Premier League: Tottenham 2 West Bromwich Albion 2

Tottenham’s bid for Champions League football took an almighty blow as they gave up a lead to draw 2-2 with West Bromwich Albion.

Jermain Defoe’s goal on 67 minutes looked to have earned Spurs a vital victory in their battle for fourth place, but Cox’s spectacular strike 10 minutes from time salvaged a draw for Roy Hodgson’s men on Saturday.

West Brom took an early lead through Peter Odemwingie after just five minutes but Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko slotted home on 26 minutes to equalise.

Defoe’s strike on 67 minutes was his 100th English Premier League goal and 100th for Tottenham – but it was not enough for victory – meaning Manchester City have the advantage in the fight for fourth.

There were warning signs even before Odemwingie’s opener for Roy Hodgson’s side, with Jerome Thomas going close.

But Spurs were caught napping in the early stages and, when Carlos Vela found Odemwingie, the Albion striker turned Benoit Assou-Ekotto and curled a sublime effort past Heurelho Gomes.

Assou-Ekotto had to be replaced by Sandro following his clash with Odemwingie and that resulted in Gareth Bale, the newly crowned PFA Footballer of the Year, reverting to left-back.

Bale’s attacking prowess was not blunted as a result of the switch, and his surging runs down the left caused the visitors no end of problems.

Luka Modric and Pavlyuchenko both tested Scott Carson in the visiting goal, and Spurs got the breakthrough they deserved when Pavlyuchenko’s strike rifled into the back of the net.

The Russian should have doubled his tally just minutes later, but his wayward rebound from Rafael van der Vaart’s shot soared over.

West Brom started the second half in a similar vein to the first, and only a sprawling, desperate lunge from Gomes denied Odemwingie adding his second of the game with a strong header.

Odemwingie then flashed a stinging drive just past the post as Hodgson’s men exerted maximum pressure on the Londoners.

Tottenham lacked any real impetus going forward and Harry Redknapp’s response was to introduce Aaron Lennon for the disappointing Tom Huddlestone. Lennon’s pace posed problems for the visitors and it wasn’t long before Defoe had put Spurs in front.

Darting in from deep, Defoe raced towards the edge of the area and unleashed a fine drive past Carson for his Premier League century.

Not to be denied, Cox’s wonderful effort from 20 yards flew past Gomes and stunned White Hart Lane.

Harry Redknapp looked disconsolate on the touchline in the knowledge that his side are one point behind fourth-placed Manchester City, with the Eastlands crew holding a game in hand on Spurs.

Sat 23 April, 2011

Premier League: Tottenham 2 West Bromwich Albion 2

Tottenham’s bid for Champions League football took an almighty blow as they gave up a lead to draw 2-2 with West Bromwich Albion.

Jermain Defoe’s goal on 67 minutes looked to have earned Spurs a vital victory in their battle for fourth place, but Cox’s spectacular strike 10 minutes from time salvaged a draw for Roy Hodgson’s men on Saturday.

West Brom took an early lead through Peter Odemwingie after just five minutes but Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko slotted home on 26 minutes to equalise.

Defoe’s strike on 67 minutes was his 100th English Premier League goal and 100th for Tottenham – but it was not enough for victory – meaning Manchester City have the advantage in the fight for fourth.

There were warning signs even before Odemwingie’s opener for Roy Hodgson’s side, with Jerome Thomas going close.

But Spurs were caught napping in the early stages and, when Carlos Vela found Odemwingie, the Albion striker turned Benoit Assou-Ekotto and curled a sublime effort past Heurelho Gomes.

Assou-Ekotto had to be replaced by Sandro following his clash with Odemwingie and that resulted in Gareth Bale, the newly crowned PFA Footballer of the Year, reverting to left-back.

Bale’s attacking prowess was not blunted as a result of the switch, and his surging runs down the left caused the visitors no end of problems.

Luka Modric and Pavlyuchenko both tested Scott Carson in the visiting goal, and Spurs got the breakthrough they deserved when Pavlyuchenko’s strike rifled into the back of the net.

The Russian should have doubled his tally just minutes later, but his wayward rebound from Rafael van der Vaart’s shot soared over.

West Brom started the second half in a similar vein to the first, and only a sprawling, desperate lunge from Gomes denied Odemwingie adding his second of the game with a strong header.

Odemwingie then flashed a stinging drive just past the post as Hodgson’s men exerted maximum pressure on the Londoners.

Tottenham lacked any real impetus going forward and Harry Redknapp’s response was to introduce Aaron Lennon for the disappointing Tom Huddlestone. Lennon’s pace posed problems for the visitors and it wasn’t long before Defoe had put Spurs in front.

Darting in from deep, Defoe raced towards the edge of the area and unleashed a fine drive past Carson for his Premier League century.

Not to be denied, Cox’s wonderful effort from 20 yards flew past Gomes and stunned White Hart Lane.

Harry Redknapp looked disconsolate on the touchline in the knowledge that his side are one point behind fourth-placed Manchester City, with the Eastlands crew holding a game in hand on Spurs.

Sat 23 April, 2011

PL Recap: West Bromwich Albion 1-3 Chelsea

By: Devin | April 19th, 2011
    Tweet

Efficient, unspectacular, but effective.

Get in.

My apologies, folks, for the delay in getting this sucker online. It’s been a bear of a few days in my world. Between my internet intermittently working and the prospect of hosting my future in laws for the past ten days, time has been a commodity that has rarely worked in my favor. But alas, I did manage to watch the match on Saturday, and will attempt to briefly transcribe the most salient points as I saw things.

Didier Does It

Yes, he continues his stretch of excellent form, bagging a goal and showcasing once more his influence on the proceedings. This time, it was the power and nimble footwork that was on display- the predatory strike for our first goal, followed by the fleet-footed dribbling and drive that resulted in our second score. The power was in full effect as well. Kanye West would be pleased with what he saw. It was raw, at times it was nasty, but through it all, it remained under control. Brom clearly lacked the wherewithal to marshal his game, a fact that’s been apparently true for our past three fixtures. Not knocking Carlo’s rotation policy, but, based on what we’ve seen of late, I think it’s safe to say Mr. Drogba deserves a more frequent chance to strut his stuff into the twilight of this season.

4-3-3

Over, and over, and over again. We make this point weekly. Now, I think people understand why. It’s time to face facts: our personnel and team is designed exclusively to play this system, and within its construct, thrive. Though we’ve shown some thoroughly inept capabilities in front of goal of late, it was nice to see the old Chelsea in the first half, bombing forward, responding to adversity, and bagging a quick salvo of goals. All told, West Brom barely held the lead for 5 minutes. Nice. Defensively, we showed limited gaps in the framework, save for being caught napping on the counter. EBALJT was not at his imperious best, nor was our Brazilian ex-pat Bob. But, we did enough to limit our mistakes, and overall, came through without incident.

That Offsides Call

It was valid. Sure, it was a good call. But the movement, positioning, control, and finish were truly fantastic. Yes, I’m talking about Nando’s unfortunate shot on goal that did not count. But hang on folks, because I’m going out on a limb and saying that even though it didn’t count, it might have psychologically have worked to his advantage. You see, the combination of having little to play for going into the final six fixtures this season, coupled with watching the ball roll past a keeper and into the net might well have boosted our Spaniard’s confidence to a point that could result in some goals. Could. Not will. But could. And at this point, I’ll take it. I really will.

Rotate, Lather, Repeat

Carlo’s future, whether or not he’s willing to admit it, is set in stone. But in the meantime, he’s going to continue tinkering with the lineup and playing with the squad composition on a case-by-case basis. This time, it was Ramires dropped to the pine, in the wake of his red-card debacle in midweek, as well as a spot on the bench for Nico. Slotting in, Obi Trice and Kalou- both of whom looked composed and comfortable. For his part, Sala did enough to in my opinion, ensure he’d get a second chance this week to strut his stuff. But, knowing Carlo and his penchant for the obtuse, I’m suspecting both will be back on the pine this week and we may well see spot starts for Yuri-dinho and Paulo. But what about…….nevermind.

Lamps!

He scored! Remember when he used to do that on a regular basis? I kid- he hasn’t exactly been at his best this season, but it’s been rather painful to watch him fluff chance after chance in the past eight weeks. So, imagine my surprise when he knocked in a goal from the run of play, precisely the same chance he failed to net against United. Of note, it was really nice to watch us score from the run-of-play in general. Through a well-thought-out offensive attack that led to a wave of chances rather than an uninspired drub of kicks and punches, or a spot kick. Imagine my surprise when after Didier netted, Kalou followed with a left footed drive that wasn’t heading to the upper-deck. And then, Lamps kicks in a goal? It’s raining somewhere in Hades, folks.

Player Ratings

Cech – 6 – Usual fare.

Bane – 6.5 -  Did the damn thing, even if it hardly showed.

Luiz – 6.5 – Nice to have his pace and tenacity in the mix.

EBALJT – 6 – Yeah, I’m just going to disregard this one. Clearly not his best day at the office.

Cole – 7 – Best left back in the world. Leighton who? It’s not even close, folks.

Essien – 7 – Now that’s more like it. Pacy, energetic, tenacious, driving force.

Mikel – 7.5 – Showed his worth in the middle, and suggested to Carlo he deserves more than just spot chances.

Lamps – 7.5 – See above.

Flo – 8 – Involved in all three goals. I think his play correlates to warm weather.

Kalou – 7.5 – Loved his energy, including his left-footed finish. Show me some more, young buck.

Didier – 8.5 – MOTM – Awesome. Plain and simple.

Subs:

Torres – 6.5 – Limited minutes, a disallowed goal, but a nice showcase.

Yossi – 6 – Better from the Israeli, but still some way off the pace.

Bosingwa – 6 – Got forward, did his thing offensively, gave little in the defensive department, as per usual.

Some Related Chelsea Posts:Video: Chelsea 6-0 West Bromwich AlbionMotM Poll: West Bromwich Albion 1-3 ChelseaRant Box: West Ham v. ChelseaRant Box: Newcastle v. ChelseaRant Box: Chelsea v. Arsenal
Category: Chelsea Team News Tags: Chelsea Team News
    Tweet « MotM Poll: West Bromwich Albion 1-3 Chelsea | Home | chrisnot sure about torres' rating, apart from the offside goal it seemed to me like his worst performance so far. Granted he only had ten minutes or so but he constantly lost possession and then there was that crazy swing and a miss when he was set up on a plate.innnnnnnnnnnnnnnYeah I hope that Torres got some sort of boost from that (offside) goal. But it will be hard for Torres to start when Drogba is in such form, unless they can start working together. Ramires was injured btw.blog comments powered by Disqus
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PL Preview: West Bromwich Albion v. Chelsea

By: Jack | April 15th, 2011
    Tweet

Reunited. And it feels so good.

Who: West Bromwich Albion
What: Barclays Premier League, Round 33
When: 16 April, 3pm local time (10am EST)
Where: The Hawthorns (26,484)
How: Fox Soccer Channel (DirecTV 619, Dish 149)

Why: Because all that’s left in a season that has been impossible to figure out or predict is Champions League qualification. A win away to West Bromwich, undefeated under Liverpool’s man of the year, Roy Hodgson, would go pretty damn far in solidifying our place inside the top four, especially with only six league matches remaining. Yeah, there’s plenty to play far despite the morbid events of last week.

Motivation?
Judge Smails said it best. “You’ll get nothing, and like it!”

Except we won’t like it. Specifically, Roman Abramovich won’t like it. Success at Chelsea Football Club is now judged by trophies, nothing less. One without significant hardware equals failure, at least to our owner.

Perhaps more intriguing than how our owner will react to this reality is how our players will in the immediate. There’s, in a sense, little left to play for. And, consideration that the motivation of said players has been questioned on this blog more than once already this season, I feel justified in posing such a query.

We can’t get up for the opening leg of a CL semifinal, at home against Manchester United? Why then should we expect them to be focused on brushing aside West Brom? To think this side used to be one of the most resilient in world football. Furthermore, add the uncertainty of our coaching staff to the mix, and it just seems difficult to project what will happen Saturday.

Some would say they owe us the fans a performance. Those that suggest such may be right. Me, I just hope to see some drive, some fight – as if these players realize an era might be coming to an end.

Experiment
The pressure, to an extent, is off Carlo. He no longer has the Champions League to focus on, and his future, well, is out of his hands. Who knows, he may already know his fate.

Regardless, this gives CA the opportunity to explore. Experiment good sir, the options are there.

Ramires and Alex have been ruled out of the trip to the Midlands with minor injuries – this suggesting to me that Alex was rushed back for the second leg against United. Still, we have a fuller squad than we have pretty much the entire season.

Resting Ashley and Frank would be at the top of my priorities, particularly Ashley. The man has played an unbelievable amount of minutes this season. Yossi deserves a start as does Mikel. Then there’s Drogs and Nando. How Carlo decides to use Torres, after his embarrassing halftime substitution in midweek, may well tell us if he was in fact wanted by the manager. Speaking of which, there are murmurs that our French trio (Drogba included with Anelka, Malouda) has been grumbling about the Spanish acquisition. Sounds like rubbish to me, but thought it worthy of mention.

Anyway. Below is what I’d like to see. Unlikely, but it would be interesting.

Preferred XI
Cech
Bane-Luiz-EBJT-Zhirkov
Mikel
Essien-Yossi-Malouda
Torres-Drogba

Midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu reckons we’re rubbish and poised for a fall: “They’re not as good at the moment so I think we can have a great result on Saturday.”

Inform him otherwise. No excuses. Expecting a solid win, boys.

From there, lock up second – yes, I said second – and move on toward the great unknown that is the summer of 2011. KTBFFH

Bonus: Carlo’s pre-match presser and Blue News, the visual editions.

Some Related Chelsea Posts:Premier League Preview: Chelsea v. West Bromwich AlbionRant Box: Chelsea v. West Bromwich AlbionPL Recap: Chelsea 6-0 West Bromwich AlbionFull time: Chelsea 6-0 West Bromwich AlbionVideo: Chelsea 6-0 West Bromwich Albion
Category: Chelsea Team News, Fixtures, Match Previews, Player News, Premiership Tags: Carlo Ancelotti, Carlos Vela, Chelsea Team News, David Luiz, Didier Drogba, Fernando Torres, Fixtures, Frank Lampard, Graham Dorrans, James Morrison, John Terry, Match Previews, Peter Ondemwingie, Petr Cech, Player News, Premier League, Premiership, Ramires, Roy Hodgson
    Tweet « Open Thread: Where does Chelsea go from here? | Home | Rant Box: West Bromwich Albion v. Chelsea »CharlieI had a dream last night, Torres scored in bottom left corner.EBJTBrilliant line up Jack, I just hope Carlo has the balls to bench Lampard.JackSomehow I doubt it, but we can hope.arn00bTorres will probably score today, since there is very little pressure. That's when he truly thrives.arn00bThat would be a great lineup, though I'd like to see Ramires somewhere in the mix.

A 3-5-1-1 would not be bad.

Cech,
Terry, Bane, Luiz
Zhirkov, Essien, Mikel, Ramires, Malouda
Yossi
Torres.JackRamires would have easily been in my team had he not been ruled out of the match by injury. For sure.arn00bOh, I didn't know. Then I'd drop Yossi to midfield and slot 'nelks behind 'nandsie. Stickin' with the 3-5-1-1.truebluecech
ivanovic-d.luiz-terry-asley cole
mikel
essien zhirkov
lampard
benayoun
torresblog comments powered by Disqus
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