From my seat: Chelsea (A)

A trip out to London for the last game of the season, London trips always stretch the wallet but it was the manager’s last game in charge and always a chance it might be the game where we at last win at the home of a team where the manager hasn’t won in all his 11 years of residency... and wouldn’t you just know it — he didn’t break that duck.

The faithful were in good voice and an early flare went up. Teams were announced showing Naismith had replaced Osman; otherwise, as you were from last week. I thought he may have put Hibbert right back and moved Coleman up one. The teams entered the arena and Moyesie was given a great welcome as he appeared.

The Blues were at it from the off and were pegging Chelsea back; just minutes in, a good move down the left saw Big Vic fed in the box and, whilst trying to hold Cahill off, had the ball pinched from him. Chelsea broke quickly with Mata who fed Ba on the right. With our attack being broken up and such a quick counter, our defence was stretched, to say the least, and Ba cut in and tried a cross shot that Howard must have dealt with a hundred times in training but today he somehow he let it bounce off him and Mata, who didn’t stop running and wasn’t tracked, was first to the ball and had the easy task of slotting home. He seems prone to crazy lapses from time to time yet it doesn’t seem to phase him as for the rest of the game he was more than adequate.

We could have done without that so early on but the faithful soon found their voices and the team responded in good joined-up fashion, with Gibson prominent in midfield, and he was involved in the move that should have brought an equaliser. He found Mirallas who fed Pienaar who found Baines then back to Gibson who played in the raiding Coleman down the right who took to the by-line and pulled it back for Naismith unmarked and a clear sight of goal from 6/7 yards hit it first time too high and too wide. ‘Hit the target’ I muttered.

The next well-constructed attack on the quarter-hour mark saw Baines rob Oscar, his intended ball was well read by a Chelsea defender put his touch gave the ball to Naismith who played a great one-two with Big Vic and strode on goal with the keeper bearing down ‘One-on-one’ — I thought "We never seem to get these" — but Naismith was coolness personified as he waited for Cech to go down and clipped over him into the net. Pandemonium from our end and another blue flare.

We were the better team and Mirallas forced our first corner, he took it and exchanged passes twice with Baines who then found Gibson on the edge, he took a couple of paces and hit one that hit the post and then hit Cech on the way out. I have now seen it in slow mo and went off Cech and hit the post again and out. The gods were not with us there.

A Coleman-Gibson linkup saw the latter find Mirallas at the far post and his shot-cum-cross was saved well by Cech. Chelsea had at best breakaways but they always looked purposeful but Distin was in good form and didn’t miss much. Mata, who was always dangerous, burst forward, exchanged passes with Lampard which split our defence and shot but Howard was up to it and parried away.

Just before the break we had another right good joined-up move, I do like to see these, Jags broke up an attack on half-way and fed Naismith who moved it on to Mirallas who found Pienaar who scampered across the pitch and fed Baines who took on Ivanovic and won the tussle and fed Pienaar running into the box, he exchanged passes with Big Vic and hit a shot on target but it hit a defender and went for a corner. What a move... sadly no goal at the end.

As the half was ending Chelsea again sliced through our defence with quick slick passes which ended with Mata feeding Lampard who luckily fired high wide and not so handsome, much to our relief.

Half-time: Most thought with a little luck and just that bit better finishing we could well have led by three. The chat was all about managers but surprisingly most were querying who knew what when, a fair point.

Second half started and right away you could sense this was a different Chelsea, a Chelsea that wanted to nail 3rd place. They were all over us like a rash. They forced a very early corner, it was their first. It caused a right melee in our box as players had wild kicks to clear but only got height not distance; it was pinball in the area but somehow the ball eventually found the hands of Howard who calmed things down.

Then, about 10 mins in, Jags went all Neville and played a perfect pass from our by-line to Ba on the edge of our box. He was clear and really should have scored but our man Distin in never-say-die mode dived in as he shot and the best they got was a corner which we cleared. If there is a competition for the worst inexplicable pass of the season Jags v Chelsea and Neville v Wigan will tie for it... or maybe Neville will just win because his ended in a goal against.

The manager sent on Jelavic and Heitinga for Vic and Naismith as Chelsea had been well on top but slowly we started to get back into the game and you could tell by the atmosphere now being created the faithful smelt a victory to break the managers duck.

On 70-odd mins, the new-look line-up created a great chance. Gibson over-hit a long ball aimed for Baines but found Ivanovic but he let the ball just get away from him and Baines was in like a robber’s dog and stole the ball and ran into the area, Jelavic had made a very intelligent run and was in the box unmarked, Baines saw him and delivered... but what happened next summed up Jelavic’s season. Jelavic seemed either to slide for it or lose his footing – either way, he missed a sitter.

A goal then and I am sure we would have had the points as we were looking the fresher at the back end of the game. Instead, it gave Chelsea hope and, when Baines came forward again and found Pienaar in midfield, he was easily robbed, Chelsea broke quickly again and Oscar put a cross in that Moses cleverly headed down to Torres who was better placed and he beat Howard at his near post. Sickener.

Never say die, the Blues came again when the Baines-Pienaar axis saw Baines get toward the bye-line and deliver a good cross that saw Jelavic soar above his marker and get a strong header on goal, unfortunately straight at the keeper who held it at the second attempt. Aaah! "A yard either side of the keeper" – how many times have I heard that?

Chelsea now went through the keep ball time wasting routines as the clock ticked down and at the whistle we could only dwell on what might have been, bit like our season really. Maybe if we could have swapped Rideout for Jelavic we could have at last beaten a top four side away as it was Rideout that got our last winner at the Bridge in a league match — and that was back in 1994. It’s not just Moyes who can’t win there.

MotM – Distin.

Overall I thought we played very well in parts – especially first half and, but for our now familiar frailties of woeful finishing and enterprise in the opponents box, allied to the odd mad moments in defence, we could and should have won today. In fact, if we could have put those right in some other matches, passports for Europe may have been dusted off. They tell me it’s lovely in Barcelona in November. Oh for consistency, Eh?

Well that’s it for this season, the manager already off to pastures new and us fans eagerly awaiting white smoke from Goodison Park.

I merely hope for the best; for sure, the new manager will face the same constraints as the last one. I can only hope he can find a way to keep us up there as Moyes has done. I have to say without being a massive fan of his – there again, I am not a fan of anyone – I just hope they do well and win things for us.

Moyes has built a first team that on its day can compete with the top four and I applaud him for that but, due to the way the club is at the moment, sufficient funds are never available to add the four or five players of sufficient quality to break that damned ceiling through having the required strength in depth. As much as I wish for it, I can’t really see it happening without some injection of investment or a take-over and it hasn’t looked like happening in the Moyes years so all I can do is support the manager that comes in and hope he has the Midas touch... In fact, that’s all we can do and I am sure most fans will give him a fair chance.

I have to say that I think David Moyes will be a hard act to follow so have a good Summer and hope we get back to Goodison with a smile on our face and ready to do it all again, warts and all.

UP THE BLUES

---

Reader Comments (11)

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer

About these ads