Mourinho's bus runs out of gas

Jose Mourinho suffered his fourth successive Champions League semi-final defeat as Atletico Madrid triumphed 3-1 over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.

The Portuguese had lauded his side's efforts in the first leg, where they claimed a 0-0 draw at the Vicente Calderon, but the lack of an away goal would prove costly as the Blues were forced to chase the game following Adrian's equalizer.

At 1-1, and in need of a goal, Mourinho threw on Samuel Eto'o in place of Ashley Cole, though the Cameroonian's first - and only - involvement of note was to gift Atleti a penalty.

After back-to-back clean-sheets at Liverpool and Madrid, Mourinho's 'parked bus' tactics finally came unstuck, with Diego Costa netting from the spot before Arda Turan wrapped up the win.

Unable to get out of first gear and find a response, Chelsea's bus well and truly ran out of gas as the Blues limped out of the Champions League.

Thursday, May 1, 2014 11:30

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Lavezzi profits from Ibrahimovic distraction

All the talk in the build-up to Chelsea's Champions League quarter-final clash with Paris Saint-Germain revolved around one man: Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Could the striker upset one-time mentor Jose Mourinho? Could the Blues find a way to stop the talismanic frontman? Would he ever play in England?

Such was the Stamford Bridge outfit's preoccupation with the Sweden international, they appeared to forget that there were 10 other players on the field at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday night.

It took just three minutes for Ezequiel Lavezzi, completely unmarked inside the penalty box, to unleash a ferocious shot that flew into the back of the net to remind Chelsea that PSG are far from the one-man team they had been mistaken for.

Ibrahimovic's night was cut short by a hamstring injury that will rule him out of the return leg, though Lavezzi's screamer, coupled with a late goal from Javier Pastore that added gloss to the victory, prove that les Parisiens will be no pushovers even in the Swede's absence.

Thursday, 3 April 2014 10:39

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Return of the king: Chelsea welcome back Drogba

Tuesday’s Champions League clash between Chelsea and Galatasaray sees Didier Drogba return to Stamford Bridge for the first time since he left the club in 2012.

The Ivorian enjoyed great success during his time with the Blues winning the three Premier League titles, four FA Cups and, famously, the Champions League in his last ever game for the club.

Jose Mourinho has already insisted Drogba will return to Chelsea in some capacity one day as he prepares to welcome the striker on what is sure to be an emotional evening in west London.

Tuesday, 18 March 2014 12:15

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Mourinho readies Chelsea bus ahead of Man City showdown

Jose Mourinho leads his title-chasing Chelsea team to the Etihad Stadium on Monday night looking to cause a shock and stop Manuel Pellegrini's free-scoring side from retaking the lead at the summit of the Premier League.

Mourinho has a number of famous career highlights in away games and although he has blamed visiting teams at Stamford Bridge for 'parking the bus', he may be wise to adopt such tactics at City.

Monday, February 3, 2014 07:23

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Nothing separates Manchester United & Chelsea

A cagey game in which both sides were happy to settle for a point, Monday night's stalemate at Old Trafford lacked the explosiveness many had predicted.

Perhaps not as unlikely, however, were the comments from Jose Mourinho after the match, who called on Wayne Rooney to clarify his situation at Manchester United.

"If now, he doesn't want to leave, we are out of the thing. We need to know what is happening," said the Chelsea boss.
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ReMOUnion: Chelsea stars welcome back the Special One

The day most Chelsea fans have been eagerly anticipating is almost upon us.

Having ended his stay at Real Madrid on Saturday, Jose Mourinho is expecting to confirm his return to Stamford Bridge this week.

The 'Special One' is flying to London on Monday to complete the move, and the Chelsea players - particularly the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry and Petr Cech - are likely to roll out the blue carpet for his return. 
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Injured Gotze ready to 'do a Terry' at Wembley

 

Mario Gotze is in a win-win situation on Saturday at Wembley. Regardless of who triumphs out of Bayern and Dortmund in the all-German Champions League final extravaganza, Gotze can gatecrash either party.

It has been confirmed that the 20-year-old Bayern Dortmund Bayern Dortmund (??) playmaker will miss out on appearing in the game at the home of English football as he lost his battle to recover from a thigh injury but that doesn't mean he has to miss out on the post-match celebrations, just ask John Terry.

The Chelsea skipper has built up a reputation for popping up in the right place at the right time, in full strip, of course, when the ticker tape begins to fall and with Gotze swapping BVB for Bavaria in the summer, he may just be tempted to get involved in the celebrations, whatever the outcome. 

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Goodbye Bernabeu! Mourinho welcomed back at the Bridge

 

Jose Mourinho gave the biggest indication yet that he is set to leave Real Madrid at the end of the season after watching is side suffer elimination from the Champions League to Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night.

"I know I'm loved in England," Mourinho said after Madrid won 2-0, but were beaten 4-3 on aggregate by the Bundesliga side. "Loved by the fans, the media. I know I'm loved by some clubs - especially one."

Goal.com understands the Special One has agreed a deal to return to Chelsea, with Falcao set to follow him to Stamford Bridge.

And while Branislav Ivanovic has admitted the Blues 'cannot wait' for Mourinho to return, the likes of Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas might be pleased to see the back of him at the Bernabeu.

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Coaching Chelsea not so easy for Benitez

 

Struggling for consistency and on the brink of an exit from the Europa League in the last 16, things have not gone smoothly for Rafa Benitez at Chelsea so far.

The Spaniard has received little sympathy from former Blues boss Avram Grant, however, who this week stated managing at Stamford Bridge is "easy."

“I don’t think Rafa Benitez will be replaced any time soon,” Grant said. But, let me tell you something, coaching at Chelsea is very easy.

“It’s way easier than coaching West Ham, for instance, because you have a very big budget and top players to choose from. All you have to do is go after the win.”

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Happy New Year! Stars prepare to bring in 2013

 

Spain secured their place in the pages of football history, Chelsea marched to an unlikely Champions League triumph and two of the greatest players of all time have smashed yet more records. 2012 will be difficult to match.

With the fixtures in the world's major leagues wrapped up for the current calendar year, the game's biggest and brightest can celebrate a job (mostly) well done.

But there's plenty more to look forward to in 2013. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will carry on and, in all likelihood, reach a few more remarkable landmarks. A mouthwatering last 16 of the Champions League awaits. And, when all else fails, there's Mario Balotelli.

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Drogba brings the bling as Chelsea embark on Europa outing

 

Chelsea's Champions League defence may have already ended, but for those who succeeded in the competition last season, there are still some benefits to be reaped from their victory over Bayern Munich.

Club legend Didier Drogba, who left Stamford Bridge last summer for Shanghai Shenhua, made sure his team-mates would never forget that night in Munich back in May by bestowing specially made rings upon all those involved in the triumph.

However, for Rafa Benitez, it is just a stark reminder of the club's failings in this year's tournament, and the Europa League campaign that awaits...

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Hapless fifth official gives England a slice of luck

 

England progressed to the last eight of Euro 2012 as winners of Group D on Tuesday night, but the 1-0 victory over Ukraine did not come without controversy.
Leading through Wayne Rooney's header early in the second half, John Terry looked to have saved the day with a fantastic goal-line clearance for the Three Lions, only for replays to show Marko Devic's effort should have counted.

The incident not only sparked memories of a similar decision that went against England in the World Cup two years, but it is also set to strengthen calls for the introduction of technology within the game ...
 

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Rio has last laugh as England's injury woes mount

 

Roy Hodgson may have secured a second successive 1-0 victory as England boss after Saturday's friendly against Belgium, but the win was not without sacrifice as his squad was hit with further injury concerns ahead of Euro 2012.

Having already seen Gareth Barry and Frank Lampard forced to withdraw from th tournament, Hodgson has now been left to sweat over the fitness of centre-back duo Gary Cahill and John Terry.

With the Three Lions squad thinning in both numbers and experience, Hodgson may rue his decision to leave Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand behind this summer...

Chelsea's Drogba love story comes to an end

 

Didier Drogba confirmed on Tuesday that he will leave Chelsea this summer after an eight-year spell in west London in which he has cemented his place as a club legend.

The Ivorian's last kick for the Blues came in Saturday's Champions League final victory, with his penalty sealing a dramatic win for Roberto Di Matteo's side and also his very own fairytale swansong.

While John Terry made a last ditch attempt to persuade Drogba to stay during Sunday's open-top bus parade, Chelsea have no choice but to accept the 34-year-old's decision, handing Fernando Torres the opportunity to take up his mantle in the side.

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Unhappy Torres

 

Torres uncertain over Chelsea future after 'disappointment' of missing out on Champions League final start

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Old man Ferdinand left behind as Terry & Co. board Roy’s Euro 2012 plane

 

There were always likely to be a few high-profile names missing from Roy Hodgson's England squad for Euro 2012, but not many predicted it would be Rio Ferdinand who was absent.

The Manchester United defender was apparently left behind due to "footballing reasons", and he confirmed via his Twitter account that he was "gutted" not to be involved, and realistically may not get another call-up in his career.

So now the veteran centre-back is left grounded as John Terry, Wayne Rooney and Hodgson jet off the Poland and Ukraine.

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Suarez has Terry tied up in knots

 

Chelsea may have lifted the FA Cup on Saturday but Liverpool had the last seasonal laugh as Kenny Dalglish's men ran out 4-1 winners over Roberto Di Matteo's charges in the Premier League on Tuesday evening.
Even more concerning for the Champions League finalists however, will be the performance of their captain John Terry, who was subjected to multiple nutmegs and an overall humbling by Luis Suarez at Anfield.
 

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Chelsea pensioners enjoy FA Cup

 

Goals from Ramires and Didier Drogba helped Chelsea to a 2-1 FA Cup final victory over Liverpool on Saturday.

The Wembley win is a concrete sign of the turnaround in fortunes at the club since Andre Villas-Boas' departure in March, with interim boss Roberto Di Matteo leading the west Londoners to silverware and a Champions League final later this month.

Now, with the Blues securing their fourth win in the competition in six years, it seems the Chelsea pensioners are enjoying the comfort of the FA Cup...

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Blues will not be following their leader

 

John Terry missed out on a chance to redeem himself for his penalty miss in the 2008 Champions League final in Moscow, after a moment of madness from the Chelsea skipper saw him knee Alexis Sanchez in the back in the first half of the Blues' semi-final second leg against Barcelona at Camp Nou.

The ensuing red card means Terry will miss the final itself this time around, as his team-mates went on to defend valiantly for the best part of an hour without a recognised centre-half to book their ticket to the May 19 final in Munich in the most thrilling of circumstances.

The Chelsea bus rolls on to their next destination, but Terry will have to hitch a ride in the Lionel Messi boat after the Argentine fluffed his penalty and will also miss the final.

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Chelsea bus arrives at Camp Nou

 

Chelsea managed to defy the odds when they kept Barcelona off the scoresheet and secured a 1-0 semi-final win over the reigning Champions League holders at Stamford Bridge last week, but will they be able to repeat the feat at Camp Nou in the second leg?

The Blues' interim coach Roberto Di Matteo has insisted that his side will take the game to the Blaugrana in Catalunya in a bid to extend their advantage. Pep Guardiola, however, remains wholly confident that his Barca outfit will be able to defeat the west Londoners and that Lionel Messi will return to form having failed to score in the club's previous two fixtures.

Will Di Matteo keep his word and attack Barca from the start, or will he opt for the old park the bus routine?

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