8:45 01/03/2011 Chelsea vs Manchester United
"Did any1 see the Ipswich game
yesterday? Pitch covered in
snow... so how was that game
played and ours (premier league)
is postponed?"
Thus spake 'Rioferdy5' to his
massed "tweeps" of his disquiet
that this match did not take
place when originally scheduled.
It should have been played on a
wintry December Sunday, the
week before Christmas, yet a
Saturday snowdrift caused the
match to be postponed over 24
hours before it was due to be
played, and some pictures of a
not-particularly snowbound
Fulham Broadway caused a
number of conspiracy theories.
Whatever happened in that
instance, for Chelsea not to play
Manchester United at that time
was seen to be a good thing for
the Londoners, in the light of the
worrying slump that may or may
not have had much to do with
the departure of Ray Wilkins.
Three months on, and it would be
expected that Chelsea would
once again be in rude health. And
with the addition of £75 million-
worth of talent, that expectation
could only be enhanced.
Yet Chelsea still have a troubled
air about them, and that lurch
towards disaster has not been
fully corrected. This has been a
bad news season for the club,
with the weekend's latest set of
revelations asking further
questions of just what is going on
behind the scenes. For Ashley Cole
to be larking about with an air
rifle is ludicrous enough. For him
to be doing it the day after his
penalty miss had sent his team
packing from the FA Cup hardly
suggests a focused group intent
on making amends for a poor
season.
Last week's stroll at Copenhagen
lifted morale, and sparked the
umpteenth suggestion of
recovery in the ranks, a state of
affairs soon nixed by the story of
Cole's stupidity. They face a
Manchester United team who are
lucky to be able to field Wayne
Rooney, who has escaped the
electrocution his manager
predicted as well as a three-
match ban for an injudicious
elbow on Wigan Athletic's James
McCarthy.
So United's win at the weekend
came with some cost, that of
goodwill and further inquiries into
what still looks a distracted state
of mind. The DW Stadium provided
a rare away win for Rooney's
team, and it is a set of tough
away fixtures that will decide if
they can reach the perch-
knocking grand total of 19 league
titles. Chelsea come first, before
Anfield at the weekend, while
Arsenal on May 1 has the air of a
possible title-decider. United will
also have to play this match
without the services of the
aforementioned social network
enthusiast as his calf is still
playing up.
When these teams were originally
due to meet, this had the look of
a table-topping clash, though now
Chelsea are fighting for the
retention of their Champions
League status while pinning all
their hopes on winning that
trophy for the first time.
United are top by virtue by being
the most consistent of what has
looked a distinctly vulnerable
bunch of contenders, their know-
how and experience acting as
their prime asset. With a trip to
Old Trafford set for May,
Chelsea's say in the title race has
already been confined to that of
kingmakers and not contenders.
Manchester United player to
watch: Chris Smalling
Barely a fortnight ago, the 21-
year-old South-East Londoner
won himself rave reviews with a
hugely assured performance in
the Manchester derby that has
had many hailing him as the heir
apparent to Rio Ferdinand. He is
on a steep learning curve but has
yet to let down his manager,
whose signing of a player not
even regarded as first-choice at
Fulham has looked as shrewd as
any 'value' signing he has made in
recent years, with cap doffed to
Javier Hernandez. Smalling now
needs to prove he can
consistently produce, as United
enter a vital week of fixtures.
Chelsea player to watch: David
Luiz
He does not just stand out for
that mass of bouncing curls, for
his was a thrilling first start for
Chelsea at Fulham, give or take a
rash challenge that almost
handed the Cottagers victory.
Luiz is an all-action, perpetual
motion player whose drive from
defence often added a new
dimension. His coaches will likely
force him to quell his desire to
play too much football when in a
defensive position but he looked
a worthy successor to Ricardo
Carvalho and also showed that at
full-back he can provide menace
down the flanks. How he will be
used in only his third game for his
new club is likely a question at
the forefront of Carlo Ancelotti's
probably rather troubled mind.
Key battle: Fernando Torres v
Nemanja Vidic
If Nemanja Vidic were ever a
disciple of Jack Charlton, he would
likely have the Spaniard at the
very front of his black book.
Torres has given the Serb the
most disastrous days of an
otherwise excellent Manchester
United career, sent off twice
when fielded against the £50
million man, amid a miserable
disciplinary record against
Liverpool. Now he faces Torres in
a different shirt and will probably
have to face his arch-nemesis
twice more this season. The pair's
2010-11 season could not be
more contrasting. Torres has
struggled all year, while Vidic is
favoured to be Player of the
Year, having embraced his
captaincy of United and led from
the back. If history is to play a
part and allow Torres to make his
Chelsea bones and score his first
goal in a blue shirt, he will need
to revive his best Liverpool form
and hope Vidic still fears him.
Trivia: A man whose legend grows
the more he is away from
Chelsea, Ray 'Butch' Wilkins
captained the Blues at just 18,
but was sold to United in 1979
for £800,000 to pay off debts
incurred by a botched rebuilding
of Stamford Bridge. In those days,
Ray had a flowing mane of hair
while disabled people were
allowed to park their cars at
pitchside - Chelsea was a very
different club then.
Stats: Stamford Bridge has not
been a happy hunting ground for
Manchester United in recent
years. They have failed to score
in five of their last seven Premier
League visits to Stamford Bridge
and netted only once on each of
the other two encounters while
winning none and losing five of
their last eight away encounters
there.
Odds: Chelsea look well favoured
yet are available at a rather
tasty odds-against price of 2.10
at bet365. The draw is 3.30 and a
United win the outsider of the
three at 3.60
Prediction: If Chelsea do not 'man
up', to use the parlance of John
Terry, then United may sniff a
vulnerability which has been
especially prevalent in defensive
areas. Their record here,
however, suggests they would
take a draw to further open up
their race with Arsenal. That
seems the likeliest of outcomes.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
at Chelsea
Aug 08, 2010 Chelsea 1-3 Man
Utd (FA Community Shield)
Nov 08, 2009 Chelsea 1-0 Man
Utd (Premier League)
Aug 09, 2009 Chelsea 2-2 Man
Utd (FA Community Shield)
at Manchester United
Apr 03, 2010 Man Utd 1-2 Chelsea
(Premier League)
Jan 11, 2009 Man Utd 3-0 Chelsea
(Premier League)
May 21, 2008 Man Utd 1-1
Chelsea (Champions League)

Actually i disagree with the title being that Chelsea is weak  and my manU boys will trash them so easily ... great hype around the match but definitely not Match of season status!

Quote from: BiGxGh.Com™ on 2011-02-28 22:55
Actually i disagree with the title being that Chelsea is weak  and my manU boys will trash them so easily ... great hype around the match but definitely not Match of season status!

You sound like of chelsea fans?