Chelsea scrape past Middlesborough, as Benitez goes bananas

With not much guile, not much spunk, but a whole lot of force and a few instances of bright interplay in the final third, a much changed Chelsea did just about enough to squeeze past Middlesborough and set up a date with runaway Premier League table toppers Manchester United in the 6th round of the FA Cup.

Rafa Benitez's post match outburst grabbed the headlines,
and he can expect a racous atmosphere at Stamford Bridge on Saturday

Rafa Benitez would have had to a barrage of questions to answer regarding the starting XI had Chelsea come away from the Riverside with anything less than a win. Instead he used the post match press conference to hit back at the fans, who continue to sing against him and the Chelsea board somewhat, for naming him only an interim manager. He did make one thing clear though, he wont be here post the summer.

Unlike Sunday's timid showing at Eastlands, Chelsea did get off the blocks better. Victor Moses was our most potent attacker as Oscar and Yossi Benayoun started in the attacking third with the misfiring Spaniard upfront. Ramires seemed to have gotten over his dreadful outing against Manchester City, as young Dutchman Nathan Ake partnered him in the pivot rather impressively. Ryan Bertrand, Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry and Paulo Ferreira made up a back four, that we hope will surely never see at Chelsea again.

After a positive opening 10-15 minutes, the Boro midfield slowly began coming into the game, Chelsea found it difficult to find their forwards, and kept pinging the ball around their backline in search of openings.
This period I found extremely frustrating as even when young Ake came back to pick up the ball, both John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic preferred to play it square either to Ryan Bertrand and Paulo Ferriera, who could not do much with it either. Midway through the 1st half this happened at least three times, and everytime Chelsea lost the ball while trying to play out of defence it led to a Boro shot towards goal. With 10 minutes to go to halftime, Boro who had kept their shape well and defended stoutly, looked to be growing in confidence.

Diagonal balls to Victor Moses who had a nervy Kevin Friend for company was clearly the most attractive outlet. Maybe if Ferreira got forward more or Oscar teamed up with him on the right flank, Chelsea would've done better in the first half. Moses to his credit did find the right cross and won his fare share of corners on that flank, but again the delivery from set pieces, just like at the weekend barely got past the 1st line of defence or was freakishly overhit.

To Boro's credit, they did not let the premier league side have a single clear cut chance in the first half. And whenever they sent the ball upfield, they manages to give their defenders a breather. Once too often John Terry, assuming the role of the tackler was caught too high up the pitch leaving massive gaps in defence. Against better forwards, he will be made to pay, mind you the same happened n the Newcastle game when Moussa Sissoko made it 2-2 on the counter. Better sides will hurt us.

The normally calming presence of Petr Cech did have a poor 1st half too. A few kicks went astray, while the fumble on Boro's only shot on target could so easily have fallen to someone in a red shirt.

In the second half, the visitors did step it up a bit. The passing was faster, the closing down was more purposeful, and the goal came with some good play from Oscar first n then Benayoun who teed up Ramires' shot, although a slight deflection off Torres may have taken it into the Boro net.

Chelsea's forwards needed to run in behind the Middleshorough defence more, when Oscar did that and put it a fine cross, Benayoun did well to find Ramires on the edge of the box. The Brazilians shooting has been woeful in recent weeks, but this time he found the back of the net, courtesy a little deflection off Torres. It wasn't the ideal goal, but it just about did justice to the application we began showing in the second half.

Just as Boro began throwing men forward, Rafa, for once made a timely substitution. Eden Hazard came on for Yossi Benayoun, who offered nothing more than an assist to the opening goal. With Hazard's pace, Moses' direct running and Oscar's growing influence Chelsea began looking dangerous on the counter.
But the real star of the night was Nathan Ake. He repelled attacks, held the ball, tackled effectively, covered ground and passed positively on his full Chelsea debut. It surely wont be his last appearance for Chelsea this season.

18-year old Nathan Ake impressed in a defensive midfield role
 on his full Chelsea debut against Middlesborough on Wednesday night 

The second goal was a thing of beauty. It was how we imagined we would play all season, after the start we had under Robbie Di Matteo. Eden Hazard picked up the ball on the left, drove at the defenders, squared it to Oscar, who's first time return pass met Hazard's run in behind. The Belgian then, very unselfishly squared it early to Victor Moses to tap into the empty net. It made the previous 72 minutes worth watching.

It would be Moses' and Oscar's last meaningful contributions, as David Luiz and Marko Marin came on. Ramires was moved out to the right, with Marin on the left and Hazard more central. And for the second game in a row, a change in the pivot, would unsettle Chelsea and give the opposition the impetus in the middle of the park.

Middlesborough, with nothing to lose kept going forward. Paulo Ferreira rarely able to read the game these days was rather easy to get past. David Luiz's careless play in front of his defenders too, did not make things easy. Maybe the defensive pivot is a part of the line up that Rafa should not change too much during a game. Certainly Ramires on the right is not going to work.

It was a comfortable scoreline in the end, with another Petr Cech cleansheet intact. Far from the pretty and exciting that Roman Abramovich desires, it was a win of graft. Chelsea avoided a dreadful replay, but with the rampant United in the 6th round, a marked improvement is needed. Stuart Clarke's West Brom await us on Saturday in the league, but expect a massive reaction from the Bridge faithful after Rafa's rant in the post match presser.

You can blame Benitez, but that wont help Chelsea

Outplayed, outwitted and outclassed. Not many teams have done that to Chelsea over the years, but my word its becoming all to regular in the year we call ourselves the Champions of Europe. At the moment, its unlikely that Chelsea are the best team in London, let alone England.

The 2-0 defeat to Manchester City hurts. They honestly have not been good this season. And the fact that they were clearly superior from the 1st minute when Yaya Toure got his shot on target, will bite us a bit more. They excelled at the one department that Chelsea's forwards have struggled with in the last few weeks - quick passing in the final third and movement off the ball. Mind you, the finishing of their strikers has been as woeful, except for Edin Dzeko.

The home side did start the game better, and we were lucky to be level after a barrage of attempts on goal early on. Petr Cech pulled off a brilliant save when Nastasic looked certain to score, while Gary Cahill showed why he was so highly rated at Bolton. His role at the weekend, when John Terry partnered him was to play sweeper as Terry tackled the striker, on Sunday he showed his tackling ability as David Luiz mopped up behind him. Cahill blocked 4 shots on target, needless to say that the only time the ball got past him, it got past Cech's outstretched hands too and nestled into the back of the net.

Criticism for Juan Mata over his 18 odd months at Chelsea has been rare. But on Sunday, he did have one of those games again, the second time in a week. There were fouls that did not go his way, but far too often he came back to collect the ball and did not find the intended targets up front. Eden Hazard on the other hand, was having a better game than most of his colleagues, and alongwith Frank Lampard's saved penalty, his speculative, if not feeble right footed attempt on goal, were the only two shots on target Chelsea could muster.

Talismanic playmaker Juan Mata's dip in form
could hurt Chelsea during a pivotal part of their season

Ashley Cole seemed a bit under pressure from Pablo Zabaleta and James Milner early on, but once he got his bearings right, he was able to team up with Eden Hazard and Juan Mata on the left flank. And as the half ended that looked like Chelsea's best bet of getting a goal. Meanwhile, the set piece delivery on a day of so few chances, was appalling. Not once, not twice, but about 5 times in the half alone, Chelsea's corner's and freekicks barely got passed the first line of defence.

In the second half, we came out better, looked better in midfield, but with Demba Ba unable to offer much upfront in terms of runs in behind coupled with some careless passing, we barely managed a decent effort on goal. When Ivanovic floated the ball to Ba, controversy aside, not a soul expected Frank to miss. But credit to Joe Hart, that save, that moment rallied the Citizens.

Ramires who was having a howler on the right flank, made a lung bursting run into the box after winning the ball near the half way line, but could not put away Ivanovic's return pass. City's goal came minutes after that. David Silva doing well to find Toure free on the edge of the box, and the Ivorian side-footed past Mikel and opened himself up to finish in the far corner.

Frank Lampard did not have one of his most accomplished performances, and after the missed penalty, it was obvious Benitez would bring him and Ramires off. Instead Eden Hazard came off for Oscar on the left and Lampard came off for Victor Moses. But with not much impact, Benitez threw on Fernando Torres for Jon Obi Mikel, with David Luiz pushing up into defensive midfield, Ivanovic into the centre and Ramires at right back.

As we attempted to drive forward, City began to counter attack and with no one to break up play effectively, all Carlos Tevez needed was a yard, and he rifled a stunning strike past Petr Cech to put the game to bed.

Mikel off for Torres: The intention was right,
but the gamble did not pay off for Rafa Benitez on Sunday at Eastlands

What will be most disheartening is the fact that this Manchester City team was not in great form, had even lost their last PL game to Southampton and drew to Liverpool and QPR in the run up to this game.  Torres or Ba, or Torres and Ba, it did not matter anymore. The fact is we are not good enough to be in the top 2.
We've might even be down to 4th by Monday night if Spurs beat West Ham, and that is poor considering how well we started the year under Robbie.

With Middlesborough in the FA Cup in midweek to come, we can't afford to go out of the competition or even settle for a replay, so a win is a must. It was around this time of the year, that Andre Villas Boas was sacked and we went on to win two trophies last year, so miracles can happen. But they wont happen every year. Rafa needs to get it right on Wednesday night, and blaming him if he doesn't wont get us anywhere. It about time the players stand up too.

Hazard saves Chelsea the blues against a spirited Sparta

Prague was always going to be a tougher test than Brentford, but Chelsea made it a nervy 92 minutes for themselves. Sparta were clearly over the winter-break hangover that allowed Chelsea to bring in a 1-0 lead into this 2nd leg. Having rested the likes of Frank Lampard and Branislav Ivanovic, the English side were expected to see out the night rather comfortably, given the way the 1st leg panned out.

Benitez will have Eden Hazard's sweet left-footed strike to thank
 for saving his side 30 minutes of extra-time and maybe even penalties against Sparta Prague

David Lafata, who blew a few big chances last Thursday righted his wrongs, when he smashed Sparta into the lead from 6 yards out after some good work by Vaclav Kadlec. Gary Cahill should not have allowed the ball to get past him in the 1st place, but the fact that both Lafata and Marek Matejovsky were unmarked in the box, is a matter of concern. Mind you it was the same kind of diagonal run across the defence by Juventus forward Fabio Quagliarella back in September that cost Chelsea the points back then, Kadlec did very much the same, but the good thing is he did not get a chance to do it again.

Sparta looked more likely to score after that as Chelsea's possession did not count for much in the 1st half. Victor Moses looks to be more influential when he has the pacey Cesar Azplicueta behind, and likewise the Spaniard looks better in defence when he has the Nigerian ahead of him. Moses though, much like against Brentford, needs to find an end product. His ability to muscle past defenders is commendable (he dribbled past 4 players last night according to WhoScored); but he needs to pick out a Blue shirt more often, if he wants to clock up some assists before the end of the season.

Oscar for all his guile and brilliance, must be disciplined if he wants to keep his place ahead of an increasingly in-form Eden Hazard. Ryan Bertrand on the left, was not afforded the luxury Azplicueta had on the right side. Often left defending against more than one Prague player, due to Oscar's tendency to drift infield. Mind you, his driving run through midfield to setup Ramires' shot that hit the post was one of the reasons we paid so much for a 20-year old. To his credit the Brazilian did trot back to help out a few times, but Bertrand was being left a bit exposed, and let's be honest, right now its difficult to see him as first choice left-back when Ashley Cole leaves.

Juan Mata set himself up for a shot on goal in the 1st half with that magnificent touch that we have become accustomed to now. But other than that, he had a rather quiet game by his standards. And when Jon Obi Mikel and Ramires have a better outing than Juan, Chelsea do struggle to find the back of the net. But its just one game, so no problem there, Juan's earned the right to have it.

And talking of the defensive midfield pivot, Mikel and Ramires, as a combination had an average game. The Nigerian sat back, and allowed Ramires to make those runs from deep. And the fact that he was the most fouled player on the night, according to WhoScored, shows how much he will be wasted if given the job only to protect his centre-backs. His shooting has been woeful in recent weeks though, far from the Lampard-esque efficiency that we missed last night. Rafa's got a headache come Sunday now, as both Frank and Ramires are bound to play better with Mikel behind them, even though Mikel did not have one of his better outings.

It was good to see Petr Cech abandon the playing-it-out-through-the-centre-backs tactic, that failed miserably at the weekend. John Terry and Gary Cahill also looked to have found some kind of understanding, but the fact that Sparta were allowed to take so shoot so often is a bother. As the captain went for the ball, Cahill covered up well, the only blot being that run-in behind that to the goal in the 1st half. Lafata and Matejovsky did have chances on the counter late on, and to think if their shots were on target, Chelsea could well and truly be out of the Europa League. Come Sunday afternoon, the likes of Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero won't be as forgiving.

Around the 70-minute mark, you got the feeling that it was going to be one of those nights, that have been coming all too often at Stamford Bridge. Passes weren't finding their intended targets, while crosses were being overhit or not even making it past the first line of defence. Sometimes the post, sometimes even Fernando Torres standing in the way of long range efforts. Torres to his credit, made an effort to play and get his shots away, none of which were on target by the way. Thank God Demba Ba will be available on Sunday.

The focus shifts back to the Premier League, as a Round of 16 tie with Steau Bucharest awaits us in the 1st week of March. What was meant to be a professional performance against a clearly weaker Czech outfit, needed a dramatic last minute tie-clinching goal, that we very well know, wont come every week. Finishing off chances will be key, if we do manage to conjure up a few against Manchester City, who've had week to prepare for Sunday's game at the Etihad.

Brentford win should not cover up Chelsea's problems

The replay should not have been needed to decide the tie in the first place, but we have the right foot of our maligned no.9 to thank for that saving grace. The win at home against League One's Brentford should

have been a formality. But for 55 minutes it was not. It required a precisely placed shot into the bottom corner from our bearded genius, to make Brentford come out and leave the gaps open to exploit. The gloss

was there, courtesy some late goals, but the problems we've been having are far from being solved. It was so obvious in the 1st half, that we'd be foolish to ignore it. Even Brentford, made us nervous.

Adam Forshaw's speculative efforts from 25 yards were the closest the Bees came to Petr Cech's goal. But for some reason the Chelsea goalkeeper insisted to playing the ball out to his central defenders. Chelsea

have never done that in recent years, and both John Terry and Gary Cahill looked far from comfortable playing the ball out of defence. Brentford's forward line did not press them and chose to mark everyone else, hence leaving them no options but to pass it around the back till either one of Lampard or Luiz came back to pick up the ball.

And as soon as Luiz tried an effective long pass into Demba Ba, the Senegalese was hunted down, and Oscar, Victor Moses and Juan Mata were'nt able to get to the lose ball fast enough. But when Petr Cech decided to change it and punted a goal kick right into the heart of the Brentford defence, the result was markedly different. Demba Ba finally won something in the air, and as the lose ball bobbled to Mata, the Spaniard picked his spot to drill Chelsea into the lead. It was direct, but it was different from what Chelsea were trying all game and it worked.

The return of Victor Moses was refreshing. He hugged the touchline on the right side early on, often dragged two defenders towards him, and when he managed to evade both of them and supply a ball for the on-rushing Lampard to smash home, the 34-year old unbelievably scuffed his shot. But Moses' effectiveness waned as the match progressed. He afforded a neat touch for Juan Mata to setup Oscar, who hit the post. But the Nigerian did nothing more of note and was substituted for Eden Hazard with 25 minutes remaining.

Early in the second half Ashley Cole had possession on the edge of the Brentford box, but with two Brentford players around him, no one made an overlapping run behind. It took a good 5-7 seconds or so for Frank Lampard to see the pass and make the run, when ideally it should've been Oscar or Juan Mata popping up in those positions.

The lack of off the ball runs and movement when teams sit back and defend has been a problem for Chelsea. Whoever the personnel upfront, almost all of Chelsea's attackers prefer the ball at their feet rather than

making runs or dragging defenders out of position. When the other team is chasing the game, and there is space in behind and Chelsea have found it easy to move the ball around. But if we have to make a 4-2-3-1

work well, we will need someone to gamble on making those forward runs, across the defence or in the channels. Chelsea do look clueless in possession, a lot more than they should be.

Uwe Rosler was always going to stuff Brentford's midfield and stifle Chelsea's play. Chelsea lined up with David Luiz and Frank Lampard in the pivot, and due to the lack of a pure no.10 to mark, both Luiz and

Lampard had a rather free afternoon. Whenever the opposition have had a good playmaker or a midfield runner, Chelsea's pivot has came up short. Be it Willian or Arturo Vidal a few months back, or more recently Moussa Sissoko, or even Adel Taarabt, all had a field day against Chelsea's defensive midfield pairing. While David Luiz continues to slip in a moment of stupidity once in a while, this time young Jake Reeves was the victim.

Rafa Benitez will have seen the problems that even Brentford exposed, 

he will have to find a way to stop Manchester City  at the weekend

All said and done, it was a second clean sheet in a row, even though Cech was beaten once by Marcello Trotta. Its 3 wins in a row, a marked improvement since the defeat to Newcastle, against understandably weaker opposition. But a few things have been going Chelsea's way. Wigan were denied a penalty when the ball hit Ashley Cole's hand last weekend when the score was still 2-1, while Oscar scored seconds after coming on, in a game that made for an appalling advert of the Europa League on Thursday night. And Brentford were pulled back for a foul, when advantage should have been played and the goal they went on to score should have stood.

Next up is the return leg against Sparta Prague, who should be professionally dealt with, before Sunday's showdown agianst the Premier League champions at the Etihad. If we are to hold onto 3rd place, nothing less than a win will do.