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03 10 2007 Valencia 1 Chelsea 2
Chelsea proved the doom and gloom merchants wrong in Valencia and put in a very solid performance mainly thanks to
the return of the defensive partnership of Terry and Carvalho. Valencia were very poor indeed and only scored following
a defensive blunder my Ferreira.
Before the game the hatred for our new manager was clear. No fan had anything positive to say about him, but the
general tone ranged from "let's get behind the team - there is nothing we can do now" to "I hope we get relegated so all
the JCLs piss off". I am more in the former group.
Valencia is a fantastic city: friendly fans, cheap brew and by the sea. We flew over from Heathrow via Barcelona and had
the privilege of Ray Wilkins being on the same plane! It was nice to know that Ray is happy enough to share public
transport with us plebeians!
The day began outside an Irish Bar (surprise, surprise!) in the heart of Valencia. Three hours before the game we
decided to walk to the stadium to take some pictures and sober up. And what a strange stadium it is! There is something
that strikes me about Spain every time I visit: I have no idea how anything is built among the mix of chaos and splendour.
My moment of the day came when I stood in front of some police horses to get my picture taken, only to notice one of
them eating the corner of the flag I was holding up! After walking up the twenty flights of stairs to the away end (I was not
the only one struggling) and sweating with alcohol all I could do was sit down and expect a 3-0 thumping. Speaking to
Valencia fans before the game it was strange that they similarly lacked confidence in their own team too. And their fears
were founded as the two-thirds full stadium fell silent when Drogba scored the winner.
So we won a game which on paper was very tough. Liverpool losing at home to Marseille made the night even sweeter.
Now we have some important aways: Bolton and Boro. Let's hope we continue the good form - I am still in shock that we
won last night. But is it the quality of the team that is carrying Avram or vice versa? We shall see....
the return of the defensive partnership of Terry and Carvalho. Valencia were very poor indeed and only scored following
a defensive blunder my Ferreira.
Before the game the hatred for our new manager was clear. No fan had anything positive to say about him, but the
general tone ranged from "let's get behind the team - there is nothing we can do now" to "I hope we get relegated so all
the JCLs piss off". I am more in the former group.
Valencia is a fantastic city: friendly fans, cheap brew and by the sea. We flew over from Heathrow via Barcelona and had
the privilege of Ray Wilkins being on the same plane! It was nice to know that Ray is happy enough to share public
transport with us plebeians!
The day began outside an Irish Bar (surprise, surprise!) in the heart of Valencia. Three hours before the game we
decided to walk to the stadium to take some pictures and sober up. And what a strange stadium it is! There is something
that strikes me about Spain every time I visit: I have no idea how anything is built among the mix of chaos and splendour.
My moment of the day came when I stood in front of some police horses to get my picture taken, only to notice one of
them eating the corner of the flag I was holding up! After walking up the twenty flights of stairs to the away end (I was not
the only one struggling) and sweating with alcohol all I could do was sit down and expect a 3-0 thumping. Speaking to
Valencia fans before the game it was strange that they similarly lacked confidence in their own team too. And their fears
were founded as the two-thirds full stadium fell silent when Drogba scored the winner.
So we won a game which on paper was very tough. Liverpool losing at home to Marseille made the night even sweeter.
Now we have some important aways: Bolton and Boro. Let's hope we continue the good form - I am still in shock that we
won last night. But is it the quality of the team that is carrying Avram or vice versa? We shall see....
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
