Slipperduke
The Camden Cad
The lone figure on the touchline hunched his shoulders and pulled his long coat closer in the bitterly cold wind. Around him, 40,000 angry supporters howled at him in derision. "You don't know what you're doing!" they roared. "You don't know what you're doing!" The figure remained still, unmoved by the vitriol. Abuse from the masses is standard fare away from home, but this was Avram Grant and these were his own supporters turning on him like a pack of stray dogs. Michael Ballack trudged off the pitch and straight down the tunnel, replaced by Nicolas Anelka, but by now the chanting had become more unpleasant. "Jose Mourinho!" they sang, "Jose Mourinho!" Still Grant showed no emotion. Three minutes later and with the Arsenal defence buckling under a twin-pronged attack, Didier Drogba lashed home the most vital of equalisers and Grant, unburdened and redeemed, let out a wild primal scream. It turns out that he might know what he's doing after all.
Make no mistake; the substitution changed the game. Chelsea opened up a barrage of long balls and Arsenal just couldn't cope. If it wasn't Anelka running onto them, it was Drogba winning headers and knocking them into danger areas. Arsene Wenger said afterwards that the loss of Bacary Sagna to injury, "disturbed the team," but he admitted that the Gunners just weren't good enough at the back. He was absolutely right. William Gallas, savaged by the home crowd with a continuous song so offensive that I can't even begin to suggest its lyrics in this newspaper, had a horrible afternoon. This was an unmitigated disaster for Wenger. With less than 20 minutes left on the clock, he was back in the title race and Chelsea were skidding off the track. Eight minutes later, the situation was cruelly reversed.
Arsenal certainly deserved more from this game. For much of the match they looked like the home team, pushing high up the field, pinging the ball around the pitch and constantly probing the Chelsea defence, looking for a way in. Unfortunately for them, when you're in a bad run of form you rarely get what you deserve. Arsenal have picked up just one victory in their last eight games and when you're battling for a title, form doesn't get much worse than that. Despite all the excitement and promise of the first half of the season, the young Gunners have fallen apart at the worst possible time. They will certainly have to win at Bolton next weekend to keep their flickering flame of ambition alight, but they will also have to avenge their FA Cup drubbing at Old Trafford and sink Liverpool at The Emirates. It's a tall order.
Didier Drogba, who has had a quiet season by his own standards, has timed his renaissance well. After clumsily spurning an early opportunity when put clean through on Manuel Almunia's goal, he toiled away without his usual histrionics and was rewarded when he fired home in the 72nd minute. This was the Drogba that we all admired last season, not the one who has been play-acting his way across the country all year. Hard-working, brave and, when the mood takes him, utterly clinical in the box. If Chelsea are going to chase United for the title, they'll need more of this from the big Ivorian.
The petulant, unloveable side of Chelsea came to the fore once again near the end of the game when goalkeeping coach Christophe Lollichon was sent down the tunnel for behaving like a six year old. The ball bounced out of play into his hands and, instead of returning it to Abou Diaby, he hurled it behind him into the crowd. Classy. Chelsea will win admirers for their resilience and mental strength, but while they continue to do things like this they will never be loved.
Avram Grant's face at the end of the game was a picture of satisfaction . He was written off by the press, including myself, and he was mercilessly abused by his own fans. His team selection cost Chelsea the Carling Cup, his substitutions cost him two points at White Hart Lane and he probably isn't particularly well liked by some of his players. Tonight though, it didn't matter. His tactical manouverings won the day for Chelsea. I still don't think he's the man to take this club forward, but it was difficult not to feel a little warmth in the heart as he bounded into the press conference with a big smile splashed across his jowls. Altogether now - "He does know what he's doing! He does know what he's doing!"
Make no mistake; the substitution changed the game. Chelsea opened up a barrage of long balls and Arsenal just couldn't cope. If it wasn't Anelka running onto them, it was Drogba winning headers and knocking them into danger areas. Arsene Wenger said afterwards that the loss of Bacary Sagna to injury, "disturbed the team," but he admitted that the Gunners just weren't good enough at the back. He was absolutely right. William Gallas, savaged by the home crowd with a continuous song so offensive that I can't even begin to suggest its lyrics in this newspaper, had a horrible afternoon. This was an unmitigated disaster for Wenger. With less than 20 minutes left on the clock, he was back in the title race and Chelsea were skidding off the track. Eight minutes later, the situation was cruelly reversed.
Arsenal certainly deserved more from this game. For much of the match they looked like the home team, pushing high up the field, pinging the ball around the pitch and constantly probing the Chelsea defence, looking for a way in. Unfortunately for them, when you're in a bad run of form you rarely get what you deserve. Arsenal have picked up just one victory in their last eight games and when you're battling for a title, form doesn't get much worse than that. Despite all the excitement and promise of the first half of the season, the young Gunners have fallen apart at the worst possible time. They will certainly have to win at Bolton next weekend to keep their flickering flame of ambition alight, but they will also have to avenge their FA Cup drubbing at Old Trafford and sink Liverpool at The Emirates. It's a tall order.
Didier Drogba, who has had a quiet season by his own standards, has timed his renaissance well. After clumsily spurning an early opportunity when put clean through on Manuel Almunia's goal, he toiled away without his usual histrionics and was rewarded when he fired home in the 72nd minute. This was the Drogba that we all admired last season, not the one who has been play-acting his way across the country all year. Hard-working, brave and, when the mood takes him, utterly clinical in the box. If Chelsea are going to chase United for the title, they'll need more of this from the big Ivorian.
The petulant, unloveable side of Chelsea came to the fore once again near the end of the game when goalkeeping coach Christophe Lollichon was sent down the tunnel for behaving like a six year old. The ball bounced out of play into his hands and, instead of returning it to Abou Diaby, he hurled it behind him into the crowd. Classy. Chelsea will win admirers for their resilience and mental strength, but while they continue to do things like this they will never be loved.
Avram Grant's face at the end of the game was a picture of satisfaction . He was written off by the press, including myself, and he was mercilessly abused by his own fans. His team selection cost Chelsea the Carling Cup, his substitutions cost him two points at White Hart Lane and he probably isn't particularly well liked by some of his players. Tonight though, it didn't matter. His tactical manouverings won the day for Chelsea. I still don't think he's the man to take this club forward, but it was difficult not to feel a little warmth in the heart as he bounded into the press conference with a big smile splashed across his jowls. Altogether now - "He does know what he's doing! He does know what he's doing!"
