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Boring they might be but effective they definitely are. 21 wins from 28 games and foruitously perhaps he has maintained that incredible home record.

As Jonny_Stokes mentioned on the poker thread, it's the player who loses the fewest chips who wins the tournament. In the Champions League, it's not the team who puts in the most dazzling performance who wins but the team who prevents the oppositon from beating them and that is something that Chelsea, frankly, are almost unparallelled at from what I've seen int he competition so far.

Odds-wise, they're closing in on Barca who I think might take a bit of an upset tonight.

EDIT, just noticed my stats are old but the record's continued at a similar rate since I think.

When it comes to the crunch Chelsea cant hack it though!
 
Chelsea are boring but, sadly effective in their boringness. I hope they draw a decent side in the next round and get taught a lesson.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slipperduke
Ashley Cole was one of a only a few players who occasionally threatened, but then it’s about time he impressed while playing away, isn’t it?
*wonders if the Singaporeans are a bit too wholesome to get the double-entendre...*

:finger:

Who cares, this and cccsiders post in the Safo Soley thread have certainly brightened up my afternoon.

:)
 
Arsenal rue missed chances

How can two goalless draws be so different? Chelsea’s blank with Olympiakos on Wednesday morning was so desperately dull that it could have come straight from Dante’s sixth circle. This, though, was so different. Still no goals to write about, but it was never anything less than pulsating. Only The Emirates can serve up a nil-nil thriller. It shouldn’t have been such a surprise. There was so much talent on display here and so many legendary names on the field. This was football at its highest level.

The Gunners were dominant in possession throughout, but just lacked the killer touch to make it all count. Time and time again they tore through on goal, but every shot seemed to zero in on reserve goalkeeper Zelkjo Kalac‘s gloves. The Australian has only just recovered from dislocating a finger and must have expected to be severely tested by the Arsenal strikers, but the examination never materialised. Arsene Wenger could have stapled Kalac’s feet to the centre of the goal and he’d still have saved everything that came his way.

Arsenal were much improved from their weekend disappointment, though given how absolutely awful they were at Old Trafford, that isn’t saying very much. Back came the first choice full-backs Bacary Sagna and Gael Clichy and it made a world of difference. With Armand Traore and Justin Hoyte out of the picture, the nervous, rabbit-in-headlights style of defending was eliminated. Gone too was the endless procrastination on the edge of the box, searching for the perfect goal. Here, everything was whipped into the penalty area in the hope that Emmanuel Adebayor could get a head on it.

No chance. AC Milan have the meanest defence in Europe and they lapped up the barrage of deliveries. It’s easy to see why Rafa Benitez put up such a fight when the Gruesome Twosome refused to let him sign Kahka Kaladze in January. The Georgian centre-back was indomitable and rarely let Adebayor have more than a split second to decide what to do. He and the equally impressive Alessandro Nesta were steadfast in the face of an ongoing assault on their penalty area.

Carlo Ancelotti had dropped the veteran striker Filippo Inzahgi and replaced him with the much heralded Alexandre Pato and I’m delighted to tell you that his name means, quite literally, Alex the Duck. Unfortunately for Milan, barring a few nice touches, he didn’t quite take to the game like a…erm…you-know-what to water. He is quick and skilful to an almost supernatural degree, but the 18 year old didn’t find much room against William Gallas and Philippe Senderos, who replaced the injured Kolo Toure early on. He didn’t find any new friends in the stands either, the home support merciless in their criticism of his behaviour. He repeatedly crashed to the floor under the lightest of challenges and then stayed sat on the turf, sulking and holding the game up. When he was carried off with 15 minutes to go, the Arsenal fans howled in anger and quite rightly. As soon as the stretcher came to rest, Pato hopped up and took his seat on the bench. Not quite the lame…erm…well, you-know-what.

After Internazionale’s late capitulation at Anfield on the previous night, this Milan were determined not to yield. Adebayor’s late header may have finally eluded the clutches of Kalac, but instead of sealing the game, it hammered out off the crossbar instead. Arsenal were simply destined not to score. They stretched the European Cup holders more than most teams ever will, but without an assassin’s touch in the six yard box, they will travel to Italy in a fortnight, knowing that they have to score.

This was a good night’s work for Arsenal and a welcome recovery from their weekend debacle, but it will certainly go down as a missed opportunity. This is a glorious young football team, of that there is no question, but are they so good, so clinical and so composed that we can call them great? On March 4, at the San Siro, we will find out.
 
Cheers mate. That was a tricky one. The Emirates was so over-subscribed that I had to sit in an overflow area behind the fans. Everytime something happened, they all stood up and I couldn't see a thing. I also realised how much I rely on the little tellies they give you in the pressbox!

I haven't seen any feedback on the Singapore forums about the Millwall piece. The paper went quite big on it, a whole double page spread with pics, but I'm yet to hear whether they liked it or not!
 
Slipperduke said:
I haven't seen any feedback on the Singapore forums about the Millwall piece. The paper went quite big on it, a whole double page spread with pics, but I'm yet to hear whether they liked it or not!
Is it on-line ?? If it is, don't be so modest - post a link :)
 
I was trying to do my, "Now as I walk into the valley of death," face, but it came out as, "Now as I walk to the fridge for pies."
 
He is quick and skilful to an almost supernatural degree


Another quality read as ever Sir Slipper!


Although in a Hattrick stylee i think he's more along the lines of Magical/Utopian :D

Slightly scary photo though, looking like Bill Bailey with more hair!
 
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I was trying to do my, "Now as I walk into the valley of death," face, but it came out as, "Now as I walk to the fridge for pies."

Can't believe you didn't have room for my salmon & rocket sandwich photo!

:cry:

*another note to Slip - you need a lap-top, so you can go and sit outside to write... you look a bit pasty in that pic!*
 
The Curse of Spurs

The Forth Bridge in Scotland is a magnificent sight. A mile and a half long, it’s an immense, yet beautiful assembly of blood red steel bars and rivets carrying hundreds of trains a day over the wonderfully named Firth of Forth. It is said, usually by locals eager to fool a gullible traveller, that a team of maintenance workers spend their lives re-painting that bridge. It takes them seven, long years to work their way across the structure and when they reach the end they have to get a bus back to the other side and start again. It’s not strictly true, of course, but it does give you an insight into what it must be like to support Tottenham Hotspur.

Some teams are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness repeatedly snatched away from them. Whenever Spurs look like they’re getting somewhere, something goes wrong and they have to start all over again. They’re the only team to have been stuck in a transitional season since 1992, mainly because a succession of chairman have had trigger fingers so itchy that some kind of soothing balm may be called for in the Director‘s Box.

It doesn’t help that, at some point in the club’s history, a vicious curse was invoked causing every bright, young prospect to be struck down by injuries. Paul Gascoigne left Newcastle for Tottenham and turned his knee inside out in the FA Cup Final. Perky winger Darren Anderton came in shortly afterwards and picked up more injuries on his own than most clubs accumulate over the course of a season. Anderton was the ornament in the shop that your parents won’t let you touch in case you break it. Stefan Iverson was highly rated, but presumably made of fibre-glass and now poor Gareth Bale is up on bricks. It still startles me whenever an up-and-coming starlet signs for Spurs. Are they not aware of the inherent risks involved in playing for this club?

Sometimes it’s the Tottenham fans who are to blame for the under-achievement. George Graham was the last man to win silverware at White Hart Lane, but he was never accepted by the supporters because of his Arsenal connections. Graham rebuilt the defence on the ruins of the Christian Gross era and turned the club from relegation contenders into a sturdy mid-table outfit. Not good enough, barked the crowd. He was replaced by Glenn Hoddle whose arrival was deemed to be the Second Coming, but just two seasons later the fans were demanding a Second Going.

Tottenham’s modus operandi is to perfect one area of the squad, while remaining blissfully unaware that another department is deteriorating. In the 2005-06 season, the rearguard of Paul Robinson, Michael Dawson and Ledley King was as good as any in the land. Unfortunately, neither Mido or Jermaine Defoe could seem to forge a first class partnership with Robbie Keane. Fast forward to the beginning of this season and Dimitar Berbatov and Keane were almost telepathically linked, but Robinson was rapidly turning into Marlon Brando, King was being rebuilt in the garage and Dawson was gibbering at the sight of an oncoming striker. Tottenham are like a plate spinner on his first day at the circus.

This weekend’s Cup Final marks a high point in the brief, but impressive reign of Juande Ramos, but it does it also mark the point of no return? For any other club in the country, a cup win is usually a good indicator of future success, but at Spurs it’s the harbinger of doom. This football team, like the Forth Bridge painters, are sentenced to a lifetime of repeating and repeating, never being allowed to settle, never being told that they’ve finished. I happen to think that they’ll win the League Cup on Sunday night. They’re in scintillating form and they have enough about them to give Chelsea some serious problems. But you just watch how the next six months unfold. Watch as they unravel at the seams and thank the Football Gods that you’re not doomed to support them.
 
Spurs Superior To Baffling Blues

We all chuckled when Jonathan Woodgate claimed that he joined Tottenham in order to have a chance of winning trophies but, appropriately enough, it was the former Middlesbrough centre-back who delivered the long-suffering club their first silverware in nine years at Wembley Stadium.

“Scoring that goal gave me one of the best feelings ever,” beamed Woodgate. “I’ve not won anything in the game so to land this trophy after beating such tough opposition is great.”

Tottenham were forced to hang on and endure a nerve-jangling period of extra-time with Chelsea peppering their goal, but this team are now made of stern stuff and they eventually crossed the finishing line for a deserved victory.

“In the last 15 minutes the players couldn’t carry on,” said Juande Ramos afterwards. “We had no option but to defend.”

When he first arrived at White Hart Lane in October, Ramos was known to be disappointed with the fitness levels of his new players and he immediately put them on a new diet and exercise regime. On some players, like Paul Robinson and Tom Huddlestone, the effect was visible within weeks, but this was the day when the expansion of energy reserves became apparent across the entire squad. Tottenham were the only team in the game in the final ten minutes of normal time, repeatedly surging across the pitch, tearing their exhausted rivals to pieces.

Wembley was ablaze with colour with almost 90,000 fans packed in for this, the 48th League Cup Final. Special flags had been left in every seat and as the kick-off approached, the arena was cut into two halves, one blue, one white, both so loud that the lid of my laptop was vibrating with their noise. The Tottenham fans made the most of the occasion, consistently outsinging their rivals. Try telling any of them that this competition doesn’t matter.

Avram Grant was savaged in the post-match press conference for his team selection and rightly so. Chelsea never looked comfortable and there was no structure to their formation. Nicolas Anelka was isolated on the left and Shaun Wright-Phillips seemed unsure of how far up field he was supposed to be. Every time he pushed up, Tottenham exploited the gap and savaged the hapless Brazilian full-back Juliano Belletti. When he ran back, Chelsea had no right flank. On the other side, Anelka saw so little of the ball that he could have sat and made daisy-chains for all the good it would have done.

When asked if his decision to try out Anelka and Didier Drogba for the first time in a Cup Final was a gamble, Grant scoffed.

“I like your question, but football is not a casino. There is no gamble here. If I don’t play them, you ask me why. If I do play them, you ask me why. They can play, they can be dangerous.”

This was a serious point that would have carried far more weight had it not been delivered by a man who, slumped in his seat as he was, looked like he’d bet everything he had on black, only to watch the ball land, inevitably on red. It wasn’t the only gamble to backfire. John Terry came in for Alex and the marking at set-pieces was substandard. Frank Lampard replaced Michael Ballack and failed to impose himself upon the game. Joe Cole, Chelsea’s most creative player, was left on the bench. Avram Grant has succeeded at Stamford Bridge so far for the simple reason that he has been a steady hand on the tiller and has left Jose Mourinho’s team to their own inertia. At Wembley, he actually had to make some calls of his own and, to the dismay of Chelsea’s fans, he got all of them wrong.

Ramos, in comparison to Grant’s crestfallen grumpiness, looked the same way he always does. Calm, composed and in control. Through his ever-present interpreter he stuck to his usual policy of handing out hastily translated platitudes, breaking character only briefly to laughingly inform us that his Tottenham players’ diet no longer restricted the consumption of champagne. “I have already had a glass with my team,” he laughed, “and you didn’t even know.”

After masterminding such an impressive victory, Ramos deserves to have a bottle of the bubbly stuff to himself. He was a serial winner in Spain with Sevilla and now he is a winner here in England with Tottenham Hotspur. With the prospect of a third UEFA Cup in a row in his sights, you can bet that he isn’t finished by a long way just yet.

Unfortunately for Grant, somewhere in this vast stadium, sat a Russian gazzilionaire who doesn’t like losing. Grant’s Chelsea were no more entertaining than Mourinho’s, but significantly they were less successful. It’s a bad combination. Grant may not think that gambles exist in football, but Roman Abrahomivic might and if he has to watch any more insipid performances like this, he may decide to bet on someone else to lead his team instead.
 
Gallas Is A Girl

Arsenal’s season has been thrown into jeopardy by the loss of Eduardo to a horrific injury, but that may be only the start of their problems. The loss of William Gallas to a disturbing and hysterical breakdown may be even more costly. Eduardo, as good as he was, was just a player. Gallas is supposed to be the captain, the figurehead of the football team and a leader of men. This weekend proved that he is not fit for such a responsibility.

Arsene Wenger is as wise a man as you will find in football, but it is now apparent that his decision to award the captaincy to the French defender was a hideous error of judgement. Captains do not run away when last minute penalties are awarded against their team. They do not react to goals by kicking advertising hoardings to pieces and they certainly do not burst into tears on the final whistle. Granted, everyone was upset by the terrible injury to Eduardo, but it is no excuse for this. Gallas is 30 years old, but his behaviour on Saturday indicated that his mental age is significantly lower. If your six year old son exploded like that in a park game, you’d be disappointed in him. For a professional athlete to behave so appallingly is beyond contempt.

Can you imagine John Terry bawling his eyes out like that? Absolutely not. Terry may be a serial complainer, but at least he plays like a man. Terry watched Petr Cech’s skull cave in at Reading last season, then saw his replacement Carlo Cudicini carried from the pitch on a stretcher an hour later. Did he run around screaming and booting Playstation adverts? Nope. He calmly rallied his troops, got in goal himself and helped Chelsea to hold out for a unlikely 1-0 win. Cech nearly died in brain surgery that night and, without wanting to diminish the seriousness of Eduardo’s injury, the situation at The Madjeski Stadium looked significantly bleaker than a badly broken leg. That’s the time for leadership, not hysteria. Likewise, when things are going against Liverpool, Steven Gerrard chooses to try the audacious, the impossible, anything to bring his team back into the ascendancy. It doesn’t always work, but it’s considerably more constructive than throwing a tantrum.

Worryingly for Arsenal fans, there are deep chasms appearing in their side now. With the score at 2-1, Emmanuel Adebayor had a perfect opportunity to provide an open goal for his strike partner Nicolas Bendtner, but instead of unselfishly laying the ball off, he chose to shoot and missed. Bendtner was furious and with some justification. Clearly, something is rotten in the state of their relationship. Where is their captain when he is needed? Oh, he’s over there on the sidelines, pretending to be the Incredible Hulk.

Arsenal’s players are young and they need guidance on the pitch but how can they look respectfully towards Gallas now? Men are curiously tribal creatures, always looking either for supremacy, or for an alpha male to follow. Gallas may have been designated as the leader by Wenger, but consciously or not, every man in the dressing room will now know that he is no longer worthy of the label.

Respect is everything, especially at this stage of the season. Imagine yourself on John Terry’s team, knowing that if nothing could shake him, then nothing could shake you. You’d follow him to the gates of hell. The only place Arsenal will follow Gallas to is second place in the table. Wenger must act now.
 
Arsenal’s season has been thrown into jeopardy by the loss of Eduardo to a horrific injury, but that may be only the start of their problems. The loss of William Gallas to a disturbing and hysterical breakdown may be even more costly. Eduardo, as good as he was, was just a player. Gallas is supposed to be the captain, the figurehead of the football team and a leader of men. This weekend proved that he is not fit for such a responsibility.

Arsene Wenger is as wise a man as you will find in football, but it is now apparent that his decision to award the captaincy to the French defender was a hideous error of judgement. Captains do not run away when last minute penalties are awarded against their team. They do not react to goals by kicking advertising hoardings to pieces and they certainly do not burst into tears on the final whistle. Granted, everyone was upset by the terrible injury to Eduardo, but it is no excuse for this. Gallas is 30 years old, but his behaviour on Saturday indicated that his mental age is significantly lower. If your six year old son exploded like that in a park game, you’d be disappointed in him. For a professional athlete to behave so appallingly is beyond contempt.

Can you imagine John Terry bawling his eyes out like that? Absolutely not. Terry may be a serial complainer, but at least he plays like a man. Terry watched Petr Cech’s skull cave in at Reading last season, then saw his replacement Carlo Cudicini carried from the pitch on a stretcher an hour later. Did he run around screaming and booting Playstation adverts? Nope. He calmly rallied his troops, got in goal himself and helped Chelsea to hold out for a unlikely 1-0 win. Cech nearly died in brain surgery that night and, without wanting to diminish the seriousness of Eduardo’s injury, the situation at The Madjeski Stadium looked significantly bleaker than a badly broken leg. That’s the time for leadership, not hysteria. Likewise, when things are going against Liverpool, Steven Gerrard chooses to try the audacious, the impossible, anything to bring his team back into the ascendancy. It doesn’t always work, but it’s considerably more constructive than throwing a tantrum.

Worryingly for Arsenal fans, there are deep chasms appearing in their side now. With the score at 2-1, Emmanuel Adebayor had a perfect opportunity to provide an open goal for his strike partner Nicolas Bendtner, but instead of unselfishly laying the ball off, he chose to shoot and missed. Bendtner was furious and with some justification. Clearly, something is rotten in the state of their relationship. Where is their captain when he is needed? Oh, he’s over there on the sidelines, pretending to be the Incredible Hulk.

Arsenal’s players are young and they need guidance on the pitch but how can they look respectfully towards Gallas now? Men are curiously tribal creatures, always looking either for supremacy, or for an alpha male to follow. Gallas may have been designated as the leader by Wenger, but consciously or not, every man in the dressing room will now know that he is no longer worthy of the label.

Respect is everything, especially at this stage of the season. Imagine yourself on John Terry’s team, knowing that if nothing could shake him, then nothing could shake you. You’d follow him to the gates of hell. The only place Arsenal will follow Gallas to is second place in the table. Wenger must act now.

Virtually the same as Steve Howard's column in the Sun today. Is Slipper Steve Howard?
 
Arsenal’s season has been thrown into jeopardy by the loss of Eduardo to a horrific injury, but that may be only the start of their problems. The loss of William Gallas to a disturbing and hysterical breakdown may be even more costly. Eduardo, as good as he was, was just a player. Gallas is supposed to be the captain, the figurehead of the football team and a leader of men. This weekend proved that he is not fit for such a responsibility.

Arsene Wenger is as wise a man as you will find in football, but it is now apparent that his decision to award the captaincy to the French defender was a hideous error of judgement. Captains do not run away when last minute penalties are awarded against their team. They do not react to goals by kicking advertising hoardings to pieces and they certainly do not burst into tears on the final whistle. Granted, everyone was upset by the terrible injury to Eduardo, but it is no excuse for this. Gallas is 30 years old, but his behaviour on Saturday indicated that his mental age is significantly lower. If your six year old son exploded like that in a park game, you’d be disappointed in him. For a professional athlete to behave so appallingly is beyond contempt.

Can you imagine John Terry bawling his eyes out like that? Absolutely not. Terry may be a serial complainer, but at least he plays like a man. Terry watched Petr Cech’s skull cave in at Reading last season, then saw his replacement Carlo Cudicini carried from the pitch on a stretcher an hour later. Did he run around screaming and booting Playstation adverts? Nope. He calmly rallied his troops, got in goal himself and helped Chelsea to hold out for a unlikely 1-0 win. Cech nearly died in brain surgery that night and, without wanting to diminish the seriousness of Eduardo’s injury, the situation at The Madjeski Stadium looked significantly bleaker than a badly broken leg. That’s the time for leadership, not hysteria. Likewise, when things are going against Liverpool, Steven Gerrard chooses to try the audacious, the impossible, anything to bring his team back into the ascendancy. It doesn’t always work, but it’s considerably more constructive than throwing a tantrum.

Worryingly for Arsenal fans, there are deep chasms appearing in their side now. With the score at 2-1, Emmanuel Adebayor had a perfect opportunity to provide an open goal for his strike partner Nicolas Bendtner, but instead of unselfishly laying the ball off, he chose to shoot and missed. Bendtner was furious and with some justification. Clearly, something is rotten in the state of their relationship. Where is their captain when he is needed? Oh, he’s over there on the sidelines, pretending to be the Incredible Hulk.

Arsenal’s players are young and they need guidance on the pitch but how can they look respectfully towards Gallas now? Men are curiously tribal creatures, always looking either for supremacy, or for an alpha male to follow. Gallas may have been designated as the leader by Wenger, but consciously or not, every man in the dressing room will now know that he is no longer worthy of the label.

Respect is everything, especially at this stage of the season. Imagine yourself on John Terry’s team, knowing that if nothing could shake him, then nothing could shake you. You’d follow him to the gates of hell. The only place Arsenal will follow Gallas to is second place in the table. Wenger must act now.

completely agree... reminds me a bit of when newcastle chocked and man utd won the title. it was there for arsenal to get one hand on the cup when all adebayor had to do was square it to bendtner, and when clichy has a nightmare but still wins the ball... he wants his captain to support him, not go schizo on the sidelines. what a ballbag, and i think it's over for arsenal now
 
Virtually the same as Steve Howard's column in the Sun today. Is Slipper Steve Howard?

I plead innocence! I haven't read The Sun today!

I did sit almost opposite him at the workstations in Wembley yesterday though, so maybe we sort of bonded a bit?
 
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