Stamford Bridge, first leg.
Chelsea vs Manchester United. A match which haunts the memories of many Chelsea supporters because of how close we came to actually winning the CL and then lost it. hitting the post twice and a missed penalty was all it took for us to lose a match which could have made us the champions.
Whats great is that this match for us can spark a run of revenge. Atleast in my opinion, Manchester United are not as good of a team as us but maybe that has something to do with the faith i have in the boys.
So, what do we have to worry about and what should we expect to see:
Lets start from the injury list of Manchester United
O Hargreaves, D Fletcher , J O'Shea, A Lindegaard , N Vidic, Rafael, Anderson, J Park and R Ferdinand are all hanging out with the physio right now.
You might expect some of them to be ready in time for the clash. However, if Fletcher , Park and Vidic are not ready in time. It gives us a huge advantage against them. Ironically i actually want Ferdinand to be fit for this one. This might push Sir Alex to make a wrong decision in the starting line up which could cost them heavily. Rafael is another player who can easily lose his cool and cost his team the game.
So the biggest threats to us on the pitch will be
● Rooney
He just had to get into form a game before ours. Still a player known very well by Ivanovic and Terry and they have dealt with him in the past.
● Nani
A proper cunt he might be but he is one of their players who we have found it hard to deal with in the past matches. A Luiz type of player who is too eager to get the ball is most effective against a player like Nani but he is not eligible to play. John Terry and Ashley Cole are two of our best options to keep him under control.
With a player like Nani, you ruin his 20 minutes and he will ruin the other 70 for himself.
● Berbatov
His goal scoring form has been fantastic. One can argue that the champions league is a completely different thing looking at his record but he is still the kind of player who will pop one if given a simple chance. A player like Berbatov, if marked by a class defender, tends to disappear for the entire 90 minutes because his slow style of play with some bursts of ambition can be countered by a good game reader.
● J. Hernandez
He is very unpredictable which makes him quite a handful. Although a defender like Ivanovic with enough pace and technique + brutality can ruin this kids day.
Looking at a tactical point of view. They have some players which you would actually prefer to play against. Here are some of the few
● Carrick
He is not the kind of player who causes a lot of problems for the other teams. Too average and too bland.
● Rafael
Rafael is a choker. He over commits to what he is not supposed to do and makes mistakes at what he is supposed to. He then takes those mistakes to his heart and fucks up big time. A useless red card soon awaits or over commitment to a challenge soon forces a mistake.
● Smalling
A good player in the making but his experience will let him down in a big game like this. Drogba can man handle a player like Smalling very happily.
● Valencia
Still a former shadow of himself. Not fit enough to play such a fast paced and important game. I don't even think its fair to start him and risk him. He might play great but for his long term, he needs some time on the bench.
● Ferdinand
Mentioned above but unlikely to play.
So then lets look at what areas we will dominate.
Chelsea have a much better back line than United's but they are not going head to head against the back line. United's attack is very good, rotational and very effective. Its unpredictability means one little mistake and we will have to pay big time. Our defense needs to commit 100%.
United's defense takes on the likes of Drogba, Torres, Anelka and Lampard. Certainly not an attack i would ever want to face but they have some very solid defenders and some who will give us vital chances to bag this.
Chelsea are again more gifted in the midfield. If the injury list is even partially true of United. They are missing cruical players from their midfield.
Both teams are very gifted at the front (thats what she said). It is all down to which teams holds its head together and which attack clicks.
We need to have these players play solidly and have good influence from our side
Bosingwa, Essien , Ivanovic , Lampard , Drogba.
This would ensure us a great chance to build up a decent advantage. Some of these players need to step up and give it all they have got because when they have their good days, they are memorable.
Lampard needs to have a cracker of a game. He can split the United defense as easily as Britney Spear's legs if he has a good one. Long range is not much of an option if VDS is in goal.
Drogba is extremely effective against a team like United. If this guy gives it all he has got and shows the good attitude we all know he has in his heart. He can single handily win this game for us.
Torres is very important for us too. He was great against United the last time we met them and he can for sure trick them and create chances even if the Barron run continues. But don't count him out for scoring just yet. One moment of FT9 and the flood gates will open.
All and all this should be an a very interesting match. I believe we can take them on and i believe we can knock them the fuck out of this competition. We need to priorities not conceding an away goal. Use a bit of counter attacking to let them think they have the upper hand and then turn on the sexy. Its time for us to believe in the team and go into this one with no fear
COME ON CHELSEA!
-----------------------Cech---------------------------
Bosingwa-------Ivanovic------Terry----------Cole--
---------------------Essien---------------------------
Ramires-----------Lampard---------------Zhirkov-
--------------Drogba----------Torres----------------
Chelsea News, Chat , Downloads and More!
