The Soccer Blog: CL Preview: Chelsea v. FC Copenhagen

Tuesday, 15 March 2011

CL Preview: Chelsea v. FC Copenhagen

By: Jack | March 14th, 2011
Tweet

Two vital away goals. Some much-needed momentum – to the righteous tune of three consecutive victories. Nine days off. Not even we can bollix this promising situation up.

Surely.

Ready.

Who: F.C. København
What: UEFA Champions League, Round of 16 (second leg)
When: 16 March, 8:45 pm local time (3:45 EST)
Where: Stamford Bridge (42,055), London
How: Fox Soccer Channel (DirecTV 619, Dish 149)

Why: This goes without saying, correct? I mean, qualification for the quarterfinals of this unscrupulous much-heralded competition is a must for Chelsea Football Club. For Carlo. Squandering a two-goal advantage – two away goals – would be disastrous. No, it would be worse than disastrous. How about fatal?

A thought
So Madonna’s ‘Borderline’ is currently serving as the backdrop for this world-class preview. This woman, I’ve been in love with her ever since, well, I could process visual sensuality. That may be just a tad off topic, apologies. However, this particular cut – from her 1984 self-titled debut – serves as an appropriate segue into the choice topic amongst the various papes and blogs that rule the media landscape ahead of Wednesday’s tie.

Is Fernando Torres already a flop? The borderline between feast and famine – brilliant and shit – is often thin. Torres has fashioned 12 shots and eight additional chances for teammates since his controversial move to the capital. His movement has been exceptional, even if his pace has yet to fully return and his touch has been less than stellar. He has, at least in my mind, shunned the personal in an attempt to ease the transition. Frustration has certainly boiled, yet he has not shown any kind of discontent – at least not publicly. He’s said the right things.

Not enough for the hoard. Torres has not scored, thus he’s a clear waste of a truckload of notes. Let them have their laughs. This man will come good, sooner rather than later.

Wednesday, for instance, represents a perfect opportunity for our Spaniard to answer his critics.

The team
Torres is pretty much a certain to start. But who will join him? It seems a fairly easy call at this stage of the game. Carlo, as we know, isn’t one to field a weakened side and there’s no real reason for him to consider such a move here. After all, as mentioned above, we will have enjoyed nine full days of rest come Wednesday.

Another special day for the 4-4-2? It would appear so. Who up front with Nando then? Nicolas Anelka has been the opposite of shit in Europe this season. The Frenchman has seven goals so far in the competition, joint second behind God Lionel Messi. He must start alongside Torres.

Many would argue Kalou did enough in his 40-plus minutes against Blackpool to warrant a chance to prove his worth in a partnership with Torres. I would, however, disagree. As we know, there is a clear difference in performance between Kalou the starter and Kalou the substitute. It’s the Ivorian’s role as an impact reserve that has served him best during his time in London. Of course, with this being somewhat of a low-risk situation (not really), Carlo may well opt to see how these two get on from the start. I doubt it.

Midfield. The usual of Ramires, Sir Frank and Michael. Who to join them? I vote Yuri. He has shown much promise since returning to the side and is deserving of a solid run of games. His pace and guile may well prove vital to our European adventure. Malouda is bound to start firing again (soon?), but I prefer the Russian here.

Defense. Bob is obviously ineligible so this is real simple. Some of you may favor Paulo to Bosingwa, but I’ll stick with the Portugese. Ashley Cole to get a rest? Never.

Projected XI
Cech
Bos-Bane-EBJT-Cole
Ramires-Essien-Lampard-Yuri
Anelka-Torres

What should we expect?
We are no doubt in an excellent position. And, yes, FCK were incredibly disappointing in the opening leg. No Scandinavian side has ever won a match in the knockout stages. This seems to suggest a procession into the final eight, but I’m not exactly buying that.

Copenhagen may have some life this time around. They have, since the 2-0 home defeat, had the advantage of playing a pair of competitive matches. That should at least breathe some life into what was a listless Copenhagen side mired in a mid-winter slumber at the end of February. We know they have some talent. And some petulance (see Dame N’Doye). This kid has the potential of coaxing a rash decision or two out of the referee, or even setting off one of our more volatile players. Could be a crucial aspect.

There’s also the chance of conceding an early goal. We’ve been known to switch off this season, so it’s not exactly out of the realm of possibility. If that were to happen, things would get interesting really quick. That being said, I expect a professional home performance from us. Should I expect anything less from a set of professionals?

England’s Brave John Terry to display the attributes that have him on the cusp of regaining the England captaincy. Fernando Torres to silence the criticism. Sounds like a fine day to me. KTBFFH

Bonus: That’s right.

Some Related Chelsea Posts:CL Preview: FC Copenhagen v. ChelseaPL Preview: Chelsea v. Manchester UnitedPL Preview: Blackpool v. ChelseaPL Preview: Chelsea v. WolverhamptonPL Preview: Chelsea v. Arsenal

Category: Chelsea Team News, Fixtures, Match Previews, Player News, Premiership

Tags: Carlo Ancelotti, Chelsea Team News, Denmark, Didier Drogba, FC Copenhagen, Fernando Torres, Fixtures, Frank Lampard, Jesper Gronkjaer, John Terry, Match Previews, Michael Essien, Player News, Premiership, Stamford Bridge
Tweet « JT Redux – Part Deux | Home | DennyI'm expecting a closer and more competitive match this time with Copenhagen actually fit. However, I'm still expecting a win, and by a bigger margin. I don't think Torres will score, nor does he really have to (yet), but I'm feeling like this is the game where he gels with the team.

However, Ramires on the right?

I'd also rather see Drogba than Anelka right now. Drogba is the one who needs badly to learn how to share space with Torres. Anelka doesn't share space. He just evaporates into thin air, and Torres is left wandering around with no structure. Put Drogba on the field, and I'm thinking those two will figure out how to click, and it'll be much better than playing the ghost on the field behind Torres. Imagine if Torres scores off a Drogba assist, it's muscle memory. They won't forget it and it could be/should become the most devastating strike force in history.VenkatNo. I dont think we should go with 4-4-2. And i believe kalou will do well right from the start. Actually his sub stats are weaker than his startng stats. Remember last season against Inter? He was our best player. We must line up a 4-3-3 with Kalou, anelka and Torres upfront with lamps, ramires and micheal in midfield.. I want that 4-4-2 to die except for the times when drogba and torres are together. We need not experiment or practise for the times they will be together. We need to start winning and play fluently. Enough of getting used to the system. Go out and have a ball!! KTBFFH!!WingCommanderAh! A true Chelsea supporter's assessment (at last!). Hope for the best but expect the worst.I am still concerned that the laid back attitude displayed by Ancelotti might also be the catalyst for "inconsistencies". Those players who do not have the inherent Chelsea fight take their lead from a manager who surfs on past achievements and "niceness". Since when did Chelsea do "nice". We have the skill (blimey, look at our squad) but as long as the "orders" are ambiguous in terms of desire, then we supporters will always have that fear that the team won't perform when it matters. By desire I mean "bleed for Chels" - ala Terry, Lampard, Czech et al. We wouldn't be in this discussion if Mourinho were at the helm.blog comments powered by Disqus