What a game, I have to say that such a conclusive 5-2 victory was quite remarkable given that we played without a central defence for the most part, maybe I'm being a tad harsh on Song and Silvestre, but two Igor Stepanovs would have been about as effective as they were last night. Manuel Almunia's heroics kept the score down, as truthfully without his majestic saves we could well have conceded several more. The ref was pretty poor too, but given the volume who could forgive him for soiling his panties.
It's hard to get across my impression of the game, we were so incisive and breathtaking going forward at times, this was exemplified by the first two goals that were rattled in by Ade and Theo, such crisp clinical work, however the gaping chasms that appeared between our centre backs and full backs were big enough for monster trucks, Guiza cunning movement opening us up time and time again, we really rode out luck at times, but having said that we always looked like we had another goal in the tank.
Almunia was my man of the match, Silvestre and Song only convinced me that they are not the answer to our defensive problems, neither looks commanding and neither filled me with confidence, I really felt that Djourou should have started, he's been one defender that has defended well this season, he's also good in the air and has the potential to command games, if Fenerbahce can do that to Silvestre and Song, then just imagine what a top side could do to them, it would not be pretty. It was not just the fault of the centre backs by any means, the midfield did not do nearly enough to shield them from danger, the days of the granite like Vieira-Petit appear long gone, while Eboue has never been the most defensive minded full back.
Going forward was another story, Fabregas was pulling the strings, Diaby was an unstoppable jinking juggernaut at times, while Walcott and Nasri gave us dynamism down the flanks, and Ade lead the line well on his own. I don't think this Times report is that far wide of the mark, although going away to Fenerbahce in Istanbul is no easy game, remember Chelsea lost their last season, the fact that our defence looked so porous should be a great cause for concern, however scoring five does provide a good reason for cheer. The problem I have with being really positive about a 5-2 win, I know this sounds foolish, is that it will be such a waste if we achieve nothing concrete this year when we are capable of such awesome attacking play. If we are to piss away another season because the gaping flaws at the back are not addressed then it will be a crying shame.
It's hard to get across my impression of the game, we were so incisive and breathtaking going forward at times, this was exemplified by the first two goals that were rattled in by Ade and Theo, such crisp clinical work, however the gaping chasms that appeared between our centre backs and full backs were big enough for monster trucks, Guiza cunning movement opening us up time and time again, we really rode out luck at times, but having said that we always looked like we had another goal in the tank.
Almunia was my man of the match, Silvestre and Song only convinced me that they are not the answer to our defensive problems, neither looks commanding and neither filled me with confidence, I really felt that Djourou should have started, he's been one defender that has defended well this season, he's also good in the air and has the potential to command games, if Fenerbahce can do that to Silvestre and Song, then just imagine what a top side could do to them, it would not be pretty. It was not just the fault of the centre backs by any means, the midfield did not do nearly enough to shield them from danger, the days of the granite like Vieira-Petit appear long gone, while Eboue has never been the most defensive minded full back.
Going forward was another story, Fabregas was pulling the strings, Diaby was an unstoppable jinking juggernaut at times, while Walcott and Nasri gave us dynamism down the flanks, and Ade lead the line well on his own. I don't think this Times report is that far wide of the mark, although going away to Fenerbahce in Istanbul is no easy game, remember Chelsea lost their last season, the fact that our defence looked so porous should be a great cause for concern, however scoring five does provide a good reason for cheer. The problem I have with being really positive about a 5-2 win, I know this sounds foolish, is that it will be such a waste if we achieve nothing concrete this year when we are capable of such awesome attacking play. If we are to piss away another season because the gaping flaws at the back are not addressed then it will be a crying shame.
