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Arsenal (League Cup) - Let's all laugh
at Arsenal!
Yes we certainly have the fizz to reach Wembley and Vialli's men even
tasted bubbly before coming out on to the pitch
As I mentioned before, following our recent run of form and losses
against Arsenal, I had my doubts about this game. However the recent
upheavals at the club, ensured a different mindset and overall
different performance than we have enjoyed of late. The whole maxim
that a team does well under a new manager proved true again last
night. It was a different Chelsea. A different Arsenal. A different
atmosphere at the Bridge as well.
There was buzz of confidence around the ground last night. Anyone
there will acknowledge this. As both sets of fans passed each other
seperated by the wire fence between the Matthw Harding Stand and thee
West Stand. The expected insults and abuse were coldly exchanged.
'Chelsea scum!' 'Where's your manager gone!' etc were heard along
with abusive language and spits. They were responded with a song
about Arsene Wenger's alleged sexual habits. It was also
acknowledged i the chants that most of the gooners were not in
colours. A few hot blooded fans were reminded to behave by the police
nearby.
The atmosphere before the game was electric. Chelsea were in full
song. The game turned out to be a resurgence of Chelsea's form which
blazed the premiership alive earlier this season. We totally
outplayed out fought out thought and out gunned the Gunners. They
hardly had an attempt on goal and never really looked like scoring
anyway. They looked a bit intimidated which was surprising bearing in
mind there good record against us this season. They were more
affected by the managerial changes than us and probably did not know
what to expect. It was a joyful experience just being there and I am
still exhausted.
Those poor gooners who tried to sing 'one team in London' were put to
sleep after the third goal went in. 'Stand up if you're three nil
up!' echoed around the goal, followed by 'one team in Europe'. The
most poignant chant which rubbed it all in was:"Let's all laugh at
Arsenal!". Oh to be a gooner that night. No wonder few of them were
wearing colours. They wanted to blend into the background and
disappear out of sight. To compound their misery the rout rendition:
"Your not very good!" was warmly chanted, along with "F*ck all, your
gonna win f*ck all!" and "Are you totnum in disguise!". Case closed
as far as Arsenal are concerned.
I enjoyed this game more than others. We finally beaten those
bummers who bragged how they were no 1 team in the capital and that
we could not beat them. We did not just beat them we outclassed them
with style. And came to life when it mattered. Yes the goose pimples
were running down my back and even now as I type this.
Following the sending the dismissal of Veira in a hot tempered match
(which did not disrupt our game plan ) the Arsenal fans closest to
the incident began throwing missiles - tin cans bottles - on to the
pitch. This provoked the home fans more and the passion went over to
boiling point. We knew they were out then and the two quick goals
immediately afterwards proved the point.
Yes it was also great to be back in my favourite part of the ground
the beloved Mathhew Harding stand lower. It went crazy when the goals
went in, some of us got carried away and were on the pitch. Yes the
stewards could tell the difference between exhuberance and trouble and
everyone was back in their places without any fuss. One of the
stewards was jumping up and down and singing with us! Truly a night
to be remembered.
Vialli proved he is just a masterful tactician as Ruud (before our
slump in form) and out thought the 'academic' Wenger. Graham Rix was
acknowledged as well as the fans sang his name later in the second
half. It was probably another dig at the Arsenal fans that a former
player had h help to mastermind their cup exit.
After the game I went up to Drakes. When it became clear who are
opponents would be a chorus of "Can we play you every year!" rang
out. I was buzzing and was later interviewed live in the Chelsea
radio studios. They called me after the game and I demanded and got
this privilege after witnessing such a performance, and by barging
into their offices. Yes I was on the air for over ten minutes and did
the David Mellor discussion another once over, after that prat's name
was mentioned. [sorry Peter, I should really say the dishonourable
ex member for Putney;-) ] trivia point. Why does Mellor always have
on wrinkled trousers? He is used to wearing them around his ankles.
We are the Chelsea and we are the best!
Viva Vialli!!
TOP
Arsenal (league) - At
least we're still second!
..Some small comfort we can still hold on to in order to keep the old
spirits up.
Well I heard it being said that by closing down Chelsea is the best way
to beat them, which is what Andy Gray is apparently telling everyone.
Why doesn't Gray tell the truth? The definite way to beat Chelsea is to
ensure their game is screened live on the channel he works for. Why
doesn't he use that as a plug for Sky, as well as stating a fact? Surely
an advertiser's dream?
Well I went to the game even though it was live on the SeeChelsealose
Channel. There's nothing like being there when one knows in advance
three points appears unlikely. I got a ticket curtesy of a tout for
forty quid - face value sixteen pounds. Having a laugh? Yeah, the touts
were for sure. Well I suppose they are doing a service and lining their
pockets in the process.
My seat was in the East lower adjacent to the clock end, so I was not
too far away from our fans. That raises another question. Were any
Chelsea fans actually there? The atmosphere was dead, it was like we
gave up all hope upon arrival. Very unlike Chelsea. Perhaps the reason
for the graveyard impressions, was that the same fans probably witnessed
us lose there a week ago, and that left a cloud of subdueness hanging
over us. The Arsenal fans were up for it and were clealy convinced that
the only outcome would be a home win.
The behaviour of the fans probably reflected or encouraged what happened
on the pitch depending on one's point of view. It was one way traffic
with the ball hardly leaving our half. The early incident where Bould
pulled down Vialli, the ref erred on the side of Arsenal, with a yellow
card when a sending off was appropriate. The resulting freekick was
defelected for a corner. Well even if Bould was rightfully given his
marching orders it would be debatable whether it would have made much
difference in any case. I beleive that was our only serious goal
attempt for the whole game. We were not doing enough (or more precisely
anything at all) to get anything from the game.It was a poor
performance, amongst the worse we have played so far this season. One
could argue we played better at Everton because we did at least get a
goal. For the second away game running (on Sunday and on Sky) the home
fans sang 'Your not very good' and to be honest they were right. But we
are still second, the league table does not lie.
In the second half Le Saux was given a lot of stick by fans in the
East lower as he was on the left wing. The chants of 'Le Saux, takes it
up the arse!'was heard whenever he had the ball along with a whole
torrent of abuse and whistles. For a moment I very nearly got up to
shout back: 'Le Saux, kick em up the arse!', when the chants first
started further down the stand. By the time the chant was repeated,
everyone around me was standing and joining in, so perhaps I was
fortunate that I paused before opening my mouth. It can be easy to
forget that you are supposed to pretend to be neutral when sitting with
the opposition.
As mentioned earlier the Gunners fans were confident and the taunts
showed. The away fans were silent. To compound matters they sang their
version of 'One man went to mow' to it's entirety: 'One man went to
laugh, went to laugh at Chelsea'. They were having a laugh at us all
right. It was the first time I've heard it and is probably one of the
better anti Chelsea songs. The omens do not look good for us based on
this performance, for the second leg of the fizzy semi final, which I
believe is our next game. We need to create a more passionate
atmosphere for that match that is for sure, otherwise all they need to
do is just turn up to get to wembley. Wake up Chelsea fans we need a
zigga zagga performance.
One omen is perhaps worthy of a mention. The year Arsenal last won the
title despite having two points deducted, we were the only team to do
the double over them in the league. I wonder if this means anything.
Time will tell.
TOP
Barnsley - and they
didn't win 6-5 here either!
That was what I said to a fan at the final whistle. For some reason the
last five minutes dragged on to nearly fifteen. The game finished at
just after five to five. I could not figure out where all the time added
on came from. Either the referee - Mr Winter, had a watch that did not
work, or he was using a 'stop' watch. Perhaps he wanted to allow
Barnsley time to make the said prediction, which they sang when we
played them in our second game of the season, come true. I noted how he
was criticised by David Mellor on his handling of the game, and I would
have to agree. Charvet's booking for delaying throwing the ball back was
on called for. He should have booked Barnsley's Neil Thompson, who went
down like he was dying following a challenge by Vialli. As soon as the
undertakers came on the field with the stretcher, he revealed he was a
vampire in disguise and came back to life. Such play acting to get a
player cautioned alone warrants a booking.
This was a game we had to win and should be able to win with loss of
form or even a weakened team.One again Vialli did the biz and scored
around 20 minutes and Mark Hughes likewise in the second. The so called
'instigator of the players revolt', according to the press, talked the
talk and walked the walk. We dominated the game and the visitors rarely
threatened Lan in goal. Only during 'extra time' they forced him to make
a fine save to tip an header over the bar. One would have feared that we
may lose concentration and concede a goal, but the clean sheet no doubt
helped us to go second whilst sharing the same numher of points as
Liverpool and Blackburn. Charvet played okay in his first home game and
Dennis Wise late substitution (around 89 minutes) to be replaced by
current whipping boy (or should I say reggae boy) Frank Sinclair,
brought much surprise and even a few boos.
Ruud certainly does not want anyone to feel out of favour. What's wrong
with Lambourde or Myers?
Again the result does go to show how the doom and gloom on this list is
not justified. As Andy Sennitt so accurately pointed out, real crisis is
to be found at clubs like Doncaster and Brighton and not with us. The
league table shows this. Chelsea are second and catching up with Man Utd
who dropped points. We are the top team in London so much to Arsenal
fans singing: "one team in London!" when we meet.(btw I'll be wearing an
appropriately designed t shirt for the home tie of the fizzy cup) They
would love to swap positions with us as well as a host of other clubs.
As Kenny Dalglish said during the title battle whilst at Blackburn: "The
pressure is at the bottom and not at the top". Thankfully the days of us
being in the top flight only to feature in relegation dog fights are
over.
Critics will point out, and it has already been noted on this list, that
so far we have failed to beat any top 5 team. I would argue that we have
not been push overs for any of them. Against Blackburn we should have
won the game with the amount of chances but were unlucky. Against Man
Utd away we should have won- the ref gave them the first goal and we
gave away the second. Against Arsenal in the league it was a close game,
the dismisall of Beefy cost the result, but our performance that day
showed both teams are worthy of top 5 status as there was not much
difference between them. The Liverpool game we blew it due to
Lambourde's early dismissal where we took of Zola who was on top form
then and the team's shape changed. Liverpool played well in any case.
Having said that, we can afford to lose against the top 5 teams who will
always be a match. It is how you perform against the lower teams that
matter. We had bad results against Southampton, Everton, Bolton,
Wimbledon and Leeds.
Sitting again in the East Upper one has an excellant view of the whole
pitch and can spot the shape, tactics and pattern of the team quite
clearly, as well as individual performances. However, I do miss the
atmosphere of the Matthew Harding stand. However, from reading in the
Ken's programme notes it will be season ticket only next season. If the
date of purchasing STs clashes with the ECWC final (should we get
there), and the club does one of its three hundred pound holiday
packages for the final, I wont be able to go. I love Chelsea but I also
love eating as well, and being on the list which means one has to make
sure their phone, electric and internet providers bills are also met.
It would be more than likely that the STs prices will go up from last
year as well.
Btw does anybody know Paul Sweeney? It was announced just after half
time that he was to go home immediatley because his wife was locked out.
That announcement triggered off roars of laughter. I wonder what we will
hear next: "Your dinner is in the dog?"; or, "Your wife says, 'Dont come
home, you can spend it at the same place you were last night'?" The mind
boggles.
That night I again went to the Tots club in Southend, scene of that
controversial event on the night of the Arsenal game. Whilst there I met
I member of the Chelsea list whom I had never met before. He apparently
'recognised' me from the said posting. The Ruud t shirt does stand out.
We had a great time there didn't we? I have been accused of becoming a
legend on this list, I hope I do not become one in the minds of that
club's management. For the first ever, I was asked by the security, to
stop dancing! Apparently everyone was watching me make a prat of myself
instead of going on the dancefloor! I did not go to that after rave I
mentioned in Basildon. This was because: (1) a couple of the boys were
knackered, (2) one had to get home because his wife does not trust him
spending the night out 'with the lads', (3) one lucky bloke could not
wait to get back to London, so he could drive back to Southend and spend
the night with some bird who game him her address. No, that man eating
old dragon was not there, she's only allowed in on Wednesdays. However
my experience has started a cult. A group of the lads are all going down
next Wednedsay, at the last count 12! The old man eater will have an
handful (or mouthful) if she can remember her phone number.
Celery, Celery,
If she dont come
they'll tickle her bum
with a lump of celery.
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Everton
Why is it that we always lose when we feature on a live Sunday
game on
Sky? The only exception was our second game of the season away at
Barnsley, and when we played the Saints in the midweek fizzy cup tie.
Maybe our players are camera shy or doing some kind of demo to get Sky
to lose interest in us so a new deal can be reached with another cable
company.
Senseless jokes apart, another typical Chelsea, play well one week,
against Coventry and poorly the next. Consistent, yes most definetly. We
are consistent at being inconsistent at the worst possible times.
However, we have something most of the other teams would die for, a
consistent place in the top three, despite our poor form. Liverpool and
Arsenal must be kicking themselves.
As usual my instincts or six sense told me it was not going to be our
day. The day before I went to the box office to buy the match and coach
tickets. However, they told me they sent back over a thousand unsold
tickets which would be on sale on the day, so the only ticket I got was
for the coach. Also my barber who does the Chelsea pattern on my head
was still away, and so was my lady freind who does my pineapple top and
ties the scarf around it. So I went to the game improperly dressed. I
got to the ground at 9am to get the coach. I got on the coach which for
some reason left half an hour early at 9.30. I assumed maybe there were
others, and it took a slightly different route stopping off again at
Victoria to pick up passengers. It was only when someone came around
asking for fares that I realised I was on the wrong coach! Yes it was a
'Chelsea' coach taking fans to the game but it was not the official club
one, which I had a ticket for. However, they were cheaper at 18 pounds
compared to 24. I may stick with them in future. They did not charge me
for the forward journey, and enjoyed watching Con Air on the coach
video. Great film by the way.
On arriving, I bought my ticket at the ground, and exchanged friendly
banter with police and scousers who seemed to like my original t shirt,
before making my way to Arkles to meet other listees.
Back to the game. You can tell that I am procastinating and
fillibustering before I do the report. Anyone who saw the game will know
why. The game was scrappy in the first half. We had most of the ball
thanks to Everton giving it away but we were not creating any clear cut
chances. It was great when Flo scored from what was really our first
clear cut effort. However, Everton scored within a couple of minutes a
scrappy goal which our defence failed to clear properly. I did not see
them scoring judging from their game so far but it showed that battling
on will seek rewards if the other team are not tempted to roll their
sleeves up. I dont know what was said during the interval but the home
side seemed more up for the job and we played like the premiership was
upside down - they were the title chasers and we were in a dog fight
near the bottom. Maybe the goal before interval done the trick and
ensured their confidence remained high as they ran us ragged. Lambourde
played well you can tell he is determined on keeping his place. So did
Le saux. Hughes battled on as expected but was closed down and the
arrival of Gullit despite momentarily lifting the team with some fine
touches failed to do the trick which worked so well against the Sky
Blues. Poor Frankie Sinclair, again he did not play well and the crowd's
anger and frustration must have got to him, as he soon realised he was
the loose link. I should not give him too much stick because the whole
team's performance was poor.
Great atmosphere in the ground though, we were taunting them with 'Your
going down with the totnum!' to which they warmly applauded. Whenever
you have a go at the other team early on it is all the more galling when
you are made to eat humble pie later. (remember Coventry last week,
"stand up if you're one nil up" and "you're even worse than United")
Everton sang quite rightfully though, "you're not very good!"
to which we responded with "we're not going down!" about the only thing
we were right about that day. Another point to note which I was happy to
see. This was perhaps the first game I have been to where I did not hear
the 'obligatory': "who the f*** are Man Utd?" and "stand up if you hate
Man Utd". (If Beckam gets up your nose, just ignore him. dont have a go
at his spice bird with that sick song. If he really warrants a dig turn
the abuse at him with: "Does she know that you're an arse?") These
boring old chants were commented on in the Chelsea Birmingham fanzine
which I bought at the ground. I only hope the trend continues for the
good of the game. (BTW it was nice to meet other Chelsea fans from
around the country who I sat with: Wales, Manchester, Leeds, the north
east and even Chelsea scousers!)
After the game as I made my way to the right coach, an Everton fan came
up to me and was happy to discuss the game. He praised the Chelsea team
especially Lebouef and we had a good chat. It does prove the point that
scourser can be a freindly bunch. I dont know if that had anything to do
with the result:-
Well at this rate, we should be in for a fine performance against
Barnsley. However being the premierships whipping boys we should not
underestimate them as they did something we repeatedly fail to do: win
at Anfield. I only hope our form in the cool calm & collected (ccc) cup
continues with a result against the arse.
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