Chelsea v Napoli – In Depth Preview/Tactical Analysis
Introduction
Chelsea land in the Italian port city of Naples hoping to steady a rocking ship, as they take on Napoli in the first leg of the first knockout round of the Champions League on Tuesday night. With the Manchester giants gracing the hallowed pixels of Channel 5 and Arsenal succumbing to an Italian job of their own at the hands of AC Milan, the Blues will hope to be the sole English torchbearers at the quarterfinal stage of Europe’s premier club competition.
Manager Andre Villas-Boas will go into this match with question marks over his future at the club following another inept performance against Birmingham City in the FA Cup on Saturday. Chelsea’s last game in the Champions League (a 3-0 win over Valencia) came during our best period of the season, which also involved wins over Manchester City and Newcastle. However, the team has failed to live up to those standards with no wins in our last 5 games. Incidentally, City were pipped to the knockout stage by Napoli, who secured a home win and away draw against the English league leaders.
The storywriters of Fleet Street have already been putting forward names to replace the 34-year old Portuguese manager. However, he has reiterated this week the support he enjoys from Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich for his long-term project.
Injuries/Suspensions
Captain John Terry and left-back Ashley Cole remain injury doubts for this game with the latter being a more likely starter. The manager was able to rest Michael Essien at the weekend, and he will also have been pleased to have Ramires and Mikel back from injury, and forwards Drogba and Salomon Kalou from the African Cup of Nations. This certainly gives AvB more options in midfield and attack than he has had in the past month or so.
If Terry and Cole are not able to return for this match, we can expect a similar back four as against Birmingham, with the possibility of AvB throwing in Jose Bosingwa as left-back. He has played in that position before, with a decent level of success.
Napoli Tactics
Napoli usually line up in a 3-4-3 formation, with a counter-attacking approach well drilled into their system by coach Walter Mazzarri. They will however be without their boss for both the legs, as he is serving a ban for pushing Villareal forward Nilmar during a group stage game.
The Italians like to get men behind the ball while defending, with the wing-backs closing in to congest midfield. They look to counter-attack quickly with their front three of Marek Hamsik, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani, who are all sought after by the best clubs in Europe. Chelsea have, at some point in the recent past, been linked with each of these players. They form a highly fluid and potent trio, with Hamsik and Lavezzi tending to support the prolific Cavani, who has 15 goals in Serie A and 4 in the Champions League this season.
Chelsea Tactics
Villas-Boas could go with the uncharacteristic approach of sitting back and counter-attacking which served us so well in the must-win game against Valencia in December. In recent years, teams in the Champions League have found success with keeping a clean sheet at home and applying pressure through the threat of away goals in the second leg. This could lead to a cagey encounter with both sides looking not to concede an advantage in the first half of this two-legged tie.
Expectations
Chelsea would be very happy to nick an away goal, and Napoli’s back three would be well suited for Fernando Torres to play against. On a fairly big San Paolo pitch, his running in the channels could provide opportunities for the Blues if the wide players are able to stretch the three-man defence. Napoli’s weak link is their defence, which includes Paolo Cannavaro, younger brother of Italian World Cup winning captain Fabio.
Torres or Drogba
However, Villas-Boas will probably opt to leave out the confidence-shot striker and go with Drogba up front instead. The advantage of Drogba is that he can create chances for himself out of nothing, while Torres tends to rely on service from teammates, which has been hard to come by since his arrival from Liverpool. It might be worth remembering, though, that the Spanish striker has 2 goals and a few assists in this competition this season, and his best games for Chelsea, by far, came against Bayer Leverkusen and Genk.
Fimal Thoughts
In the past few months, Chelsea have been guilty of not being able to convert possession into genuine goalscoring opportunities. AvB will look for a creative spark from playmaker Juan Mata in the city that was the stomping ground of two other greats of similar physical stature – Diego Maradona and Gianfranco Zola. Stamford Bridge is no longer the threatening fortress it once was, and it would be a Herculean task to overturn a first leg deficit, especially with the danger of away goals. All signs point towards a boring 0-0 draw but as we have seen this season, sensible predictions have come to nought in a bizarrely random fashion.
Come on you Blues!
Probable line-ups:
Chelsea (4-3-3) -
Cech; Ivanovic, Cahill, Luiz, Cole; Essien, Ramires, Lampard; Mata, Sturridge, Drogba.
Napoli (3-4-3) –
De Sanctis; Britos, Cannavaro, Aronica; Maggio, Inler, Dzemaili, Zuniga; Hamsik, Lavezzi, Cavani.
Everton v Chelsea Match Report – Poor, Frustrating and Pathetic
Chelsea suffered their first defeat of 2012 at Everton today to fall out of the Champions League places after a dismal afternoon at Goodison Park.
The Blues can have no complaints, however, as the 2-0 loss was no more than the performance merited. The loyal supporters that made the long journey up north will feel let down by the side that had let slip a three-goal advantage against Manchester United the previous week.
Manager Andre Villas-Boas had the services of Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard available after suspension and injury respectively, and both slotted straight back into the first eleven. The Chelsea boss opted to leave out Gary Cahill and play Jose Bosingwa at right-back, with Branislav Ivanovic moving to the centre of defence to partner David Luiz.
The January signing, whose last appearance for Bolton included a winning goal against the Toffees, will have been disappointed to miss out after a good showing against Man United. Michael Essien was deployed in the defensive midfielder role alongside Raul Meireles, with Lampard playing ahead of them.
The start of the game was ominous as a misplaced Lampard clearance fell fortuitously to Steven Pienaar in the penalty area. The South African winger, who recently returned to Everton on loan from Tottenham, showed great composure to find space between Ivanovic and Bosingwa to smash the ball into the roof of the net.
The 5th minute goal temporarily shocked the Blues of London out of their reverie and the next 20 or so minutes proved to be the best phase for Chelsea. The catalyst of this brief spell was again Juan Mata, who found pockets of space inside the tight defensive unit of Everton.
His pull backs from wide areas created two of Chelsea’s best chances, with Daniel Sturridge and Frank Lampard going close on both occasions. Another cross from the diminutive Spanish forward was punched weakly by Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, but the resulting Luiz effort hit a solid wall of Everton players.
Meanwhile, Chelsea were also creating chances at the other end…..for Everton. Sloppy possession in the defensive third led to a couple of decent Everton efforts, with Ashley Cole, Petr Cech and Raul Meireles being the main culprits.
The midfield trio of Essien, Meireles and Lampard were struggling to put passes together and all were guilty of surrendering possession to Everton under no pressure. The one-goal advantage played to Everton’s advantage as they were able to put men behind the ball and soak up the Blues pressure. They were also aided by a lack of creativity from Chelsea.
Bosingwa got into good crossing positions on the right wing, but his delivery was poor, except one floated ball which was headed towards goal by Fernando Torres, but it was an easy save for Tim Howard as there was no pace on the ball.
The former Liverpool striker was again being provided no service by his supporting cast, and his own efforts inevitably proved in vain as he was crowded out by the Everton defenders.
Towards the end of the first half, he did manage to make his way into the penalty area, which resulted in a penalty claim as he felt he was impeded but referee Mike Jones waved play on. Torres continued his protests even after the half-time whistle.
The second half started much as the first half had ended, with Chelsea unable to convert possession into goalscoring opportunities. This has been the story of Chelsea’s season so far.
Everton were happy to sit back, but did create some half-chances with decent interplay between the likes of Pienaar, Baines and Donovan. Soon, Fernando Torres went into the book for a trip on Pienaar to join Meireles and Bosingwa.
Ivanovic was lucky to escape with a ticking off from the referee after an altercation with American international Donovan. The first substitution of the match came on 68 minutes with Michael Essien making way for Florent Malouda.
This allowed Mata to play in a free central role behind Torres, which had worked well previously. However, a majority of the traveling support would have preferred to see the departure of the inept Meireles. Essien at least appeared to be trying to make things happen.
This was quickly followed by Everton’s second and clinching goal on 71 minutes. Phil Neville won a well-contested challenge with Ashley Cole and the ball fell to Donovan who slipped in Denis Strasqualursi. Goalkeeper Petr Cech got a hand to the Argentine’s shot and will be disappointed to have let in that goal.
The challenge on Ashley Cole also left the England left-back limping, and he was replaced by 22-year old Ryan Bertrand, with striker Romelu Lukaku also coming on to replace Chelsea’s only hope, Mata.
The Blues supporters made their displeasure known to the manager with a chant of “you don’t know what you’re doing.” The game ended tamely as Chelsea pressed forward with no effect. The day was made worse by news that Arsenal had come back from a goal down at Sunderland to jump above Chelsea to fourth place.
Questions will be asked of the Blues manager on his failure to motivate his players and stubborn selection choices. Despite the indifferent form in recent months, the Blues faithful has largely been willing to give AvB the time to build his so-called “project”. But the direness of the performance, more than the score itself, has raised doubts amongst many supporters.
The frustrated chants and social media posts will not go unnoticed by owner Roman Abramovich who has in recent days renewed his day-to-day involvement in club activities after his high-profile court case.
Although the Russian billionaire seems to be committed to giving AvB time to establish his principles on the club, a potential league finish outside the top four will mean his job will come into question. The manager will have to get his act together to ensure Chelsea progress in the FA Cup and Champions League, while securing a place in the league’s top four.
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Chelsea v Everton – Line Ups
Chelsea Line Up
Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Luiz, Cole, Essien, Meireles, Lampard, Sturridge, Torres,, Mata
Subs: Turnbull, Ferreira, Bertrand, Cahill, Mikel, Malouda, Lukaku
Preview
Chelsea travel to Goodison Park for a Saturday 3pm kick-off against Everton looking to overcome the disappointment of losing a three-goal home advantage to defending champions Manchester United last Sunday.
Despite United’s comeback being aided by questionable refereeing decisions, the Blues and manager Andre-Villas Boas will consider it two points dropped.
So for today’s action I will start by telling you that you can predict the score and scorers today with Bodugi and win.
Back to the serious stuff, there is some positive news for the Chelsea boss, however, as he has Frank Lampard and John Mikel Obi in the 20-man squad that travelled to Liverpool on Friday. Ashley Cole is also back from a one-match suspension.
Captain John Terry and midfield engine Ramires remain on the sidelines but are expected back for the FA Cup encounter with Birmingham City the following weekend.
Much ado has been made about the recent visits to the training ground of owner Roman Abramovich, but there does not seem to be too much danger to Villas-Boas’ job with both owner and manager having a common long-term vision for the club.
Everton has turned into a bogey side for the Blues in recent years, with our last league win at Goodison Park coming during the 2007/08 season. The Toffees also tend to provide a stern test at Stamford Bridge.
However, Chelsea have won both our previous meetings this season, including a 3-1 league win at the Bridge and a Daniel Sturridge-inspired victory in extra time in the fourth round of the League Cup at Goodison, both in October.
The Blues of Merseyside have been active in the transfer window, with the signings of target man Nikica Jelavic from Glasgow Rangers and trigger-happy midfielder Darron Gibson from Manchester United, while Steven Pienaar and Landon Donovan have returned to the club on loan.
Also crucially from Chelsea’s point of view, perennial pest Louis Saha has left for Spurs on a free transfer.
The presence of Donovan and Pienaar (as well as forward thinking left-back Leighton Baines) provides Everton with attacking threat from wide positions, so AvB will be happy to see Ashley Cole return at left-back.
It could also prompt him to stick with the solid option of Branislav Ivanovic over the unreliable Jose Bosingwa at right-back.
January signing Gary Cahill should be the likely option to partner David Luiz at the heart of the Chelsea defence after a solid showing against Manchester United on his first starting appearance.
Despite the absence of Jack Rodwell, Everton will line up with a formidable midfield of Marouane Fellaini, Darron Gibson and Tim Cahill, so AvB could opt to leave out Raul Meireles who appeared out of his depth in the holding role during Man United’s onslaught in the second half last weekend.
It will be interesting to see if the successful ploy of using Juan Mata in a free central role is continued. There were signs of a potentially deadly partnership developing between the Spanish wizard and his compatriot Fernando Torres, exemplified by a superb Torres-assisted Mata goal.
January started brightly for the Blues, with three wins from the first three games, but ended with three consecutive draws in the league, which have seen us come perilously close to dropping out of the top four, and only four points ahead of Liverpool in seventh.
This could be a crucial weekend in the race for Champions League qualification, as the teams either side of us, Tottenham (third) and Newcastle (fifth), go head to head at White Hart Lane. Arsenal face a tough away trip to Martin O’Neill-led Sunderland, while Liverpool travel to Old Trafford.
A win could see the Blues get back on the track of securing Champions League football for next season. Chelsea fans might also want to keep an eye on Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou and co as their Ivory Coast team takes on Zambia in the final of the African Cup of Nations on Sunday.
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Queen’s Park Rangers Vs Chelsea F.C FA Cup 4th Round – LINE UPS
This is set to be a highly contested derby. With matters of alleged racist abuse gaining all the attention, the focus will be fully on John Terry and Anton Ferdinand.
Chelsea lost on their last visit to Loftus Road, with the Blues having two men sent off in the first half; by a ref who has came under question all season.
Both chairmen have issued statements warning fans not to engage in behaviour that will be deemed as unacceptable. The fans will be hyped up all throughout the match and both clubs are hoping to avoid any confrontation outside the stadium.
Chelsea will be touted as favourites for this match, but this does not mean QPR will not threaten throughout. Joey Barton will look to dominate the midfield and possibly try to wind up our players. It is our players job not to react to his mind games.
Gary Cahill looks likely to make his début in this game and with Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba still on Africa Cup of Nations duty, it again leaves Romelu Lukaku and Fernando Torres in a battle for the centre forward position with Juan Mata and Daniel Sturridge set to provide support on the wings.
Confirmed Chelsea XI-
Cech, Ivanovic, Luiz, Terry, Cole, Ramires, Meireles, Malouda, Sturridge, Torres, Mata.
Categories: Matches Tags: Anton Ferdinand, Cahill, Cech, Cole, Essien, Ivanovic, John Terry, lampard, Mata, Racism, Ramires, sturridge, Terry, Torres
Why Speed Is The Key Against Wolves Today!
Right so after the Aston Villa debacle we now travel to Wolverhampton to face a side scrambling for points at the other end of the table.
In recent years this would be an away banker with the bookies but after a brief rally against Newcastle and Man City, confidence has again vanished and Wolves will fancy their chances.
Today seems to have added importance than a usual away fixture as we are desperate for a win to maintain our sanity and avoid sliding further down the league.
I hope to see Fernando Torres start against Wolves; he has performed well in his last few games despite not scoring and with Drogba off to the African Cup Of Nations, now is as good a time as any.
Like most of our rivals we can expect Wolves to park the metaphorical bus today, playing 5 in midfield and looking for a 0-0.
Therefore we need to move the ball quickly and avoid playing into Wolves’ hands by slowing the ball down and looking for the perfect pass.
We need to use the whole width of the pitch to stretch Wolves and look to counter quickly should they apply any pressure at our end.
In summary speed is the key, come on the Chels, lets get back on track today!
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