JOSE'S
PARTY-POOPERS
Chelsea 4-2 Blackburn Rovers
I came to Stamford Bridge with my party hat at the ready, yet Jose
Mourinho's unstoppable champions are refusing to start the national
celebrations that are apparently imminent.
According to the increasingly grumpy Chelsea manager, the English
nation is holding its breath in anticipation of his side's lengthy
unbeaten run coming to an end, yet you wonder whether the man who
seems to relish the spotlight more than anyone in football is
merely trying to convince himself of a fact that doesn't carry too
much weight.
Jealousy may be an issue when Chelsea's rivals assess their
dominant position atop the Premiership table, but Mourinho may have
made a rare misjudgement when he makes such protestation. The
hatred inspired by Sir Alex Ferguson and his Manchester United side
over the years is not yet afflicting the runaway Premiership
leaders.
The 'boring football' tag has been thrown at them relentlessly by
some sections of the media in the last 18 months, but their rare
off-days are more than compensated by the afternoon's when they are
at their thrilling, flowing best. This was very much a helping of
the latter in the first 12 minutes of this encounter summed by just
why Mourinho's team are set to dominate this league for years to
come.
After back to back draws, Mourinho looked like a man hanging onto
his job as he stormed out of Friday's media briefing in a
threatening manner, yet it all served to key up his side for a
blistering opening that threatened to blow Mark Hughes' Blackburn
away.
Starting with Shaun Wright-Phillips and Joe Cole in the wide
positions and Didier Drogba leading the line, this was very much a
front three and with Frank Lampard spraying the ball around as only
he can behind them, the Blues clicked into top gear from the moment
Mike Riley blew his whistle.
It was a Lampard cross that gave the revitalised Drogba the chance
to open the scoring with a deft glancing header after nine minutes
and when referee Mike Riley awarded a dubious penalty after John
Terry was challenged in the box by Andy Todd, it seemed that
Chelsea's 40th unbeaten game was already secured. Lampard just
doesn't miss from the spot and he buried this effort in typically
clinical fashion.
Love them or hate them, this was a football team at the peak of
their powers, passing the ball like masters and playing with their
opponents in a manner that provided evidence of the gulf they have
created between themselves and the rest of the Premiership.
It took another dubious decision from referee Riley to halt them in
their tracks as he penalised Ricardo Carvalho for touching Zurab
Khizanishvili, yet even after Craig Bellamy brought Blackburn back
into the game from the spot, you suspected it would merely be a
lull in the proceedings.
However, Petr Cech ensured this blip had the potential to develop
into something much more interesting and that party hat moved an
inch closer to my head when the Chelsea keeper made a right mess of
his clearance seconds before the break and little Bellamy nipped in
to head a stunning second for Rovers.
Never mind the US military blitz on Baghdad, this was 'shock and
awe' of the Premiership variety as Chelsea were pegged back from a
seemingly unassailable position and as the second half bludgeoned
into action, you could sense the frustration building around
Stamford Bridge.
Tugay was fortunate to get away with a stamp in Michael Essien and
with tempers fraying, this game was developing perfectly into the
Rovers game plan, so it was ironic that he was the first to see the
red midst as his persistent protestations on the touchline saw him
sent to the stands eights minutes after the break.
It was as if he had sent his players out for the second half with
the sole intention of winding up the champions and as one Rovers
players after the next pulled a Chelsea shirt and fell over
bizarrely, the frustration grew for the home side. Any team
featuring characters such as Robbie Savage, Bellamy and no-nonsense
tough guys such as Tugay and Lucas Neill are bound to inflame any
match and they were doing their worst to knock Chelsea out of their
stride.
Step forward Frank Lampard. From all of 35 yards, the England
midfielder may not have been shooting at goal, but such was the
quality on his cross that it bypassed everyone in the box and
bounced past Freidel to allow Chelsea to restore their advantage.
In that moment, the visitor's resistance was broken and once Joe
Cole's deflected 74th minute shot gave Mourinho's men a fourth
goal, the outcome of this match was decided once and for all.
Lampard and substitute Robben went close to extending the Chelsea
lead late on and it led Mourinho to provide another cameo
performance before the media. 'Look, we are nine points clear at
the top of the table, 40 games unbeaten and you are trying to tell
me we needed to get back on track,' he shouted.
'Back on track? Mama Mia! I look forward to the day when my team is
really in need to getting back on track, but it cannot be now. We
played so well today and I knew the goals would come in the second
half.'
Mourinho also launched this lavish barrage of praise in the
direction of his match winner, Frank Lampard. 'Frank is the best
player in the world, no doubt,' he barked. 'How he is not winning
all the top prizes in the game is impossible for me to understand.
What are these people who give out these awards watching every
weekend?
'The 2005 European Footballer of the Year award should only have
one contender and it has to be Frank Lampard. I just hope this boy
starts getting the credit he deserves from people outside of
England.
'There are some great players in the game today, but Frank is man
of the match every week and there is no area of his game he could
improve. I would not swap him for anyone and he was sensational
again in this game.'
Rovers boss Mark Hughes was frustrated after his side battled back
from their early setbacks. 'We played the better football in the
first half and deserved to be back in the game at half-time,' he
said.
'Whether my sending off had any effect on the game is hard to say,
but I felt the fourth official was on my case all afternoon. I
don't know why he sent me to the stands, but I felt there were some
soft decisions out there for us.'
This title race is already over after just 11 games and Mourinho
has every right to crow on a day when his side proved they can
stand up to the toughest of challenges.
MAN OF THE
MATCH: Frank Lampard - Brilliant throughout,
Mourinho is right to hail Lampard as the most complete player in
the world right now.
FOOD
WATCH: Normally so impressive at Stamford Bridge,
the hot food was replaced with a helping on sandwiches and chicken
legs, much to The Insider's chagrin. However, the slice of apple
pie was most welcome. However, it seems Mourinho's growing angst
with the media has stretched to the way they are treated on visits
to Stamford Bridge as this represented a dip in catering
standards.
BLACKBURN
VERDICT: What an annoying bunch of gits? I suppose
roughing up your opponents is a tactic of sorts, but the way they
go about it is unsavoury. Savage, Dickov, Neill and the rest are as
violent as they are talented. 'Any time we play the big teams, we
find ourselves trying to defend our reputation and the same is true
after this game,' moaned Hughes on a day when SIX of his players
were booked. Say no more.
CHELSEA
VERDICT: This was a real test of their metal and
the champions came through with flying colours. The theory goes
that getting stuck in to Chelsea is the key to beating them, yet
Blackburn did that in abundance after the break and they still came
up well short. They are well set to go through this season
unbeaten.
- credit: The Insider,
ESPNsoccernet
