Turbulent, unpredictable and chaotic, Andre Villas-Boas’ eight-month reign at Stamford Bridge will go down in the history books as anything but uneventful. What started as something so promising, heralded as the beginning of a new era in SW6, ended with the eventual European Champions looking like a shadow of their actual selves; dishevelled, demoralised and depressed. Continued…
Categories: Sam P (daspecial_1).
Tags: André Villas-Boas, Champions of Europe, Chelsea, Issues
By Sam
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03/07/2012 at 5:38 PM
The dust has nearly settled on the most tumultuous of seasons at Chelsea Football Club. The term European Champions still seems like it belongs elsewhere, to some other team and some other set of supporters. Just to confirm, Chelsea are the Kings of Europe. One more time. Chelsea have won the European Cup. The first London club to win the trophy. Have that North London. Even with the club sinking to 6th in the League who could argue that this was not our greatest ever season as a club? From the defeat at West Bromwich Albion to seeing Didier Drogba slot the winning penalty in Munich – has there ever been a greater turnaround at Chelsea? Entire polar opposites of the spectrum: football heaven and football hell. Continued…
Categories: The Harding Perspective.
Tags: Analysis, Atmosphere, Awards, Away Days, CFC, Champions of Europe, Chelsea, Didier Drogba, SayNOCPO, Stamford Bridge
Dear Mr Platini,
First of all, can I please thank you and your organisation’s premier competition for giving me some of the greatest nights of my life this season. I watched my team beat Napoli at home having been 3-1 down, watched them beat Barcelona at home, watched them heroically defend their lead in the Nou Camp, and watched them win the trophy in Munich. I’ve never known ecstasy like it. Continued…
Categories: Guest Contributor.
Tags: Away Days, Champions of Europe, Chelsea Away, European Cup, Issues, Munich, Trains, Transport
There will come a point in time when I sit down and explain to my children precisely what it means to be a Chelsea fan. I was told of the Kings Road swagger embodied by that ‘70s team and the legend of Osgood, Cooke, Bonetti and Harris; the sheer numbers of away support in the ‘80s and the rebirth of the club under Hoddle in the ‘90s. I will tell my children about a certain Russian who has transformed the club, a certain Portuguese manager who was a Special sort of One, the Italian with the eyebrow and the former player who delivered the European Cup. I will tell them of JT, Lampard, of Cech, Cole and the rest, but there will come a point where I tell them about the greatest and most complete centre forward this club has been blessed with. Continued…
Categories: The Harding Perspective.
Tags: Analysis, CFC, Champions of Europe, Chelsea, Didier, Didier Drogba, Drogba, European Cup, FA Cup, Farewell, History, Legend, Munich
Booking my Munich trip inevitably recalls earlier Chelsea trips to European finals. I was too young for Athens in 1971. Moscow will be fresh in many travellers’ memories (not for the right reasons) but the first European final for many Chelsea fans was the 1998 Cup Winners Final in Stockholm. When we qualified by beating Vicenza, five out of the six of us with season tickets immediately decided to go – me, The Curator, The Driver, Mark and Jem. Continued…
Categories: Intrepid Traveller.
Tags: Atmosphere, Away Days, Chelsea Away, Cup Winners Cup, Fans, Munich
A Chelsea team that has underachieved in the league against a background of player dissent, playing two games a week in April, with an FA Cup Semi final and a European semi final against Barcelona inside four days coming up? Sound familiar? Indeed it is. Welcome to April 1966. Continued…
Categories: Intrepid Traveller.
Tags: Analysis, Atmosphere, Away Days, Barcelona, CFC, Chelsea, Chelsea Away, Fans, History, Pre-Season, Stamford Bridge, Tactics
A failing restaurant, unaware of its own shortcomings, telephones a successful restaurateur and world class chef for help. The world class chef then troubleshoots the restaurant for a week, often pinpointing the owners’ lack of skill, the menu and ultimately the décor itself for the demise. So spins the familiar concept that is Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. This shambolic season has ultimately been the culmination of a slow burning fuse and its final explosion. Sadly there are no world class consultants we can turn to for an immediate turnaround. What a palaver. Continued…
Categories: The Harding Perspective.
Tags: Analysis, CFC, Chelsea, Issues
The next few months may well prove to be the most important of the Roman era. There are grave concerns from the terraces that this may be the season where the continual mismanagement of the club finally backfires spectacularly. The squad is bereft of the quality needed to truly challenge for the title. The robust presence of the old guard has all but faded with the likes of Cech, Terry, Cole, Lampard and Drogba performing well below their effervescent best. The team are hardwired to play to the power of Drogba and the goal scoring panache of Lampard. With Lampard having less of an overall impact on play and Drogba seemingly turning it on when he feels like the side have struggled to adapt to the changes Boas wanted to implement. While many feel Boas himself is swimming miles out his depth. Continued…
Categories: The Harding Perspective.
Tags: Analysis, André Villas-Boas, CFC, Chelsea, Tactics
Tottenham Hotspur 1 – 2 Chelsea 20/03/2007
Tottenham away is always the game many Chelsea fans look out for at the start of the season, however with this tie being a replay in the quarter final of the FA Cup the usual antipathy took on an extra dimension. Continued…
Categories: Callum West.
Tags: Atmosphere, Away Days, CFC, Chelsea, Chelsea Away, Fans, Shevchenko, Spurs, Tottenham
This is a ‘quick and dirty’ write up of a few salient facts (plus some personal opinions) of today’s CPO AGM. It is based on some notes I took plus my reference to my ‘live tweeting’ which thankfully was not curtailed this time. I would stress these are personal observations and interpretations, but where possible/appropriate I did try to check salient points with those who understand such matters better than I. They are not notes of the meeting, but notes from the meeting (there is a difference) as they do not pretend to be comprehensive. If there are any errors I apologise. Continued…
Categories: Intrepid Traveller.
Tags: AGM, CPO, SayNOCPO