downincognito

bridge over troubled water

Aug. 20 London Chelsea 3 (JT, FL, DD) Man City 0.
Aug. 23 Middlesbrough Middlesbrough 2 Chelsea 1 (AS).
Aug. 27 Blackburn Blackburn 0 Chelsea 2 (FL, DD).

Men get bored easily. Rich and spoilt brats, well, spare a guess. E! News wouldn't be in business but for Hollywood's disposable relationships and expensive freakshows. One hit is enough to get you a star on the much-publicised Walk of Fame. Two, fame itself.

A hat-trick is one of the most celebrated moments in any sport and nothing satisfies a striker more than the sight of the rival custodian going nuts thrice in the same game. Mourinho had the measure of the Premiership twice in a row and he would know more than anybody else that the third time is the trickier one.

And it shows.

Thankfully, the season opener was at home, Man City was the guest and Robben was fit. You can talk about all the millions spent on multinational talent but for me, Robben and J. Cole are the dudes who pump oxygen into Chelsea's system. Take em out of the picture and we look like sorry Wembley.

The A. Cole soap opera must have irked Bridge so much that he looked like a man possessed and hell-bent on proving a point. A similar vein was evident in Essien's game. The arrivals of Ballack and Mikel meant his job too was on the line. The rest of them were more or less on auto-pilot and 3-0 was the result.

Then came the trip to the Riverside. Sheva profited from Bridge's industry and all was well with the world. What followed was quite a disgrace. Everybody in a blue jersey looked like fatso Ronaldo in disguise and their casual passing game had an air of indifference about it more than the expected arrogance.

Boro played along for quite a while and the ticking clock forced them to go for broke. 2-1, game gone.

If the fans were expecting a backlash at Ewood Park, all they suffered was another snorefest. Bridge proved yet again why A. Cole would be another expensive folly. Bouhlarouz had a quiet debut. (Maybe it's time for Ben Thatcher to usurp the cannibal moniker.) Drogba came off the bench and stunned us all by staying on his feet and scoring an absolute peach. But it was far from an assured performance and a penalty saved the day for us.

More than anything else, motivation will be Mourinho's main challenge in his third season. And getting Robben and J. Cole back from the clutches of pretty nurses.

No wonder only five English teams have won the league thrice in a row. Winning can get quite boring at times.

posted by downincognito @ 7:39 PM 0 comments

reds draw first blood

Aug. 13 Cardiff Chelsea 1 (AS) Liverpool 2.

I was too busy getting lost at the crowded Chennai Central to catch the Community Shield live on the telly. Looks like I didn't miss much.

The cinematically-celebrated Madras Mail was kind enough to reach home on time, and I was able to watch Sheva incite a thousand riots back in Milan by making love to his brand new blue jersey, after slotting home Lampard's sublime offering.

Inevitably, leftback target No. 2 Riise was always gonna show us what we are missing and that crouching striker reminded us why we need Gallas more than he needs us.

The gaffers failed to shake hands, again, and the battle continues...

posted by downincognito @ 2:13 PM 0 comments

just for the record

Aug. 5 Chicago MLS All-Stars 1 Chelsea 0.
Aug. 8 Rotterdam Feyenoord 0 Chelsea 1 (FL).
Aug. 9 London Chelsea 1 (SWP) Celtic 1.

Five days, three friendlies and three different results. And it's kinda amusing to note that more than our strikers, the midfielders seem to know where the net is.

posted by downincognito @ 3:34 PM 0 comments

bluesed and confused

Another one slips away. For free.

Sporting highlights rarely linger in my memory but one that may survive the test of time was Hernan Crespo's last-minute wicked goal against Wigan in the Premiership opener last season.

The Argentine never reached his peak in our beloved blue jersey and looks like he never will. Now that the smileybaby's back in the loving arms of Internazionale, I shed another tear for another transfer gone wrong.

Not so long ago, an UEFA suit called us the enemy of football. Looks like the club is on an expensive mission to prove that he was dead wrong.

Throwing money around like a drunk at an LA stripclub, Chelsea has been busy stuffing the pockets of Jean-Michel Aulas, Adriano Galliani etc. And donating Duff and Crespo, making many wonder if Christmas has kicked in earlier.

Aulas taught the world that taking Chelsea for a ride was kid's play and the soap opera goes on. Andriy Shevchenko is somebody I very much admire... in fact revere. But £30m for somebody aged 30!?!

It looks like the protracted Ashley Cole saga's going to end in similar fashion. I wouldn't be surprised if we make Wenger go nuts by shelling out £25m AND William Gallas for snapping up Tweedy's hubby.

I bet Karl-Heinz Rummenigge is busy cursing cats and dogs for letting Ballack slip away for nothing.

Sheva's creaking limbs may be more than enough to stuff the likes of Watford and Reading and we might win another league title but this utter lack of logic in our business dealings will come back to haunt us someday.

posted by downincognito @ 3:21 PM 0 comments