Club Focus - Chelsea - An armband assault?
Chelsea’s cup progress was distorted once again as John Terry stole the headlines with a controversial celebration. The club captain paraded his armband after his powerful header secured victory for the Blues and set up a Wembley semi-final with Aston Villa.
Many have asserted suspicions that the well planned celebration from Terry was a symbolic assault to Fabio Capello’s decision to rid him of his England captaincy. The centre-back made his feelings of relief felt as he struck past a diving Thomas Sorenson to double Chelsea’s advantage over the Potters. Whether the armband spectacle was directly presented for the watch of Capello is doubtful, it’s hard to think in the midst of all the media flak that Terry would sacrifice his England position in its entirety simply to make a point. The dominant argument is that Terry was showing his dedication to remain Chelsea captain, with the Blues hero insisting he was proud to still have the armband and showing his support back to the fans that have stood by him through these turbulent times.
Away from the newspaper gloss that centred on this ‘display of affection’ if you will, was an underlying strong Chelsea display. A combination of solidarity in the Blues ranks and an abysmal Stoke performance saw Chelsea remain comfortable for the majority of the tie, Hilario tested on few occasions. Stoke had their usual unorthodox style, stampeding the Blues box at every set-piece opportunity, although all to no avail. Key to keeping the scores level was the introduction of fans' favourite Alex. The Brazilian 'cement block' provided both stability and strength in a make-shift back-line, with his stability a reassurance for a wilted Terry and his strength the perfect combat against Stoke's obvious threats. Ricardo Carvalho, although battling a slight injury, has been off form of late, with his tendency to break forward from defence catching Chelsea short of numbers recently and especially susceptible to a counter-attacks - as evident in the recent hosting of Manchester City. The Portuguese defender is renowned for last ditch tackles and vital blocks but his lack of positional discipline and ability to handle powerful strikers is a worrying concern for Blues especially in the big games.
The poor shifts Frank Lampard and Terry put in for England last week seemed to be long gone as the pair got the goals to put the Blues into a tasty looking semi-final. Lampard has come under stern criticism from many this season - claiming the England midfielder was short of goal-scoring form and that he was suffering under the reign of Carlo Ancelotti. However, the former Hammer has netted sixteen goals to date this season and is well on his way to securing that midfield aim of 20 goals a season. If Lampard and Terry can regain their top-form Chelsea may hold hope in overturning Untied at the top of the Premier League.
Another key individual that could reignite Chelsea’s title ambitions is Joe Cole. The 29-year-old may have been a surprise omission from the FA Cup side considering he has returned to full fitness. The former West Ham man was primed for big things at the tender age of eight-years-old, and on the whole they were right, as the hopeful England contender dazzled the world with his quick feet and instinctive vision. Despite a number of impressive seasons for the Blues since his signature in 2003, a cruciate ligament injury suffered in an innocuous challenge against Southend last season has ruptured the player’s progress back into the Chelsea side. The versatile midfielder remains confident he will convert Ancelotti and Capello into personal fans when given a regular run in the team. However, the player has been largely out of favour this season and speculation is rising as to a pending departure for the London-born attacker. The midfielder may, however, be the intrinsic element to Chelsea’s form as the player strives to reach the World Cup squad.
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