Looking ahead to the champions league match against FC Nordsjælland

Opponent: FC Nordsjælland

Competition: UEFA Champions League

Venue : Farum Park, Farum Denmark





Chelsea play current Danish champions FC Nordsjælland at Farum park in their second champions league group stage encounter. The newbies to the competition is not really favored to win against the current European Champions but you never know as this could very well be a tricky encounter. After the 2-2 draw against Juventus, this is one match that we cannot afford to lose.

FC Nordsjælland lost 2-0 to Shakthar Donetsk in the opening match at Ukraine. FC Nordsjælland are very much a new side to the champions league as none of its players have been part of a champions league squad before but then a home crowd might very well inspire them to something great and this is one thing Chelsea must be wary about.

i don't think Di Matteo will tinker much with the formation for the match as the trio of Hazard, Mata and Oscar will start behind the lone striker Torres. He might want to field Sturridge in the line up ahead of Torres to give the Spaniard a break, but since  Sturridge isn't a 100 per cent fit, Torres will again start upfront. Also with Torres looking good against Arsenal, it won't be advisable to not start him.

I think that Di Matteo should stick with Ramires in the central midfield area in place of Lampard. Lampard cannot be expected to start every game and probably should accept the role like the way Ryan Giggs plays at Manchester United. Fielding Ramires in the central midfield area again will only enhance his capability in the role and since we are really short of options here, Ramires should be molded into a good defensive midfielder too. The tireless Ramires will obviously be able to support the attack as well, so we will not be losing his energy in the attacking third.

After his exploits against Juventus, one player who is sure to be in the starting line up is Oscar. Hazard and Mata are now certainties for the other two positions. I would really like to see Marin and Moses get a chance against  FC Nordsjælland. If we are leading by a couple of goals by half time, I can see these two coming in early from the bench. I would also replace Mikel with Romeu and see how the pairing of Romeu and Ramires works. This might well be our best central midfield pairing and it is worth a try.

My lineup would be

Cech

Ivanovic      Terry                Cahill            Cole

Ramires        Romeu

Oscar                 Mata             Hazard

Torres

Subs : Moses for Oscar, Marin for Hazard and Azpilicueta for Ivanovic

Title Credentials Proved as Chelsea beat Arsenal at the Emirates

The first big match of the season and not all were convinced about Chelsea's chances to the title this season. In an exciting derby, Chelsea prevailed over Arsenal 2-1 with Juan Mata being the stand out performer with an assist and a goal. Here are my thoughts on the game:

RDM certainly has the guts to play an attack minded side

Last season in spite of winning the Champions League and the FA cup, RDM was criticized for the 'park the bus' strategy in the champions league semi finals and the final. Clearly he didn't have the team to run around and match the likes of Barcelona and Bayern Munich and all he did was employ the best strategy. Now the condition is different as an influx of attack minded  midfielders means that RDM has to choose an attacking line up and he certainly did that against Arsenal even though it was a tough away game. With the holy trinity of Hazard,Mata and Oscar starting behind Torres, and to include Ramires as the Central midfielder instead of Lampard was a master stroke.Ramires won the Sky Sports man of the match award and just proves that Chelsea should use Ramires in that position more often.

Good goal for Torres

Torres had a good game against the Gunners. The goal scored from Mata's free kick was a poacher's goal and he really worked hard chasing down defenders. Of course he hasn't hit the top form he had in his Liverpool days, but 3 goals in 6 EPL matches is not such a bad return and he will surely score more as the team gels together.

Work in Progress

Our attacking trio is still a work in progress. Hazard and Mata seem to have established a rapport already but Oscar went missing in the match many times and it will take some time before the combination can be called a lethal trio.

What would we do without Cech

The difference between the sides was Cech as the number 1 made 3 very good saves in the match to protect our lead.  Arsene Wenger described Cech's display as outstanding and it just proves that whatever attack minded team you have, you need a reliable goalie like Cech between the sticks and Cech is not just reliable,he is brilliant.

Chelsea rout Wolves 6-0 in a classy display

Competition: Capital One Cup(3rd round)
Opponent: Wolves
Venue: Stamford Bridge

The Capital One cup(erstwhile Carling cup) is an opportunity for managers to try out the fringe players and the budding youngsters and RDM also used the opportunity to give some match practice to the non- regulars. The depth of the squad meant that this was still a really impressive team and the result just showed the difference in quality. In a 6-0 rout , there were goals from all over the park as our defenders,midfielders and striker got onto the score sheet. In fact with the number of shots on target,we should have probably got more.

Lucas Piazon and Cesar Azpilicueta made their first team debuts while Victor Moses was handed a start. Ryan Bertrand and Oriol Romeu also got their chance to impress.

The result of the match was settled inside the first 20 minutes as Bertrand and Cahill scored inside 10 minutes while Juan Mata scored in the 17th minute.

The goals scoring continued with Romeu from a penalty and two headers from Torres and Moses.(Finally the headed goals). All the more an impressive display by Chelsea with wholesome entertainment.

Result:
Chelsea          6                Wolves      0
  Cahill 4'
  Bertrand 8'
  Mata 17'
  Romeu(pen) 53'
  Torres 58'
   Moses 71'

Thoughts on the late win against Stoke

The late win against Stoke at Stamford Bridge might not have impressed most of the fans but then one thing we should remember is that not all teams come to the Bridge expecting to win and are bound to play a defensive match. Stoke for years have followed the same approach and it has worked brilliantly for them. Credit should go for the Stoke manager Tony Pulis, who has been able to keep them in the top flight.

The goal from Ashley Cole in the 85th minute was reward for the constant bombardment from the Chelsea attacking line on the Stoke goal and even though the score line might have been disappointing, the win has kept us in the lead in the standings.

 Here are my thoughts on the match:

Ashley Cole is still our best left back
There is no doubt about Ryan Bertrand's talent, but he still has a long way to go before he can take claim for the left back spot. Ashley Cole still has the legs to defend and bombard forward whenever necessary and still is the automatic choice for the LB position. The goal for Cole,though after a gap of 2 years just underlines his value to the side.

Torres needs to score 
Well there wasn't any thing wrong with Torres' show against Stoke but the goal eluded him even though there were a couple of half chances. Though he scored 3 goals in the first few  matches and is still Chelsea's top scorer in the season, the so called pundits and experts are sure to brand him as 'well past the prime' if he doesn't score soon and that's why I think that Torres needs to score as soon as the next match.

We need Lukaku back
The idea to sent Lukaku on loan to West Brom is already proving to a good decision as the Belgian has impressed immensely so far and also scored 2 goals in his few minutes on the pitch. The starting role this week and the brilliantly taken goal just proves that Lukaku is ready for the Premier League and with the shortage of options in the striker position, Lukaku needs to be back in January. His strength would be ideal against a team like Stoke who would play the defensive game.

5 thoughts from the 2-2 draw against Juventus

Oscar makes his mark

Oscar scores a stunner

The Brazilian maestro did not start in any of the games before the Champions League match against Juventusand when RDM decided to hand him a Champions League debut, it raised some eyebrows. After all he was taking the place of Juan Mata, one of the best creative influences for us last season. 
In the matches seen before that, when he came on as a substitute, Oscar just looked ok, but didn’t quite light up the arena like Hazard has done. At the start of the Juventus match, Oscar was hardly involved with Hazard and Ramires running the show. All that changed in space of 2 minutes. While the first goal may have been a tad lucky with the deflection, the second goal was pure class. The Brazilian's contribution however came to a premature end as he was caught on the ankle by Vidal. Hopefully the injury is not as serious as it seemed.

Mikel should be benched for the next game
It will be cruel to drop a player for one mistake but the fact that Mikel did not even try to retrieve the ball after his horrendous ball forward is something that no Chelsea fan would have enjoyed watching. Mikel might well be thinking that his place in the XI is secured and thus the lack of commitment. I would drop him for the next game and try Romeu in that role. Starting Lampard in the role every week is also something that RDM should reconsider. I accept that Lampard is a club legend but that shouldn’t mean that he has the right to start every game. Next match, If I was RDM, I would bench Lampard and try Ramires in the role and also dropMikel  and try Romeu in his place. It is worth trying as RDM needs to find the best player suitable for the central midfield area.

RDM’s choice of Bertrand to replace Ramires was a poor one
When we have such an attacking talent at the disposal to play behind the striker, RDM’s choice to send out Bertrand in place of Ramires was a huge mistake and a move that slowed down the tempo of the game. Moses should have come on especially after his impressive performance against QPR. While RDM’s choice to start with Oscar was an inspired move, his substitutions were a bit defensive.

Where are the goals from set pieces
 We have relied a lot on goals from corners and free kicks over the past years, but this time after 13 goals in all competition, none of them has been a headed goal or from a set piece? This is one place we will miss the physicality of Didier Drogba. In spite of creating a lot of corners(especially at the beginning), we didn’t even come close to a headed goal

RDM’s selection headache just increased
With so many attacking midfielders at his disposal, RDM was always going to find the selection of the 3 behind the striker something of a headache. Now with Oscar also impressing at the centre of the midfield trio, who  makes the best combination? Hazard will undoubtedly occupy one spot, either the left wing or the middle. Oscar’s impressive debut means that it will be hard for RDM not to start the Brazilian and then there is Mata and Ramires, who were Chelsea’s best players by a mile last season. The return to fitness of Marko Marin and the impressive outing by Moses against QPR are also to be considered. I feel so sorry for Lucas Piazon, who will now find it very difficult to break into the first team. Perhaps Piazon can evolve more into a striker rather than an attacking midfielder, which can solve our lack of options upfront. Including Piazon, that is 7 players for 3 spots. Just makes his use of Bertrand in the place lot more confusing.

Chelsea vs Juventus - Who should play for the Blues

Game : Chelsea vs Juventus
Competition: Champions League
Venue : Stamford Bridge,London

Domestic Form:(Latest match first)
Chelsea : DWWW
Juventus: WWW



As you can see from the domestic form, both teams have begun their domestic campaigns well with Juve maintaining a perfect start to the Serie A title defense.The old lady went unbeaten in the previous Serie A campaign and is by far the toughest assignment for us in Group E.

Who should we play?
Juventus normally plays in the fluid 3-5-2 formation and it has  arguably the best midfielder in the game,Andrea Pirlo along with Claudio Marchisio and Arturo Vidal in the center midfield.How we excel in stopping the services from the trio to Giovinco and Vucinic will determine the result of the game.
As such, I don't think RDM should tinker with the back five for the team.
Cech will without doubt start between the sticks
Ivanovic at right back- his aerial ability might well make the difference between the sides
while the Serbian's composure in defense will be needed to stop the runs of Asamoah and Marchisio.
Terry and Luiz at Center Back
With Terry having shaken off an injury,the skipper and Luiz will form the center back pairing and the pairing played well in the QPR game. If at all Terry doesn't make it, Cahill can easily take the responsibility.
Ashley Cole at Left Back- No changes required here but the left back might need to be a bit less adventurous in the game.

Center-Midfield
The Center midfield remains a concern for us and dominating the area against the likes of Pirlo will be really important for us. Mikel and Lampard  will again start the game but this time, Lampard should remain at that position most of the times instead of laboring forward most of the times.

The attacking trio behind the lone striker are positions where we have an abundance of talent and picking three from the lot is RDM's major headache. Mata should return to the side and his partnership with Hazard was missed in the QPR game. The third spot should go to Moses as the Nigerian was lively when he came on as a substitute.

Torres again should start as the lone striker even though the Spaniard was not at his best against QPR.

Formation - 4-2-3-1

Cech

Terry          Luiz

Ivanovic                                  Cole

Mikel Lampard

Moses         Mata            Hazard

  

Torres

Chelsea vs Juventus - Preview

We begin our Champions league title defense against Juventus in a tough Group E encounter. With both Chelsea and Juventus leading the domestic leagues in England and Italy respectively, there is very little to choose between the teams. Both teams also spend big in the summer transfer window with Chelsea bolstering the team with Hazard,  Oscar, Moses, Marin and Azpilicueta while Juventus also spend big to add  Isla, Lucio, Giovinco and Asamoah. The Juventus side has not won in the last 11 visits to England and they will be intent on changing that history. Beating Juventus who went unbeaten in the Serie A last season and for the first three games this season will prove our credentials in defending the champions league crown.
Juventus - Men to watch out for:
Andrea Pirlo - Perhaps the worst decision ever made by AC Milan when they released Pirlo at the end of the 2010 campaign. The midfield maestro is without doubt one of the best midfield generals in the game and checking Pirlo's passing will be at the top of RDM's game plan.
Buffon- The Italian goalkeeper is still one of the best goalkeepers in the world, and beating him will be really tough.

RDM will once again have the headache of selecting his attacking midfield trio. Mata should return to the side after being rested for the QPR game. More on the line up we should play in the next post.

The match being played at Stamford Bridge gives us a slight advantage and I predict a narrow win by a solitary goal.

Disappointing draw at Loftus Road

Amid the controversy of the handshakes, QPR and Chelsea played out a disappointing draw at Loftus Road. It was 2 points lost for us, ending the 100% start to the season. With both Manchester United and Arsenal securing handsome wins, the draw was a really bad result for us, even though we are till top of the table.

Positives:

The bright side of the match was Victor Moses. The Nigerian came on as a substitute at 61 minutes and made Julio Cesar saved one, and set up another for Eden Hazard, only for the Belgian to miss the target. Hopefully, we start with Hazard, Mata and Moses against Juventus

What went wrong?

RDM preferred to give Mata a break and it was a well deserved break for the Spaniard. But the idea to start with Ramires and Bertrand back fired a bit. I thought that Victor Moses should have started the match instead of Bertrand. Of course we had a couple of good penalty shouts, but the QPR goal wasn’t really threatened enough.

Next up is Juventus in the Champions League. Preview on this game coming soon.

Marin is back - German plays for Chelsea U21

Marko Marin's rehabilitation is almost done as the German featured in the U21 league match between Chelsea and Liverpool. The match ended in a disappointing 4-1 loss, but the return of Marin from injury is welcome news for the Chelsea fans. The German played the whole first half in the match before being replaced by Adam Phillip.

Marin in action for U-21

The return of Marin will of course mean that RDM's selection headache just increases but now might be the time to provide Mata the much needed break he deserves.

Chelsea vs QPR - Who should be the Blues' playing XI

Game : Chelsea vs QPR
Competition: EPL
Venue : Loftus Road,London
Last Year's result : QPR 1 - 0 Chelsea

After the break for the World cup qualifying,we resume our EPL campaign with a game of utmost significance because of the huge rivalry the clubs has had for ever and the Terry-Ferdinand saga of last season's match. That match saw 2 of our players- Bosingwa and Drogba being sent off and the 9 men of Chelsea falling 1-0, even though we had over 70% of possession with the 9 men on the ground.

While we have had a perfect start to our league campaign with 3 wins out of 3, QPR has just 1 point from its 3 matches. Their first home match saw them being trashed 5-0 by the Swans, followed by a 1-1 stalemate at Norwich and a 3-1 loss to League champions Manchester City at the Ethihad.QPR has made as many as 12 new signings in the transfer window and many of the new comers could debut for QPR against Chelsea.

So who should be playing for Chelsea against QPR. Here is my list

Goal Keeper:
Cech : The Chelsea number 1 is due for an elbow surgery but I dont think Cech will be rested for this game. If at all Cech is to be rested, then we have a problem as Ross Turnbull hasnt really impressed and the other option is young Jamal Blackman.


Right Back:
Branislav Ivanovic : Cesar Azpilicueta may be the natural right back, but Ivanovic has been a revelation in the RB role this season so far. He is also our joint top scorer in EPL so far and I dont see any reason why Ivan should be replaced. Cesar has a real fight to get that right back spot from Ivanovic.

Center Backs:

David Luiz & Gary Cahill
Normally Terry would be the automatic choice but the Chelsea skipper got injured during England's match against Moldova. Also with Terry's saga with Ferdinand, even if he is fit to play, I think it would be better if he sits out of the game.So Gary Cahill and David Luiz take the two center back spots for me.


Left Back:

Ryan Bertrand:
With Ashley Cole also in the injury list, Bertrand will probably deputize for Cole at left back. It seems unlikely that Cole will be risked for the game even if he is fit.


Defensive Midfielders:

John Obi Mikel & Frank Lampard
This is obviously an area of concern for us as I still am not really confident about this partnership. I obviously think that its time to give a look at young Romeu to partner one of these players, but RDM is unlikely to tinker with the combination. If we go up by 2 or 3 goals by half time, I can see Lampard being replaced by Romeu in this match.

Attacking Midfielders:

Moses , Mata , Hazard

Hazard and Mata will obviously be favorites for 2 of the 3 starting spots. RDM had given indication about resting Mata in September but the Spaniard might be asked to play this game after all. I would pick Moses for the 3rd spot at the right wing as the Nigerian was in great form for Nigeria and should be able to give us a lot more pace on the right side. Again if we go 2 or 3 goals up, I can see Mata being replaced by Oscar.

Striker:

Fernando Torres
The only option really and looking at his recent performances a very good option to have. Torres scored a ha-trick when QPR visited us last season and I wouldn't be surprised if Torres adds a goal or two to that tally. Will Sturridge get a look in? Probably as a substitute but dont think he will displace Torres in the starting line up.

As I can see us going 2 goals up at half time, the following are the substitutions I would prefer:

Romeu for Lampard : Second Half
Oscar for Mata : 60 minutes ( Marin if he is on the bench with Hazard moving to the central spot)
Azpilicueta for Ivanovic : 80 minutes

Result Prediction : 4- 0 ( Torres 1, Moses 1, Hazard 2)

So what do you think about the lineup?

More accolades as Chelsea wins European Club of the Year award

The European Club Association (ECA) has named Chelsea as the European Club of the Year. The ECA is a UEFA and FIFA recognized body and the award follows our achievements in the European and domestic achievements. The European Champions League triumph and the FA cup victory last season was enough to beat the likes of Real Madrid,Manchester City and Juventus to the award. Truly an award to cherish.

Champions League Squad Analyzed

I was rather confused what should I start my blog with. I could have started with a lot of history about the club but then this blog is meant to carry the latest news,rumors and match previews and reviews. The club had its greatest moment when we won the Champions League and so my first post is related to the Champions League. The Champions League squad was announced last week.

Here is the list of the squad members.


Goal Keepers:

Petr Cech
Ross Turnbull
Jamal Blackman

Defenders:

Branislav Ivanovic
Ashley Cole
David Luiz
Paulo Ferreira
Gary Cahill
John Terry
Cesar Azpilicueta
Ryan Bertrand
Aziz Deen-Conteh
Todd Kane
Daniel Pappoe

Midfielders

Oriol Romeu
Ramires
Frank Lampard
Juan Mata
Oscar
John Obi Mikel
Victor Moses
Eden Hazard
Marko Marin
Billy Clifford
George Saville

Forwards

Fernando Torres
Daniel Sturridge
Lucas Piazon
Adam Phillip

* The ones in grey are from the B-List.

Thoughts on the squad

There is no doubt that this is a very good squad and more than capable of making good progress in the Champions League, hopefully even win it again. There is no doubt that unless Petr Cech has an injury ,the Goal Keeper's post will be his. If he does have an injury, then we might have be in a bit of a trouble as Turnbull hasn't really impressed and Blackman is very young and hasn't had a lot of exposure. Hilario is the notable omission from the Goal Keeping lineup with the youngster Blackman preferred.

Our defense is not as strong as the days when the Terry-Carvalho partnership was on but still they should do the job. Ivanovic should keep the right back spot ahead of new arrival Cesar Azpilicueta (still wondering how to pronounce his name). Ashley Cole will no doubt keep the left back spot with Ryan Bertrand a very capable deputy. The center back pairings will differ depending on Luiz's form I guess. Terry picks one spot automatically.Cahill and Luiz to fight for the other spot, though I will give the slight edge to Luiz. Our defense has not been the greatest in recent times, but hopefully everything should be all right. Also Ivanovic's natural position being center back, he can always be paired with one of the other three in case of any  injuries.

The central midfield or the defensive midfield position is one area of concern. With only Mikel,Lampard and Romeu to play there,this has to be a real concern for Di Matteo. I still think that letting Essien go on loan to Madrid was a blunder as the Ghanian. Even Meireles's departure to Turkey could have been avoided as we are really short in the central midfield area.One option would be to play Oscar there but then it might just be too risky.

The attacking midfield is no doubt one of the best in the world and RDM's main challenge would be to pick three from Mata,Hazard,Ramires,Moses,Marin. Hazard and Mata would be the first choices with the others competing for the third spot in the trio.

Another area we are a bit short is strikers. Torres has found his form back but this being a long season and with chances of injury,adequate cover is simply not there. We can only hope that Torres doesn't get injured and also Sturridge to come good. Young Lucas Piazon being handed a spot is a really welcome news and hopefully he will get some minutes on the pitch.

That ends my first post for you fans. Tell me what you think about the squad and my analysis. Please feel free to comment. Thanks for reading.