Match reports
The Guardian, Kevin McCarra: “The road to the final against Manchester United in Moscow on May 21 was as long and hard as Chelsea expected. In their third Champions League semi-final against Liverpool since 2005 the Stamford Bridge team have vanquished Rafael Benítez’s side at last.”
Daily Telegraph, Henry Winter: “Frank Lampard last night struck [...]
Match reports
The Observer, Duncan Castles: “First, let us applaud Chelsea. Victory essential, their long, proud unbeaten home record on the line against a team almost every critic considers superior, and deprived of one of their driving forces by the death of his mother, this was a team that rose to the occasion.”
Sunday Times, Joe Lovejoy: [...]
Match reports
The Guardian, Andy Hunter: “Michael Essien’s first-half goal brought Chelsea a merited win to move them to within two points of Manchester United, albeit having played a game more, and the resilience that thwarted a late revival from David Moyes’ side gave their manager another statistic to throw at his legion of detractors at [...]
Match reports
The Times, Matt Hughes: “Chelsea got what they deserved after a dreadful first half and a lack of ruthlessness in failing to close down the game after Michael Essien had given them the lead in the 56th minute, and now face the unpalatable prospect of United winning the league at Stamford Bridge on April [...]
Match reports
Daily Telegraph, John Ley: “Another year, another semi-final. For the fourth time in five seasons, Chelsea reached the last four of the Champions League and they enjoyed some Turkish delight, albeit with two hardly impressive displays. At least it offers the club another - some would argue, their best - chance to finally claim [...]
Match reports
The Observer, Jamie Jackson: “Chelsea deserve a little of the stuff they sometimes lack - goodwill - for at least keeping the Premier League title race alive with this victory, which maintains the pressure on Manchester United. They deserved this win, though their performance was, like the match, hardly vintage. Still, with Arsène Wenger [...]
Match reports
The Times, Matt Dickinson: “It is as difficult to imagine Avram Grant in a fury as it is to picture a raging Bruce Forsyth, but the Chelsea first-team coach did blow his top at half-time yesterday. At the very least, he got quite cross. “When the players are sleeping you need to wake them [...]
- by Nick Benfield · Permalink · 3490 views · 139 comments
- Tagged: Alex, Avram Grant, Chelsea, Fulham, Jon Obi Mikel, Jose Mourinho, Juliano Belletti, Michael Ballack, Michael Essien, Premier League, Salomon Kalou, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Tal Ben Haim
Match reports
The Observer, Stuart Barnes: “After the Boxing Day goalfest against Aston Villa, Avram Grant’s side had lived on the edge again. Another draw would have been damaging to their chances of making up ground in the title race. Instead, this result, coupled with Manchester United’s defeat at West Ham, means they retain a strong [...]
- by Nick Benfield · Permalink · 2287 views · 61 comments
- Tagged: Avram Grant, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Joe Cole, Jose Mourinho, Michael Ballack, Michael Essien, Newcastle United, Premier League, Salomon Kalou, Scott Sinclair, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wayne Bridge
Match reports
The Guardian, Kevin McCarra: “The score, with a penalty for the visitors in the last minute, may have been tied up but this was a match in which logic unravelled to joyous effect. Only those with a vested interest can be immune to the delight of such a game. As the sides demolished one [...]
- by Tony Glover · Permalink · 2644 views · 65 comments
- Tagged: Alex, Andriy Shevchenko, Ashley Cole, Aston Villa, Avram Grant, Chelsea, Claudio Pizarro, Frank Lampard, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Gareth Barry, Joe Cole, Jon Obi Mikel, Martin Laursen, Michael Ballack, Michael Essien, Paulo Ferreira, Petr Cech, Phil Dowd, Premier League, Ricardo Carvalho, Roman Abramovich, Salomon Kalou, Shaun Maloney
Match reports
The Observer, Jamie Jackson: “Chelsea will take the three easy points from this outing against dire opposition, but will be cursing the straight arm that late substitute Michael Essien offered Kenny Miller in added time. The Ghana midfielder was sent off and Avram Grant faces the loss of a key player for three games. [...]
- by Nick Benfield · Permalink · 2101 views · 68 comments
- Tagged: Andriy Shevchenko, Arsenal, Avram Grant, Chelsea, Derby County, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Jon Obi Mikel, Manchester United, Michael Essien, Premier League, Ricardo Carvalho, Salomon Kalou, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Stephen Hunt, Steve Sidwell, Tal Ben Haim