Blues aren’t finished yetBy David Hamill
One thing you can say about Liverpool is that, despite their current shortcomings, they usually have a tireless work-ethic and functionality and for an hour they made it difficult for the hosts.
Javier Mascherano’s awareness and ability to snuff out the danger reduced the Blues to very few chances – until the Argentine lost possession cheaply in the opposition’s half and with him out of position, Chelsea exploited that extra space and scored through Nicolas Anelka on the break. Up until that point the home side had struggled to break through that barrier but when they did, their response was to sit back and allow a below-par Liverpool to pin them back in their own half – and that was disappointing. It was the old stereotypical Italian philosophy to hold on to what you’ve got that could have cost them. In fairness, Ancelotti’s teams are usually set up to be more positive without overdoing it. But their was some worried faces on the Stamford Bridge terraces in the closing stages and it was not until Florent Malouda netted the second in stoppage time when Chelsea’s supporters could fully rejoice.
Didier Drogba is a powerhouse that bullied Liverpool’s defence and his contribution in their two goals was ultimately the difference. However, in general play, there was a creative spark missing and Chelsea needed to wait until the visitors made the first significant mistake. Last weekend’s defeat at Wigan, followed by a lacklustre victory in Cyprus and their struggle to grab control of their win against Liverpool illustrate that Ancelotti’s side aren’t the finished article yet. But it’s about results and in terms of having something to build on in order to mount a serious challenge for the Premier League crown, the Blues are in a decent position, whereas Liverpool’s hopes are hanging by a thread. Fortunately for Chelsea, there seems to be weaknesses in the rest of the big four at the moment. The Anfield club’s flaws have been well documented, Arsenal are brilliant going forward but still fail to convince defensively while Manchester United have problems in goal and across midfield. Chelsea appear to have the least serious problems out of the four at the moment, and it could well be their year. It’s probably too late for Liverpool, but if Arsenal get their defence right, and United…well just do a United, then it might be too close to call. Tags: Chelsea, Stamford Bridge, Liverpool, Carlo Ancelotti, Javier Mascherano, Nicolas Anelka, Florent Malouda, Didier Drogba, Premier League Posted: |
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