19 11 2006 Chelsea 1 West Ham 0
Another win but Chelsea were far from oustanding. In terms of chances, we should have won by two or three, but we
seemed to look very shaky at the back.
West Ham came to the Bridge looking for damage limitation playing 4-5-1 for most of the game. I cannot remember them
even having a shot on goal. The first half was a strange one, with the referee again making some odd decisions - giving
fouls here and then waving away appeals for similar incidents only moments later.
Chelsea squandered several chances. Robben was the main culprit. I don't know why, but the more I watch him play
these days the more I dislike his character and attitude. He is a great player but is not consistent enough at the moment.
I still feel that he thinks he is a prima donna. Arjen, you still have a lot to prove. When you miss an easy chance to score
and put passes astray you cannot complain about being left on the bench.
With Cech out, Cudicini has played pretty well up until this match. At the back the defence looked very jittery and
communication between Carlo and his central defenders was very poor. He missed several punches and catches from
corners. And with Manchester United to play this Sunday, I fear he will get pummeled on crosses from Ronaldo and
Giggs. Let's hope we are up for it then and concentrate 100% throughout the game.
Geremi, who I still feel is the best player to play right back at the kick, had another solid game. What I like about him is
his attitude. When he comes in, he does the job, and scored one of the goals of the season as West Ham dithered with
their defence over the free kick.
West Ham fans as usual only had three songs to sing. Blowing Bubbles, Stick Your Blue Flag Up Your Arse, and of
course my favourite, Big Fat Frank. The last song seems rather ironic considering the size of most of the West Ham fans
I saw giving it "large" on Fulham Road before the game. It's an even more ridiculous chant since they hate a player who
has moved to a rival club that they didn't even rate in the first place! Surely it just shows their jealousy of what might
have been had they not been so childish to one of their own players.
If they got behind their team more instead of spouting hatred against a team they will have no chance of competing
against in the next decade perhaps they wouldn't be fearing relegation! These same fans sang to Glenn Roeder that
they wished he had died when he had his brain tumour... now that is class! Not as classy as later when I had to attend a
friends' birthday in deepest and darkest Essex. They even have UV lights under pavement benches over there!
So on to two matches this week. Since the World Cup I have looked forward to returning to Germany. In theory, I would
not be disappointed if we lost if it meant Barca were knocked out of the Champions' League. However, stuff like this
could bite us in the bum. Werder Bremen are not a bad side at all and the irony would be if we met them in the latter
stages and they beat us! Ideally I would love to play Barca again in the Final, and give them a good hiding. Then on
Sunday we have our first really important match of the season. It is still early days, but with Arsenal stumbling (Newcastle
scored with their only shot on goal in the game!) it almost certainly looks like a two horse race already. Last season the
atmosphere there was fantastic - it was obvious the United knew that Chelsea were the team to beat. We lost 1-0 but
deserved more. In the end it didn't matter.
seemed to look very shaky at the back.
West Ham came to the Bridge looking for damage limitation playing 4-5-1 for most of the game. I cannot remember them
even having a shot on goal. The first half was a strange one, with the referee again making some odd decisions - giving
fouls here and then waving away appeals for similar incidents only moments later.
Chelsea squandered several chances. Robben was the main culprit. I don't know why, but the more I watch him play
these days the more I dislike his character and attitude. He is a great player but is not consistent enough at the moment.
I still feel that he thinks he is a prima donna. Arjen, you still have a lot to prove. When you miss an easy chance to score
and put passes astray you cannot complain about being left on the bench.
With Cech out, Cudicini has played pretty well up until this match. At the back the defence looked very jittery and
communication between Carlo and his central defenders was very poor. He missed several punches and catches from
corners. And with Manchester United to play this Sunday, I fear he will get pummeled on crosses from Ronaldo and
Giggs. Let's hope we are up for it then and concentrate 100% throughout the game.
Geremi, who I still feel is the best player to play right back at the kick, had another solid game. What I like about him is
his attitude. When he comes in, he does the job, and scored one of the goals of the season as West Ham dithered with
their defence over the free kick.
West Ham fans as usual only had three songs to sing. Blowing Bubbles, Stick Your Blue Flag Up Your Arse, and of
course my favourite, Big Fat Frank. The last song seems rather ironic considering the size of most of the West Ham fans
I saw giving it "large" on Fulham Road before the game. It's an even more ridiculous chant since they hate a player who
has moved to a rival club that they didn't even rate in the first place! Surely it just shows their jealousy of what might
have been had they not been so childish to one of their own players.
If they got behind their team more instead of spouting hatred against a team they will have no chance of competing
against in the next decade perhaps they wouldn't be fearing relegation! These same fans sang to Glenn Roeder that
they wished he had died when he had his brain tumour... now that is class! Not as classy as later when I had to attend a
friends' birthday in deepest and darkest Essex. They even have UV lights under pavement benches over there!
So on to two matches this week. Since the World Cup I have looked forward to returning to Germany. In theory, I would
not be disappointed if we lost if it meant Barca were knocked out of the Champions' League. However, stuff like this
could bite us in the bum. Werder Bremen are not a bad side at all and the irony would be if we met them in the latter
stages and they beat us! Ideally I would love to play Barca again in the Final, and give them a good hiding. Then on
Sunday we have our first really important match of the season. It is still early days, but with Arsenal stumbling (Newcastle
scored with their only shot on goal in the game!) it almost certainly looks like a two horse race already. Last season the
atmosphere there was fantastic - it was obvious the United knew that Chelsea were the team to beat. We lost 1-0 but
deserved more. In the end it didn't matter.
