of a massive overhaul. Do you agree with this view?
A : No. We have a replacement for JT in the name of Branislav Ivanovic. We have Josh McEachran who's sure to replace Lampard and Drogba's replacements are Lukaku and Torres. Other ageing players? Ashley Cole? We have Bertrand and Van Anholt waiting in line. Essien has a good few years left in him and we have Mikel and Meireles to fill in his void too. Overall, the squad doesn't look old to me at all! 

5. Onto the game, Torres isn't scoring (though he assisted both goals
vs Leverkusen) while Drogba is out with injury. Does that very much
undermine Chelsea's chances of winning the game at Old Trafford?
A : Its all upto one man if you ask me. Lampard. He's the essence Chelsea have had in the midfield all these years. If he steps up, I see no reason why we cannot beat United tomorrow. Drogba's absence will be felt as he's a great striker and is brilliant at defending set pieces for Chelsea. His physicality will be missed.

6. What should be Chelsea's strategy to overcome the high-flying Red
Devils? Who do you think will the key players for the Blues?
A : Mata, Sturridge and Lampard. 

7. Do you have high hopes for the likes of Sturridge, Lukaku, Mata,
McEachran & similarly the players coming through the academy ranks?
A : Sturridge has proven his worth already. Everything's being said about Lukaku, lets see how he turns out. Mata and Josh have been fantastic when given chances. Josh needs to be more strong physically to compete at the PL level. He's just 18 and will only get stronger as time proceeds.

8. Which has been your favourite Manchester United vs Chelsea
encounter till date?
A : Too many to select one. 

9. Finally, your scoreline predictions for the match.
1-1.

Golaso Fantastico! :D

Sometimes, the scoreline doesn’t suggest what actually happened in the match. Today was one such day where Chelsea, who thoroughly dominated the game came out as eventual winners in a 2-1 victory over Sunderland. Two fantastic goals from Terry and Sturridge ensured 3 handsomely deserved points for the Blues.

Chelsea started with Torres on the bench and Anelka starting in place of him in what looked like a 4-3-3 formation. The first 10 minutes were rather quiet as Chelsea dominated possession, but failed to create any real chances. Mata, who made his first start in Chelsea colours, looked in top form and managed to get into the box a couple of times, but none resulted in any goals.

In the 17^th minute, Juan Mata hit the post through a free kick just outside the box after Nicholas Anelka was brought down and the ball deflected off the post only to fall to Sturridge who made a crisp cross to John Terry who finished sublimely from a very tight angle. Chelsea got the lead they deserved.

Things looked a little off pace in the latter stages of the first half, Chelsea were dominating thoroughly and Sunderland were showing no signs of progress. Cech had a quiet half but was forced to make his first save in the 44^th minute when Sessegnon shot from a tight angle just outside the 6 yard box. That didn’t yield any result and Chelsea went 1-0 ahead at the break.

Chelsea took off from where they left in the 2^nd half as they completely dominated possession and were finally rewarded with a goal when Danny Sturridge, who was found by debutant Raul Meireles, scored through a clever back heel thus putting the game beyond any doubt.

Sturridge soon made way for Florent Malouda who made an instant impact when he shot directly on target after a neat pass from Lampard.

Bendtner had a half chance when he was within the 6 yard box and his resulting shot was bravely blocked by Ivanovic. While that was one chance that went begging, a missed header from Wickham that went just over the bar added to Sunderland’s misery.

Things remained the same until the 90^th minute, and just when Andre Villas Boas looked for a second clean sheet this season, Sunderland got a goal from nowhere in the 91^st minute when Ji Dong Wong slided the ball into the net. A nervy 2-3 minutes of stoppage time ensued but some brave defending in the end by John Terry ensured that Chelsea went home with 3 points in the bag.

Sunderland vs Chelsea : Pre match predo

I'm expecting a win for Chelsea today.

Formation : A 4-3-3 is inevitable today with Drogba's absence. Torres in the centre should be provided with good chances with Sturridge on the right and Mata on the left. No excuses for Torres today. Perform or Perish.

Sturridge - Torres - Mata combination up front looks awesome. Many chances will be created today.


Midfield trio with Lampard - Mikel - Ramires with Mikel holding back thus providing Ramires and Lampard freedom to attack.

Back 4?

Expecting JT-Alex at the CB position with Bosingwa and Cole at the Full back positions. Loads of chances from the wings are on the cards.




A 2-0 win would be my prediction for this match. Torres to score a brace and Sturridge to score something that looks like this : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEwe30NSk5Q

Yennada?

Why is it that only we Tamilians consider it offensive when someone calls us Madrasi? 

Let me get this straight : 

People from Punjab = Punjabis

People from Bengal = Bengalis

People from Rajasthan = Rajasthanis 

People from Madras = Madrasis! 

So, why do we consider it offensive? Heaven knows. :| 

Arsenal = Hypocrites. Confirmed.

I've always been a critic of Arsenal. And I've a strong case against them now.

A club which said they have complete 'faith' in their youngsters made a record 5 signings in the last 2 days of the transfer window. Reason? 3 games played, and they've lost 2 and drawn 1. And an 8-2 loss against United. Where's the faith gone Wenger? 


The fact that their season already looked over by the end of August forced them to make a host full of signings. The team who's manager has always spoken ill of Chelsea's spending prowess had to do the same. Talk about being hypocritical.