Stoke City 1-1 Chelsea: Many Experienced Mistakes
COME ON CHELSEA
By Since66
April 4 2011
The dying embers of Chelsea's charge to retain their title were firmly extinguished at The Britannia on Saturday as too many experienced players and staff with titles won under their belts made too many basic schoolboy errors. Take nothing away from Pullis' Stoke they thoroughly deserved their point and had many chances to win the game.
In fact, although the game ended 1-1, the score could have been anything from 2-2 to 10-10.
Both teams were guilty of missing chances - a trait that has stuck with Chelsea - since the flying opening start to the season.
Both Begovic and more notably Petr Cech pulled of some maginicent saves and both teams clattered the cross-bar.
I still can't get my head round Ramires' withdrawal with thirty minutes to go. He was clearly our most influential player, dominating midfield and getting furthest forward once Chelsea had settled down from conceding an early goal by Walters.
Caught square and open at the back, Walters sprung into acres of space leaving Luiz in his wake, cutting inside Essien before firing a low shot in the bottom corner.
Luiz found how tough the Premier League is after getting a battering from Kenwynne Jones all afternoon and Walters gave the newly re-appointed England captain a torrid afternoon.
Didier equalised for Chelsea with a flying header from an Anelka cross.
Torres came on and was unlucky that his first and only shot at goal took a deflection wide for a corner.
It took Chelsea ten minutes or so to re-adjust to Ramies' loss and in that time, Chelsea could have conceded another goal or two - fortunately Cech was on top form.
Stoke City: Begovic, Wilson, Shawcross (c), Huth, Higginbotham (Collins 90+2), Pennant (Fuller 90+1), Whelan (Whitehead 85), Delap, Etherington, Walters, Jones
Goal: Walters 8
Booked: Walters 55
Chelsea: Cech, Bosingwa (Ivanovic 79), David Luiz, Terry (c), Cole, Ramires (Kalou 61), Essien, Lampard, Malouda, Anelka (Torres 61), Drogba
Goal: Drogba 30
Booked: Bosingwa 58, Cole 64
NEXT UP: Corrupt Cup Q/F 1st Leg v Man Utd, Stamford Bridge KO 7.45pm, 6/4/2011