Reply With QuoteDrogba in fitness raceOriginally Posted by nasrani
Didier Drogba is facing a race against time to be fit for Chelsea's Premier League game at Manchester United
Man Utd v Chelsea , 18th Sept Sunday
he will be fine
The Man Who Never Stops To Amaze Me - MAMMOOTTY !!!
Drogba in fitness race
Didier Drogba is facing a race against time to be fit for Chelsea's Premier League game at Manchester United
Man Utd v Chelsea , 18th Sept Sunday
MATCH REPORT: CHELSEA 2 BAYER LEVERKUSEN 0
David Luiz, with a fine strike midway through the second half, and Juan Mata in stoppage time gave Chelsea a firm foundation to begin the Champions League campaign.
This always looked a tough opening game against the side that finished second in Germany last season and so it proved. Although a Blues side without some of our stalwarts were pretty secure at the back in an opening half in which Daniel Sturridge went closest to opening the scoring, that was not so much the case in the second half and it needed captain-on-the-day Petr Cech to come out on top in a one-v-one with Michael Ballack for the visitors not to take the lead.
Once David Luiz had found the bottom corner of the Bayer net however, Chelsea were in the ascendancy on a night when it was shown that squad rotation is possible without detriment to our chances in Europe's number one competition.
Torres
crowd laughing at him
The Man Who Never Stops To Amaze Me - MAMMOOTTY !!!
Chelsea 4 - 1 Swansea
Fernando Torres endured another torrid afternoon as 10-man Chelsea secured a comfortable 4-1 victory over Swansea.
The Spain striker had given Chelsea the lead on 29 minutes but was shown a straight red card 10 minutes later for a rash challenge on Mark Gower.
A goal in each half from Brazilian midfielder Ramires made the game safe for Chelsea.
Defender Ashley Williams then scored a consolation for Swansea before Didier Drogba added a fourth in stoppage time.
Chelsea made two changes to the side that lost at Manchester United, with Frank Lampard making way for John Obi Mikel and Nicolas Anelka starting ahead of Didier Drogba.
Swansea named an unchanged side from their win over West Brom, and the visitors made an encouraging start, with Blues old boy Scott Sinclair prominent - Branislav Ivanovic had to make an important block to halt the winger's run.
Raul Meireles volleyed over from 12 yards before Leon Britton blocked a close-range effort from Ramires as Chelsea started to press.
Another Ramires effort was dealt with comfortably by Swansea's Dutch keeper Michel Vorm before Ivanovic's long-range effort flashed over the bar.
The breakthrough came through Torres who, pilloried for his miss against Manchester United a week earlier, scored his second goal of the season.
Juan Mata chipped a ball over the top and Angel Rangel played Torres onside, allowing him to swivel and find the bottom corner.
Chelsea were turning on the style and seven minutes later doubled their advantage. Ashley Cole picked out the advancing Ramires on the edge of the area and he coolly slotted the ball through the legs of Vorm.
Swansea chances were now few and far between, with Williams failing to get his head to Gower's free-kick.
But Torres's afternoon was to take a turn for the worse for a second week in succession as he was shown a straight red card by referee Mike Dean for a two-footed challenge on Gower.
With the extra man, Swansea, who introduced Wayne Routledge for Britton at the interval, began the second half strongly.
Meireles was forced to concede a corner before Nathan Dyer's rasping effort from the edge of the area deflected off Mikel and hit the crossbar with Petr Cech helpless.
Mikel prevented Leroy Lita converting Rangel's cross before Jose Bosingwa was forced to clear Williams' header off the line from the resulting corner.
At the other end, Vorm had to scramble to push away Cole's cross, which had been deflected off an oblivious Garry Monk.
Anelka then almost scored a superb individual goal when his piledriver struck the bar and with 14 minutes remaining Ramires scored his second, cutting inside Williams before slotting past Vorm.
Swansea claimed a consolation when Williams found himself unmarked in the box to head home Gower's free-kick - his side's first away goal in the Premier League.
But it was Chelsea who had the last word, with substitute Drogba turning on Malouda's pass and steering the ball home.
Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas:
"With 10 men, we never lost our will to continue to attack and I think it paid off. It was an important win for us based on the last defeat at Old Trafford and showing resilience in the end again after Wednesday.
"It really shows the nature and commitment of these players towards their objectives."
Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers:
"I don't think Torres is a malicious player. It's one where the ball's just got away from Gower.
"He probably feels it's there to be won and he's trying to show his intention at the moment that he's fighting for everything.
"To be fair, the best team won, so I'm not going to sit here and say that we deserved to win the game."
ഇരവഴഞ്ഞി അറബിക്കടലിനുള്ള താണെങ്കിൽ , കാഞ്ചന മൊയ്തീനുളളതാ...
ഇത് മൊയ്തീന്റെ വാക്കാ.. വാക്കാണ് ഏറ്റവും വലിയ സത്യം..
chelsea 2-0 everton after 55 mins...
3-0 after 68...
Chelsea's Daniel Sturridge surprised by his own goalscoring form after another in win over Everton
The young forward opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark, latching onto Ashley Cole’s instinctive volleyed cross for a free header across the face of Tim Howard’s goal.
The goal is Sturridge’s fourth of the campaign so far as he continues to take full advantage of the stiff competition in the Blues' front line.
“In the first team it’s the best I’ve ever played,” Sturridge told ESPN. “In the youth team and things like that, I used to do this pretty regularly, but it comes as a surprise to me because I’m doing it in a professional game. I’m enjoying it and I’m glad that I’m taking it into the first team.
“I think we played a great team game today. The manager told us to move the ball quickly and to play one-touch football as much as possible, and I think we did that today. We played very well.
“I’m happy for everyone not to talk about us, so we can get on with what we’re doing. It doesn’t matter whether people talk or not, just as long as we can continue beating every team that’s put in front of us. It doesn’t matter what the opposition is, we want to win every game."
John Terry made it 2-0 in added time at the end of the first half before Ramires put the game beyond doubt on the hour mark. Apostolos Vellios added a late consolation for Everton.
But it was summer signing Juan Mata who again enjoyed a starring role - grabbing an assist for Ramires' goal - and he admitted he has settled quickly.
“I enjoyed the match because it was an important game for us. We needed to win to keep up in the top half of the table, and I think it was a great team game," he said.
“I’ve settled in quickly because in the first match I had a goal. It gave confidence to me, and I’m so happy to be here, in the city and at the club.”
Sturridge confirmed Mata’s beliefs, citing the player’s belief as vital to Chelsea’s title challenge.
“He gives everything every single game, he runs very hard every game also,” the England striker added.
“He’s a very creative player for us, he creates a lot of chances for the team and also scores his fair share of goals. Every game he works very hard so he’s a great acquisition to the team.”
Chelsea 3-1 Everton: Sturridge, Terry & Ramires on target as Blues ease to fourth consecutive league victory at home
Despite never moving past first gear, Chelsea cruised to a 3-1 win over Everton, with Daniel Sturridge, John Terry and Ramires extending the Blues’ run of home Premier League victories to four.
With Fernando Torres serving the second of his three-game ban after being sent off against Swansea, Didier Drogba started up-front for the Blues with Daniel Sturridge and Juan Mata on either side of him.
For the visitors, unchanged from their loss to Liverpool, Louis Saha and Jack Rodwell both made their centenary appearances for the Toffees, while Phil Jagielka at centre-half made his 150th.
The first real chance fell to Saha after 10 minutes. Fed through by a stylish pass from Leon Osman down the left, the French striker ducked inside and shot with his less-favoured right foot, but it still took Petr Cech two attempts to gather.
Marouane Fellaini was lucky to escape with only a booking soon after when he made a rash challenge on Ramires, leaving his foot in dangerously.
As the first half reached its midway point, the Toffees were holding the home side well. Andre Villas-Boas’ men were enjoying the majority of possession but could not summon a really threatening chance.
When they did put a strong move together, stringing together several passes in a progressive move, Ramires blew possession by launching a wayward shot high above the bar, despite having options to pass.
Finally, on the half-hour mark, the Blues got the reward for their overwhelming possession, when Mata lifted the ball over Tony Hibbert at right-back, into the path of the rampaging Ashley Cole, who delivered towards the far post, where the in-form Sturridge ran in to meet it with a simple header.
The opener brought about a slight revival from the visitors who enjoyed slightly more of the ball, but neither side was able to trouble a goalkeeper until right at the end of the period.
Seamus Coleman brought down Cole on the left, and Frank Lampard swung in the resultant free-kick deep into the penalty area. Terry took advantage of Tim Howard’s indecision to nod home, sealing a comfortable home lead at the break.
Just seconds after the resumption, Everton surged forward and Osman came agonisingly close with a shot that appeared to just glance off the outside edge of the post as it flew past Cech.
The midfielder tried again 10 minutes later, but this time his longer-range shot was too high to trouble the goalkeeper.
But despite the visitors having the better of the first 15 minutes of the half, Chelsea appeared to kill off the match when the impressive Mata burst down the left, having been supplied by a deep-lying Drogba, and sliced through a pinpoint pass into the path of the onrushing Ramires, who made no mistake.
However, only moments after his strike, the Brazilian was forced to limp off with an apparent knee injury.
The third goal appeared to have taken the fight out of David Moyes’ men, with proceedings appearing to completely peter out, until young Apostolos Vellios was brought on for Louis Saha with 10 minutes to go.
Immediately, Royston Drenthe found the ball on the left flank and whipped it in, where the 19-year-old Vellios slid in and finished accurately with his first touch of the game, having been on the pitch for just 18 seconds.
It proved only a consolation, though, as the home side held on for a fourth consecutive home win in the league. Lampard might have grabbed a fourth but his rifled injury-time shot from the edge of the area flew straight at Howard.
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