The Champions League game between Chelsea and Apoel Nicosia at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday Dec 8, 2009.
Lapses in concentration continue to cost Chelsea dear. An under-hit back-pass by John Obi Mikel allowed Nenad Mirosavljevic to equalise in the last minute. The damage was only superficial, as Chelsea had already qualified, but they need to cut out such mistakes and quickly.
After Marcin Zewlakow had given Apoel an early lead, Chelsea dominated, scoring through Michael Essien, who then damaged his hamstring, and Didier Drogba. For all the eventual disappointment, Chelsea can still take heart from promising displays by Gaël Kakuta and Fabio Borini.
Unlike Chelsea, Apoel Nicosia had everything to play for, notably a shot at the Europa League, and their noisy fans quickly conveyed the early update that rivals Atletico Madrid were trailing to Porto, a situation that allowed the men from Nicosia to dream.
Their hopes grew as the rain fell. Chelsea were caught cold, stunned by a sudden Apoel break down the left after seven minutes. When Constantinos Charalambides, briefly on trial with Cardiff City, darted towards the box, space opened invitingly between Ricardo Carvalho and John Terry.
Charalambides slid the ball across and there was Zewlakow, the Polish international with ice in his veins, beating Ross Turnbull with the coolest of low finishes.
Perhaps it was the shock at conceding a first goal at home in 16 hours eight minutes that stirred Chelsea. Perhaps it was the angry vibes emanating from Ancelotti, whose mood momentarily matched his pall-bearer’s coat, that made his players their game. The desire to avoid a third defeat on the spin also coloured Chelsea’s thoughts and movements.
Some of Ancelotti’s players had reputations to make. Gaël Kakuta, small and sinewy, looked lively on the right side behind Drogba. Yuri Zhirkov is an established Russian international, one of the stars of euro 2008, but his immersion in Chelsea life has been slow.
If the jury had been out, they returned last night, smoking cigars and raising large glasses of vodka in toast to the excellent Russian. Zhirkov looks another highly polished cog in the Chelsea machine.
Starting in the absence of Ashley Cole, Zhirkov defended assiduously, tackling nimbly and dealing firmly with any aerial threat that fell his way.
Moving down the left, the Russian’s quick feet were a constant delight as he supplied real width and penetration, dovetailing well with Florent Malouda.
When Zhirkov managed to poke the ball back to Malouda, the Frenchman whipped in a great cross that was met by an equally fine header from Joe Cole. The ball sped into the back of the net but Cole’s celebrations were cut short by a linesman flagging for offside. He was – just.
Chelsea maintained their assault on the Cypriots’ jugular and deservedly turned around ahead. Their 19th-minute equaliser was a bolt from the blue in every sense.
When Malouda rolled the ball to Essien 25 yards out, the danger appeared modest. Drifting to the right of Chrysostomos Michail, Essien suddenly brought his right foot down into the ball, beating Dionisios Chiotis with an unstoppable shot that sped at the keeper and then moved away, deceiving him utterly.
If Essien ever turns his hand to cricket, Ghana could have a useful swing bowler.
Unfortunately for Chelsea, Essien then limped away, having extended his hamstring stretching for a ball in that usual committed way of his. As he hobbled towards the tunnel, Essien’s face bore a mixture of pain and frustration.
As Frank Lampard quickly stripped for action, Chelsea made light of being down to 10 men, seizing the lead with a magnificent move. When Carvalho stroked the ball through the middle to Kakuta, there was still so much for the young Frenchman to do.
Kakuta impressed with not only his imaginative response but also his neat execution of a clever idea. Spotting Zhirkov running down the inside-left channel, Kakuta slid a superb pass through Apoel’s defence.
Zhirkov immediately drilled the ball into the box for Drogba to score with a terrific first-time strike.
Chelsea remained in total control. Drogba went close with a free kick. Juliano Belletti, charging down the right, sent a low shot angling across Apoel’s goal. Joe Cole was full of good movement much to the delight of the Chelsea fans, who clearly prefer the Englishman to Deco.
When Cole lifted over a cross that drifted on to the bar, the Matthew Harding Stand serenaded the ball all the way, sighing when it clipped the woodwork and fell away. With 19 minutes remaining, Cole then slid in to win the ball, setting up Malouda, whose shot skimmed wide.
Having shown genuine promise, Kakuta was tiring. Sensibly, Ancelotti removed him, greeting his arrival in the dugout with a paternal smile.
Another of Chelsea’s prospects, Fabio Borini, raced on. Prolific for the reserves last season, the teenaged Italian has impressed Ancelotti’s coaching staff by his hunger for extra shooting practice, regularly staying behind after training to work with Ray Wilkins. Borini almost scored with an adroit turn and shot.
If Tuesday night reflected the enduring importance of senior players like Essien and Drogba, and outstanding new recruits like Zhirkov, then it was impossible to ignore the young ones pushing for contention.
Apoel brought on Mario Breska, who resembled Tomas Brolin in his cheesecake-eating prime, and most significantly Mirosavljevic, who seized on Mikel’s gift, sprinted through and placed the ball through Turnbull’s legs.
No comments:
Post a Comment