Chelsea 2, Preston North End 0.
A win and that was what we needed, but to be fair it was a match that never really reached any great heights excitement wise....though who doesn't enjoy beating Ferguson??? ;) Although this time it wasn't Sir Alex, but his son Darren Ferguson, in charge of his first match at Preston.
It was great to see Daniel Sturridge score again in this competition...that lad certainly isn't afraid to take a shot; in fact given we had a total of 32 shots, 19 of which were "on target" so it'd be fair to say that of most of the team today. A lot of the shots were from a fair way out, 20 - 30 yards or so, as PNE were defending and manning up pretty well. Also this is a style of our game that is more evident when we don't have Drogba, as when Anelka and Drogba play together the shots come in from either of these players, or the likes of Cole, A., Cole, J., Lampard, Malouda etc. etc. and either Drogba or Anelka are there if the shot is parried by the keeper.
(For the record, Preston had a total of 13 shots, 6 of which were on target.)
For me the match changed when Belletti came off injured in the 19th minute and was replaced by Malouda. I have no idea what Malouda was up to pre-match, but he looked as though someone had put him on intravenous Red Bull and he was into everything. He scored our first "goal" in the 26th minute, but referee Mike Dean in his infinite very finite wisdom did not allow the advantage to be played from the free kick and called the ball back. Later in the match Mike Dean also decided there was no penalty in the offing despite Sturridge clearly being fouled in the box.
Goals came courtesy of Anelka shortly before halftime (37th minute) and Sturridge shortly after the resumption of play in the second half (47th minute) and truthfully it was nothing less than we deserved. It was a classic case of playing the odds, if you have enough shots you almost certainly will score, especially against lower league opposition.
My heart was in my mouth when Lampard was signaling to the sidelines that he needed to be substituted halfway through the second half while clutching the back of his leg. To me it looked like an upper hamstring injury and his expression as he walked along the sidelines suggested there was some pain involved. I am pleased to say that post match reports are suggesting that it was merely tightness in his calf and a precautionary measure, however while I am a pessimist I don't know that I entirely believe this claim. Lampard was replaced by Joe Cole who was well, Joe Cole, ie. into everything and showing his amazing skill, but just lacking the 1 per cent that comes from more match practice than he has had due to that injury.
Another clean sheet for us with Hilario in goal. It's strange, defensively we look better when he is in goal. I know, I know, Preston aren't a premier league team and it is easy to look good against lower teams, but in every match I've seen Hilario in our defence has been tighter than when we have Cech there. I also like the way Hilario stays on his line, he keeps goal and the defenders, well, defend, rather than turning our goal mouth into a scramble similar to a 90% off sale in a department store the day after Christmas.
A solid win against a team who certainly did not disgrace themselves today.
I also watched the Birmingham and Everton match and unfortunately I saw a lot from Birmingham again, so this mid week match will be a REAL test. Birmingham are now unbeaten in 15 matches and with a curefreak injury question mark over Lampard all we need is Phil Dowd to be appointed referee and I will cry!
It was great to see Daniel Sturridge score again in this competition...that lad certainly isn't afraid to take a shot; in fact given we had a total of 32 shots, 19 of which were "on target" so it'd be fair to say that of most of the team today. A lot of the shots were from a fair way out, 20 - 30 yards or so, as PNE were defending and manning up pretty well. Also this is a style of our game that is more evident when we don't have Drogba, as when Anelka and Drogba play together the shots come in from either of these players, or the likes of Cole, A., Cole, J., Lampard, Malouda etc. etc. and either Drogba or Anelka are there if the shot is parried by the keeper.
(For the record, Preston had a total of 13 shots, 6 of which were on target.)
For me the match changed when Belletti came off injured in the 19th minute and was replaced by Malouda. I have no idea what Malouda was up to pre-match, but he looked as though someone had put him on intravenous Red Bull and he was into everything. He scored our first "goal" in the 26th minute, but referee Mike Dean in his infinite very finite wisdom did not allow the advantage to be played from the free kick and called the ball back. Later in the match Mike Dean also decided there was no penalty in the offing despite Sturridge clearly being fouled in the box.
Goals came courtesy of Anelka shortly before halftime (37th minute) and Sturridge shortly after the resumption of play in the second half (47th minute) and truthfully it was nothing less than we deserved. It was a classic case of playing the odds, if you have enough shots you almost certainly will score, especially against lower league opposition.
My heart was in my mouth when Lampard was signaling to the sidelines that he needed to be substituted halfway through the second half while clutching the back of his leg. To me it looked like an upper hamstring injury and his expression as he walked along the sidelines suggested there was some pain involved. I am pleased to say that post match reports are suggesting that it was merely tightness in his calf and a precautionary measure, however while I am a pessimist I don't know that I entirely believe this claim. Lampard was replaced by Joe Cole who was well, Joe Cole, ie. into everything and showing his amazing skill, but just lacking the 1 per cent that comes from more match practice than he has had due to that injury.
Another clean sheet for us with Hilario in goal. It's strange, defensively we look better when he is in goal. I know, I know, Preston aren't a premier league team and it is easy to look good against lower teams, but in every match I've seen Hilario in our defence has been tighter than when we have Cech there. I also like the way Hilario stays on his line, he keeps goal and the defenders, well, defend, rather than turning our goal mouth into a scramble similar to a 90% off sale in a department store the day after Christmas.
A solid win against a team who certainly did not disgrace themselves today.
I also watched the Birmingham and Everton match and unfortunately I saw a lot from Birmingham again, so this mid week match will be a REAL test. Birmingham are now unbeaten in 15 matches and with a curefreak injury question mark over Lampard all we need is Phil Dowd to be appointed referee and I will cry!