PRE-MATCH BRIEFING: CHELSEA V MANCHESTER CITY - PART TWO

Posted on: Sat 26 Oct 2013

Chelsea's home game against Manchester City closes this weekend's fixtures and a day ahead of the game, club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistician Paul Dutton complete their look ahead to the game…

WE HAVE HISTORYManchester City have scored in just two of their last 11 matches at Stamford Bridge and won two top-flight league games at Stamford Bridge in 21 attempts over 35 years.
However, they have won seven of the last 10 meetings between the clubs since December 2009, and won four and drawn one of the last five games in all competitions since we won at Stamford Bridge in December 2011.
One of the last matches at Stamford Bridge before the arrival of Roman Abramovich in summer 2003 was the visit of Kevin Keegan's Manchester City on 22 March. The hosts lay in fourth place following back-to-back defeats a week earlier but a 2-0 win at West Brom restored confidence in a top-four finish and a chance to qualify for the Champions League.
Bottom-half City harboured few such ambitions but had plenty of experience in the likes of Peter Schmeichel, Robbie Fowler and Shaun Goater, although Steve Howey had refused to travel once he was informed he would do so as a substitute.
The visitors held out for 36 minutes, at which point Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink reached Gianfranco Zola's teasing near-post cross ahead of Sylvain Distin and prodded past Schmeichel.
Five minutes later it was 2-0, John Terry jumping unimpeded by markers to meet Graeme Le Saux's corner with an emphatic header from close range.


The tide mostly flowed the same way after the break, although Niclas Jensen might have restored City's interest when he shot wide of an open goal. Soon the Pensioners were in total control when Terry flicked on Hasselbaink's corner for Mario Stanic to sweep into the net.
Frank Lampard made it four after neat interplay with Joe Cole left Schmeichel stranded and with 10 minutes remaining William Gallas completed the rout, tapping in Lampard's cross. Sun Jihai's late second yellow finished off a wonderful afternoon

MOURINHO: JUST ANOTHER GAME

Jose Mourinho confirmed in his press conference this afternoon that Ashley Cole is fit and back in the squad ahead of Sunday's game with Manchester City.
The left-back picked up a rib injury in our win at Norwich three weeks ago, consequently missing England's two World Cup qualifying victories and our own recent successes against Cardiff and Schalke. The manager was delighted to tell the journalists in attendance that, barring long-term absentee Marco van Ginkel, he has a fully fit squad to choose from ahead of the game with our fellow title challengers at Stamford Bridge.
We lie just a point and two places above Sunday's opponents with almost a quarter of the season played, but Mourinho was keen to play down the significance that this match would have on the final destination of the league title.
'I just play every game the same way, and we prepare every game the same way: we want to win. In this moment, with the way the Premier League is going week after week, no result will put a team in a great situation and no result will put a team in a difficult situation,' the Portuguese said.
'Every weekend somebody will lose points. Some weekends more than one of the top teams will lose points. The league is hard so at this stage, mid-October, one game is not going to be crucial.
'Manchester City are a very good team, of course. But we have tests every week. Every match is a test, and every match can be three points, so it doesn't make a difference. We have to play our game and let's see if our game is enough to win.'
Our last league match saw Mourinho sent to the stands and while he doesn't agree with the decision, he has accepted both referee Anthony Taylor's version of events and the fine he received yesterday.
'The most important thing is that the referee wrote the truth,' Mourinho noted. 'Sometimes the referees, to justify their actions, make it a little bit different than it was. Taylor was completely correct and honest.
'I still have the feeling I shouldn't have been sent off, but that's okay because the truth is I was not offensive, aggressive, or impolite. I didn't use bad words, just a way to express that I was not happy with what was going on. The intention of the referee was not negative. I paid the fine and I can work on Sunday.'
Fernando Torres' brace in midweek capped an excellent few days for our forwards, coming as it did just three days after Samuel Eto'o's first goal for the club in Saturday's 4-1 win over Cardiff. The manager sees their success in front of goal as just reward for the endeavours of our whole frontline over the course of the season thus far.
'I'm happy with all of the strikers. They were not scoring goals but they were working really hard. They were doing a good job for the team and for their team-mates.
'There are different ways of contributing for the team than just scoring goals, and all three always did that. It was a positive week for Torres and Eto'o because they scored goals and that is what gives them the greatest happiness.'
Our strikers haven't been the only ones finding the back of the net of late, with 14 goals in our last four games an impressive tally. Our manager noted that nothing had changed in particular from earlier in the season, when we were finding goals harder to come by, but that it was simply a case of taking our opportunities when they came. Tuesday's 3-0 win in Germany, Mourinho said, was a perfect case in point, contrasting it to our defeat against Everton earlier in the campaign when profligacy in front of goal early on eventually cost us.
City are the league's top scorers themselves and they got two more in midweek, against CSKA Moscow, but their victory in Russia was overshadowed by reports of racist chanting from sections of the home support. Mourinho offered his support to City and Yaya Toure, but also believes that the enjoyment of the masses should not be spoilt by the actions of the minority.
'This country and other countries are trying to do what they can against racism. UEFA and FIFA have campaigns. A huge percentage of the people that go to football stadiums are people who respect the differences and respect everybody, and they are more important than the small groups that express themselves in a negative way,' Mourinho said.
'Racism is about principles. They don't start in football, they start in your house when you are kids. Football is not guilty, and football should not be responsible for cleaning racism out of the world. I think families can do it, and parents can do it.
'The history of football was made by many races. Let's fight the thousands but let's give to the billions what the billions want, and that is the best football with the best players from all over the world, whatever their race.'

PRE-MATCH BRIEFING: CHELSEA V MANCHESTER CITY - PART ONE

Stamford Bridge hosts the weekend's biggest fixture with both sides back from away games in Europe. Club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistician Paul Dutton set the scene for Sunday's game…

TALKING POINTSThe first and second favourites to lift the Barclays Premier League trophy next May meet this weekend in what could be the most important match of the season so far. Both teams have had their difficulties but are improving rapidly on the back of better results.
Stamford Bridge is a fortress again. Chelsea have won 11 and drawn two of our 13 most recent home Premier League games since QPR left Fulham Road with three points on 2 January. We have also scored 14 goals in four games and a minimum of two in nine successive top-flight games at the Bridge.
Manchester City would be 14th rather than fourth if only away games were taken into account but did taste success across town at West Ham last weekend. They have the Premier League's worst record this season for squandering points from a winning position - eight lost in total. Chelsea have won every league game in which we have led and gained four points from losing positions.
City's arrival around this time of year is an echo of the opening to Jose Mourinho's first season in charge, 2004/05. As in the last few months, the Blues began the campaign without extravagance, the most emphatic victory being a 2-0 at Selhurst Park.

Vincent Kompany's fitness crucial to Chelsea vs Manchester City claims Eden Hazard.

Captain's slog: Kompany's season has been dogged by injuries

Eden Hazard reckons Vincent Kompany’s fitness holds the key to Chelsea’s massive weekend clash with Manchester City.
City skipper Kompany is hoping to return to the heart of their defence at Stamford Bridge on Sunday after being out for three weeks with his second groin strain of the season.
And Chelsea star Hazard believes his fellow Belgian is so important to the Eastlands club, they are likely to lose if they must face the Londoners without him.
“He is a great defender," said the 22-year-old. "He is really important for them. When he plays they win - and when he doesn’t they lose, often. That proves his importance.
“We know his quality. We are lucky to have him in the Belgium team. I prefer to play with players like that than against players like that.”
Chelsea have already drawn away at Manchester United and Tottenham this season - and now prepare to host a top team for the first time, on the back of a run of six wins in seven games.
“We are playing well,” Hazard continued. “We have won at Norwich, we won at home against Cardiff. We have got a good dynamic.
"I hope we can continue like this, because this weekend we have another big, important match. Our role is to try to stay in the title race at the top of the table, win and carry on our way to the Arsenal game (on Tuesday, in the League Cup).”
Hazard is also in form after scoring four goals in Chelsea’s last three games - including his first in the Champions League, in Tuesday's win at Schalke.

Euro star: Hazard broke his Champions League duck in midweek

“Jose Mourinho has not asked me to do anything different,” said the man bought from Lille in June 2012 for £32m.
“Since the start of my career all coaches have asked me to be decisive, score goals, make passes. They often ask me to stay on the flanks. I try to follow the instructions, even if at times I try to move a bit. I try to do my job. At present, it’s fine.
“Jose brings his experience. He is a great coach. Us young players are a bit impressed. We are starting to know him.
"At the moment, it’s fine, we are winning so all is well. He has won a lot of things before, I hope he still wins a few and that we’ll be able to win more trophies.”
And Hazard, who has never gone past the group stages of the Champions League with Lille or Chelsea, insists this Blues side is stronger:
“I believe last season was a failure (to get knocked out at the group stage). It’s only the third year that I play the Champions League. I had lost, two years running, during the group stages.
"I hope that, for the first time, I will go through. We’ll use last year’s experience so we don’t repeat our mistakes.”
The season is full of promise for Hazard, with Belgium qualified for the World Cup as a seed after climbing to No 5 in the FIFA rankings.

High five! Hazard and Belgium are fifth seeds for next year's World Cup

“It is a beautiful period,” he said. “It is great to play for Belgium right now. We are still celebrating. We are winning matches, we are going to Brazil. It is great. It gives us confidence.”
As a PR exercise during the last international break, the Belgium squad visited different fans at their homes.
“Yes,” Hazard laughed. “I washed their dishes. I did okay, but I prefer being on a pitch.”

Man Utd & Chelsea given Eliaquim Mangala boost as Monaco eye Liverpool target Kurt Zouma

MANCHESTER UNITED and Chelsea have been given a pursuit in their attempts to sign Porto's Eliaquim Mangala with the defender's reluctance to move to France forcing Monaco to turn their attentions to Liverpool target Kurt Zouma.

     Eliaquim Mangala favours a move to England [GETTY]
 

Monaco are ready to meet Mangala's £42m release clause in January but reports in France suggest that the 22-year-old is ready to spurn the offer amid interest from Manchester United and Chelsea.
According to Le10Sport, Mangala's agent, Jorge Mendes, is working hard to convince the player of the merits of a move to Monaco, having previously negotiated the deals that saw Radamel Falcao and Joao Moutinho join Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev's project.
But the player has serious concerns about the lack of atmosphere at Monaco's home games, and it believed to favour a move to England for that reason.

  Mangala has concerns about the crowds at Monaco [GETTY]

Monaco will turn to Kurt Zouma with Eliaquim Mangala preferring a move to England

And that could spell bad news for Liverpool, with Monaco sporting director Vadim Vassilyev ready to turn his attentions to Kurt Zouma instead.
Saint-Etienne are thought to be somewhat resigned to losing Zouma in January, and Liverpool were though to be monitoring the prodigious 18-year-old.
Both United and Chelsea were also linked with a move for Zouma, and whilst both are thought to prefer Mangala, whichever club misses out on the latter could join the Principality side in the race for the next-best thing in Zouma.

      Zouma [GETTY]

FA STATEMENT ON MOURINHO

Posted on: Thu 24 Oct 2013

The Football Association has this afternoon (Thursday) issued a statement regarding Jose Mourinho and the weekend game against Cardiff City.
The statement reads:
'Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has been fined £8,000 after he admitted a breach of FA Rule E3 in that his behaviour in or around the 69th minute of his side's game against Cardiff City on 19 October 2013 amounted to improper conduct.
'The fine is the standard penalty for the offence.'

FA STATEMENT ON MOURINHO CHARGE

Posted on: Mon 21 Oct 2013

The Football Association has this evening (Monday) issued a statement regarding Jose Mourinho and the weekend game against Cardiff City.
The statement reads:
'Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has been charged with improper conduct in relation to his behaviour during his side's game against Cardiff City on Saturday 19 October 2013.
'Mourinho has until 24 October at 6pm to respond to the charge.'

MOURINHO: WE NEED POINTS

Posted on: Mon 21 Oct 2013

Jose Mourinho says we will be targeting all three points away to Schalke on Tuesday night, against a side he considers our strongest opponent in Champions League Group E.
Victory in Bucharest at the beginning of the month improved our continental standing following our opening day defeat at home to Basel, and a win at the Veltins-Arena would put us back in a position of control at the halfway stage.
We arrive in Germany in a good spell of form, with three wins on the bounce in all competitions, Saturday's 4-1 despatch of Cardiff City the most recent reminder of the Blues' capabilities.
Mourinho is able to welcome back Andre Schurrle to his squad but remains without Ashley Cole, who did train at Cobham this morning before the squad departed for Germany, the manager opting not to take the opportunity to train at Schalke's home stadium in Gelsenkirchen, where we played previously in 2003 and 2007.
That meant his pre-match press conference was held in a suite overlooking a runway at Dusseldorf, with the manager explaining he had picked his side but had not yet shared it with the players, disclosing only that John Terry, who was sat alongside him, would start.
'I know but the players don't know,' the Portuguese said. '[With] only two days in between matches, I didn't train tactically for the game so the players don't know, so it's a principle I want always to keep. When they don't know I don't like to say. I have to make an option for tomorrow - I have to make a choice between David [Luiz] and Gary [Cahill].'
Our hosts will be without key figures in Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Marco Hoger, but Mourinho is adamant they represent our strongest competition for top spot in Group E.
'It's difficult for a team to be at maximum power, to play a match without somebody missing through injury or suspension,' he said. 'They miss a couple of players, but us too. Ashley Cole is an important player for us and is not playing. That's not a big deal. A team is a squad, not 11 players, and they have a squad with players to replace.
'What's the difference between Farfan and Clemens or Meyer, between Hoger and Neustadter? It's a good team, a good opponent, and hopefully we can be better than them.
We play now two matches against the strongest opponent in the group, and need points over these two matches. That's obvious. Tomorrow we have a game and we want to win and are going to try to win.
'I don't think it's yet the time to have the calculator and to be counting the number of points you need to qualify, to be first or second or go to Europa League. I think that comes on the fifth fixture. The third and fourth are fixtures you can play just thinking about the game, trying to win and if not trying to get a point, but basically, to play without that pressure of the calculator. We lost the first at home but won the second away so found a balance.'
Naturally for a conference where there were journalists from Germany, Mourinho was asked about Schurrle, who hit a hat-trick last week for his national side against Sweden.
'He needs some time to adapt to a different league, a different profile of competition but he is a good player, an open kid who wants to work and to learn, so our hopes are on him. We are happy with the investment in such a young player,' he answered, before responding to enquiries about another new recruit who has been in goalscoring form, Samuel Eto'o.
'He needs time, because in his career he played in Spain and Italy, a little bit in Russia, countries and championships different from the Premier League,' said the manager. 'Since the first day, he made an impact with the players. Everybody sees the fantastic quality he has in a little bit of time.
'Cardiff was good for him, not just for the goal but for his contribution. His movement was very good, in the first half when Cardiff was compact and closed he was the one in attacking positions with better movement and participation. It's the goal that gives him the confidence, the extra motivation he needs, so normally now he is happier. He's a very good player.'
Eto'o's contribution at the weekend went beyond his goal, and somewhat inevitably there were questions about the striker's assist for Eden Hazard's equaliser, where he dispossessed Bluebirds goalkeeper David Marshall. Mourinho was later sent to the stands by referee Anthony Taylor.
'If I was in that game and if I was paying for my ticket, I would be worried by the fact every time the ball was out or stopped and our opponent had to put the ball in, it took [an average] of 21.5 seconds,' he said.
'That's a waste of money. You pay your ticket and every time the game stops you have to wait about half a minute. When you multiply that for the number of times the game was stopped, you pay for 90 minutes but you get 55 or 60. For me, that breaks the rules. To score a goal with a hand is to break the rules. To score a goal that was not a goal (where the ball did not cross the line) like happened in Germany last week is not funny. Not anymore the goal that is not a goal, in England But in our time, there was crying in the dressing room. We lost a semi-final in the champions league and the ball didn't cross the line.
'Samuel did an intelligent action… in this moment FIFA says it's a foul, then it's a foul, but I think Samuel did well. Maybe the referee did wrong, I don't know, to be fair, but in my opinion that should be allowed, as it was for many years.'

GERMANY BOUND

Posted on: Mon 21 Oct 2013

 

Andre Schurrle was part of a 21-man squad which departed Gatwick ahead of tomorrow's Champions League game against Schalke in Gelsenkirchen, but Ashley Cole hasn't travelled.
Schurrle picked up a muscle injury last week and missed Saturday's 4-1 win over Cardiff City, but after training with the squad earlier today at Cobham, has made the trip.
Cole sustained a rib injury in our 3-1 win at Norwich and, after sitting out the win against Cardiff, as well as England's World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland, also trained this morning.
However, Jose Mourinho believes tomorrow's game has come just too soon for the left-back and he has remained in the UK.
Aside from Marco van Ginkel, a long-term absentee, Mourinho has no fresh injury concerns ahead of the game.
Much like our last European away game, against Steaua Bucharest last month, the first team squad have been joined on the plane by our Under-19s, who will play their Schalke counterparts tomorrow afternoon in the UEFA Youth League.
Dermot Drummy's side will look to build on successive 4-0 wins from their opening two matches in the competition.

FINAL WHISTLE VERDICT: GOOD RESPONSE

Posted on: Sat 19 Oct 2013

 

A spirited second-half display saw Chelsea come from behind to beat Cardiff City 4-1, making it three successive wins, and lifting us above Liverpool and into second place in the Premier League table.
The Blues had fallen behind inside nine minutes when Jordon Mutch capitalised on a mix-up at the back to give the visitors the lead, but we were back on level terms just after the half-hour mark when Eden Hazard equalised after Samuel Eto'o had won the ball from goalkeeper David Marshall.
Eto'o gave us the lead with his first goal for the club in the 65^th minute, finishing in trademark style following a clever Hazard pass, and Oscar made it 3-1 with a wonderful strike which flew in off the underside of the bar 13 minutes from time.
There was still time for Hazard to add a fourth, doubling his personal tally late on, ensuring we head into Tuesday's crucial Champions League encounter with Schalke in fine form.
Jose Mourinho, as he did at Norwich, turned the game in our favour with his substitutions, replacing Juan Mata with Oscar and Ryan Bertrand with Fernando Torres, but the Blues boss was forced to watch much of the second half from the stands after leaving his technical area to complain to the referee about how time wasting was being judged.
The post-match media duties were handed to Steve Holland, with the assistant first team coach explaining the reasons behind Mourinho's frustration, before reflecting on the game's key incidents.
'Jose is very frustrated and it stems from the time wasting by the opposition from the first two or three minutes of the game,' said Holland. 'We mentioned it to the fourth official on countless occasions in a very professional manner. Where he assured us he had contact with the referee and that he was aware of the clear time wasting, he didn't appear to do anything about it and it didn't have any effect on the Cardiff players and the time they were taking for free-kicks and goal-kicks.
'The result changed from 1-0 to them to 2-1 to us and we had a throw-in right in front of the dug-out. I think they'd just kicked the ball out because they had to give us the ball back, the young ball boy who went to the corner flag threw it back, Ivanovic had it in his hands for two seconds, no more, and the referee was on to him about getting the ball back into play and pointing at his watch.
'It didn't run consistently with how that issue had been dealt with for the previous hour, so it's purely a case of huge frustration at that, and to have then been sent off for showing that frustration is very harsh.'

On our equaliser, which stemmed from Eto'o stealing the ball off Cardiff goalkeeper Marshall as he took a goal-kick...'My view of it was that Samuel was on the shoulder of the goalkeeper, I think the goalkeeper was aware that he was there.
'He went to bounce the ball and as it was in mid-air Samuel touched it, the ball broke for us and we equalised. The referee had a very good view of it, I'm sure he's aware of the rules of the game.
'If that is the case [that the goal shouldn't have stood], over the course of the season those things can go for you or against you. The referee had a very clear view of it and was happy with it, so we move on.'
On a first Chelsea goal for Eto'o...'It's always difficult when you change clubs, but to change countries and leagues as well increases that. He's scored goals at the top level throughout Europe all through his career, but I'm sure he'll still be feeling happier to have that first one under his belt and be off the mark.
'It's something the staff and players have seen on many days in training. Physically you can change as your life moves on but quality is permanent and we've seen that finishing in training for a good few weeks now and it was good that the supporters got to see it in a game today. Hopefully that's something we'll see more often in the future.
'All strikers like to be scoring goals, it's what helps makes them tick, and to get off the mark is something I'm sure he'll be happy about and hopefully we get the benefits of that immediately.'
On the mix-up at the back which led to Cardiff's opener'It was uncharacteristic for us, our defensive record is very good but it was a misunderstanding at the back between the defensive players and the goalkeeper. The defenders thought the 'keeper had it, the 'keeper thought the defenders had it. It's not something that's occurred often and hopefully it doesn't happen too often in the future.'
On the overall performance'It was a good response from the players to come back from that. When you're playing opposition who play, as they're quite entitled to, with so many players behind the ball and make it difficult for you, if you give them that break it gives them belief and creates anxiety in your own performance, so it wasn't a good start for us, but the players responded very well.'

MATCH REPORT: CHELSEA 4 CARDIFF CITY 1

Posted on: Sat 19 Oct 2013

Summary On an eventful afternoon at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea came from behind with Samuel Eto'o scoring his first Chelsea goal which was added to by Oscar and Eden Hazard deep into the second-half, the Belgian's goal his second of the game.
The winger had equalised with what was an unusual strike, Eto'o having caught the goalkeeper out as he was about to clear up pitch, and to add to the talking points Jose Mourinho was sent to the stands in the second half.
Chelsea have now scored 11 goals in the last three games. Oscar now has five goals for the season.


Team NewsPetr Cech made his 300^th Premier League appearance and in front of him there was one change to the defence - Ryan Bertrand coming in for Ashley Cole who had yet to recover from the rib injury suffered at Norwich a fortnight ago.
Oscar was on the bench after games in Korea and China with Brazil so Willian was handed his home debut, joining Juan Mata and Hazard behind Eto'o. Fernando Torres, having won his race to be fit, was on the bench.
Cardiff moved Peter Odemwingie from the wing to upfront where he was joined by Jordon Mutch, pushed into an advanced position. Frazier Campbell and Kim Bo-Kyung were dropped with Don Cowie coming into the visitors' midfield.
First halfCech's hope of celebrating his landmark game with a clean sheet disappeared with only nine minutes played. Confusion ahead of him left our keeper unprotected as Ramires's knock-back was allowed to roll on by David Luiz, giving Mutch the chance to collect the ball and find the net.
Prior to that there had been plenty of Chelsea possession but no threat to David Marshall's goal. Eto'o was fouled by Medel on five minutes for a free-kick in Lampard territory. Firmly struck, it caught Ben Turner in the face, flooring the lofty centre-back. Mata later took a swipe at but made only minimal contact with a low centre hammered across by Eto'o.
Having gone behind, the Blues came within a whisker of levelling with 16 minutes on the clock when Terry headed a Mata corner just past the post, but then Cech needed to be alert and sharp to punch behind a free-kick that whipped off the head of Odemwingie and was heading for the top corner.
Lampard, with characteristic quick vision, played the ball long and early into Eto'o's path and when Marshall raced out to intervene, the Stamford Bridge crowd was sure the keeper had come too far and handballed. Replays showed they were right. Half an hour had been played.
If Cardiff's goal had come out of the blue, it was nothing compared with the equaliser two minutes later. Marshall, preparing to kick up the pitch with Eto'o just behind him, chose to bounce the ball.
The Cameroonian snapped into action and kicked it away from the Cardiff keeper. Hazard picked up possession on the left of the area and squared back to Eto'o in front of the target. Unexpectedly and unadvisedly he took a controlling touch, inviting a challenge from Medel. In the end it would have been a penalty to Chelsea but Hazard rendered that academic by smashing the loose ball in. A debate over whether the goal should have been allowed according to the laws of the game was only just beginning.


With the ship steadied, David Luiz went for a lead before half-time, aiming a yard too high when invited to shoot. Our centre-back was booked soon after for blocking off Gunnarsson's run.
The final chance of the half was another Lampard free-kick after a clumsy foul by Cowie out wide on Mata which was worthy of a booking. From a tight angle our vice-captain drilled the ball across the face of goal but wide.
Jose Mourinho set off for the dressing room before the half-time whistle was blown. Chelsea chances had come from set-pieces and opposition carelessness rather than open play. There were things to be said.
Second halfThere were things to be said too by Mourinho when David Luiz misplaced his pass deep in the Cardiff half soon after the restart and then chased the counter-attacking Mutch. The manager appeared to be warning the Brazilian he had already been booked as the two ran past the benches, but in the end his player did well to retrieve the ball with a judicious challenge.
The length of time Cardiff were taking over dead balls had been annoying Chelsea ever since the visitors took the lead, and Marshall was booked for delaying a goal-kick beyond the limit of the referee's patience.
Still the home side needed a spark. Oscar replaced Mata in the first Chelsea switch just before the hour and Torres followed soon after for Bertrand as Mourinho made a similar change as at Norwich when the scoreline was the same.
Cardiff had been pushing forward as much as Chelsea in this half without looking dangerous, their shooting too wayward, but now the Blues had three defenders at the back and plenty of bodies in attack.
The goal that gave us the lead came three minutes after the second substitution and it was vintage Samuel Eto'o. Taking a Hazard pass on the edge of the area, he sidestepped inside Steven Caulker and smashed the ball into the bottom corner. And how he celebrated too!

With his side in the lead, Mourinho restored the back four by bringing on Azpilicueta for Eto'o. It was a passage of events so reminiscent of his first spell in charge but the manager's afternoon took another turn on 69 minutes when he was sent from the pitchside.
Having been spoken to earlier in the half for leaving the technical area, when Mourinho did so again unhappy about what was going on in front of him, the officials made their decision and he watched the game from among fans in the East Stand lower tier.
Fernando Torres and Willian could have added to the lead as Chelsea found spaces to counter-attack but the keeper saved on each occasion. Marshall was however beaten by a drive from Oscar from 20 yards out to make it 3-1 after Ramires had foraged possession, and by Hazard who shot in low. The Brazilian's shot had been near unstoppable, the Belgian's anything but. It was a soft goal to concede to cap a strange day for the Welsh club's stopper.

Cardiff had shown resistance when only 2-1 down, substitute Kim Bo-Kyung forcing a good save from Cech with a shot flashed in from an angle, but they were now a beaten side.
With Liverpool drawing at Newcastle earlier in the day but Arsenal beating Norwich, Chelsea move into second place in the table.
Chelsea (4-2-3-1):Cech; Ivanovic, D Luiz, Terry (c), Bertrand (Torres 62); Ramires, Lampard; Willian, Mata (Oscar 58), Hazard; Eto'o (Azpilicueta 68).
Unused subs Schwarzer, , Cahill, Essien, De Bruyne.
Scorers Hazard 32, Eto'o 65, Oscar 77, Hazard 82.
Booked David Luiz 40.

Cardiff (4-4-2):Marshall; Theophile-Catherine, Caulker (c), Turner, Taylor; Cowie, Gunnarsson (Gestede 79), Medel (K Bo-Kyung 55), Whittingham; Odemwingie (Campbell 69), Mutch.
Unused subs Lewis, Hudson, Noone, Maynard.
Scorer Mutch 9,
Booked Cowie 44, Marshall 53.
Referee Anthony Taylor.
Crowd 41,475.

HAZARD: HOME COMFORTS

Posted on: Sat 19 Oct 2013

 

Eden Hazard can't wait to take to the Stamford Bridge pitch again after four weeks, and four games, away from our home turf. Since we beat Fulham 2-0 at the Bridge we have travelled to Swindon, Tottenham, Bucharest and Norwich, picking up three wins and a draw from those away games. A break for international duty has also prolonged our absence.
'One month is too long,' Hazard told the official Chelsea website.
'For the fans and for us it's better to play at Stamford Bridge. We want to continue from the last game in Norwich when we won 3-1, and I want to score again for the fans at Stamford Bridge to enjoy.'
The Belgian has understandably returned to training at Cobham this week in high spirits after helping his national side book their place at the World Cup in Brazil next summer. Belgium guaranteed their first appearance in the showpiece tournament since 2002 with victory in Croatia last Friday night. The winger is pleased to be heading into our game with Cardiff on the back of such personal success, and hopes to prolong that feel-good factor today.
'When you lose a game you are always a little bit disappointed, so it's better to come back from playing with your country after a victory,' Hazard explains.
'You want to stay at the top level when you return to your club, keep scoring goals, making assists and winning games.'
It is no surprise that the 22-year-old is being more closely monitored than ever when he is on the pitch, such was the impact that he made on English football in his first year at Chelsea. He knows that he and his fellow playmakers must keep linking up if they are to find those elusive gaps in the opposition defence, starting this afternoon.
'It's difficult for me. I need to change something on the pitch, and understand the situation each game. Against three defenders it is different than against one, and obviously more difficult. I need to play more simply, but also more quickly.
'It's so great to play with Juan (Mata), with Oscar and with Andre (Schurrle). We have to work together to make playing together easier. When we do that we always make chances and score goals, and we hope to do that again today.'

Chelsea vs Cardiff Preview: Team News, Likely Line-Ups, Key Man & Predicted Score

Chelsea entertain Cardiff City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon looking to put some pressure on the early pace-setters.

The Blues currently sit third in the table, just two points off leaders Arsenal, after a 3-1 win over Norwich before the international break and they will hope to put some pressure on the Gunners with another three points this weekend.

Jose Mourinho’s men boast a 100% record at the Bridge this season and head into the game in excellent form having won four and drawn the other of their last five games in all competitions.

Cardiff arrive in west London after a difficult week off the pitch with boss Malky Mackay reportedly ready to quit the club after former head of recruitment Iain Moody was sacked by owner Vincent Tan.

Mackay appears to have settled his differences with the club though and will look to get back to on-field matters this weekend with his side currently sitting 14th in the table – just one point off the relegation zone.

Team News

Chelsea will be without defender Ashley Cole after he was ruled out with a rib injury that kept him out of England recent World Cup qualifying double-header. Jose Mourinho has confirmed Ryan Bertrand will deputise at left-back.

Fernando Torres has been passed fit to play after recovering from a knee injury that he picked up against Steaua Bucharest earlier this month. However, the Spaniard may have to make do with a place on the bench with Demba Ba expected to retain his place after an excellent showing against the Canaries last time out.

Andre Schurrle will miss the game with a knock picked up playing for Germany in midweek but Eden Hazard is likely to be recalled in his place.

Cardiff have reported no fresh injury worries ahead of the game. Mackay’s major absentee is striker Andreas Cornelius who has been ruled out for several weeks with an ankle injury.

Likely Line-Ups

Key Man

Juan Mata: The Spanish maestro has regained his first team place after some fine displays and was on target for Spain in midweek. Mata seems to have found his confidence again so we think he’ll be the one to watch again this weekend.

Predicted Score

Chelsea 3-0 Cardiff: We can see the Blues maintaining their 100% record at the Bridge with a comfortable win over Cardiff.

Stoke City Striker Arnautovic Explains How He had Eto'o's Car Stolen

Stoke City striker Marko Arnautovic has recalled the time he had Chelsea forward Samuel Eto’o‘s stolen.
The pair played together at Inter Milan.

“So I earned my licence and said to Sam that I want to buy a car,” the Austrian told the Daily Mail, “and Sam replied: ‘Don’t bother, you can have one of mine’.

“He gave me a Bentley and I was very happy with that. I was driving into the city every day and was getting it washed all the time and keeping it nice.

“One day I went to the restaurant for 45 minutes. After I’d finished the car was not there and at first I thought it had been removed for bad parking. I was shocked, I was crying and throwing up, I was really scared.

“I called Sam and told him the car had been taken but I have to say he was really nice to me.

“He said it wasn’t my fault but I was calling him day and night to say sorry. I must have called him 100 times. When I went to Bremen I got a call to say they had found the car.

“I was worried Eto’o thought I might have asked somebody to take it for me so that was a big relief. When I see him at Chelsea this season we will have a laugh about it – I hope!”

NEWSFLASH: TORRES FIT FOR CARDIFF

Posted on: Fri 18 Oct 2013

Jose Mourinho reports that Fernando Torres has recovered from the knee injury suffered away against Steaua Bucharest and is in the squad for Saturday's match versus Cardiff.

The Spaniard is fit to start the game if selected. Demba Ba and Samuel Eto'o are also in the squad.

Ashley Cole has not recovered from the rib injury that kept him out of England duty and is rated a doubt by the manager for next week's match against Schalke. Ryan Bertrand will start tomorrow's game.

Andre Schurrle is unavailable to play Cardiff having returned from Germany's internationals with a leg muscle strain.

Lukaku loan to damage Chelsea's rivals, believes Bruce

Hull City boss Steve Bruce believes Jose Mourinho’s logic behind Romelu Lukaku’s loan switch to Everton was to win points from Chelsea’s Premier League title rivals, ITV Sport has reported.


After confusion as to why Chelsea manager Mourinho has sent Lukaku out on loan when the Blues have struggled to find a prolific striker, Hull manager Bruce has given his suggestion as to why Mourinho allowed the 20-year-old to leave.

“Maybe the reason why he's gone there is Jose has thought 'maybe Everton can go and get as few points off the big boys with him in their team’,” Bruce said. “That would be pretty shrewd really and I think they can.

Bruce’s side face Lukaku’s Everton on Saturday, and the manager has been doing his homework on the young forward. “He's a hell of a loan signing on deadline day, someone like Lukaku. I saw him playing for Belgium in midweek and he's going to be one hell of a player.

“Roberto Martinez inherited a very good side and with the addition of Lukaku and James McCarthy they've really added to a squad which has grown well over the last few years.”

Lukaku has scored four goals in three appearances for Everton this season, and is continuing to prove his worth in Martinez’s side as they prepare for the visit of Hull on Saturday.

 Interest has also been shown in Romelu’s younger brother, Jordan, who is currently playing on loan for Belgian Pro League club Oostende. Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly interested in the 19-year-old left-back, who faced Spurs in the NextGen Series last December.

SCHURRLE: PRESENT FOR MY MUM

Andre Schurrle was the hero for Germany last night, netting an incredible 19-minute hat-trick in the second half as the Germans recovered from 2-0 down to triumph 5-3 in Sweden.
Goals from Mesut Ozil and Mario Gotze either side of the interval had leveled up the scores at 2-2 before Schurrle struck for the first time, alertly intercepting a pass from Per Nilsson before outpacing the Nuremberg defender and calmly finishing past Johan Wiland in the Sweden goal.
Schurrle scored his second and Germany's fourth nine minutes later, latching on to a Gotze pass in the inside-left channel and again slotting the ball beyond Wiland with ease. The hosts fought back and scored again, sparking the possibility of a repeat of the extraordinary 4-4 draw between the two sides in Berlin last year.
But Schurrle had the final word, saving his best for last. He picked out the top right-hand corner of Wiland's goal from the edge of the box with a curling effort that the Swedish goalkeeper didn't even try to stop. It left Schurrle with a question about what to do with the match ball that his three strikes had earned.
'This is my first hat-trick so I've got to see,' he said. 'Maybe I'll give it to my mum.'
Germany finished as top scorers across the whole of European qualifying, scoring 36 times in total. Schurrle is part of an attacking squad that features the likes of Ozil, Gotze, Thomas Muller, Marco Reus, and Toni Kroos, and our winger thinks that attacking strength proved too impressive for Sweden to deal with.
'We've seen once again how strong we are going forwards. Everybody struggles against us.
'In the second half, we upped the tempo and they had problems and we fully deserved to beat them.'
Germany coach Joachim Low had words of praise for his hat-trick hero, and believes that his summer move to Stamford Bridge has helped him progress ahead of the World Cup next summer.
'I told him recently that last year I wasn't very happy with his development, but now, in some games with us and in England, he has shown again what he can do.
'He is dynamic, works back well and has a strong finish. His physical strength was also an issue, but he has worked hard on that.
'If he continues to play like that, the World Cup will certainly not pass him by.'

THE SELECTOR: MARK SCHWARZER

Posted on: Sun 13 Oct 2013

Mark Schwarzer is the latest player to put six subjects into the categories first, last, best, worst, easiest and hardest....

FIRST
Game. It was playing for Dynamo Dresden in the Bundesliga at home against Eintracht Frankfurt, we ended up drawing 1-1. We were leading 1-0 until late in the game but then we had a player sent off and they scored. I played pretty well so I was pleased with my performance but obviously disappointed with the result.
LAST
Holiday. I go to Spain [pictured below] every year, my wife is half Spanish and we've been going there for 15 years. My kids see it as their second home but also I love going back to Australia when I get the chance, that's always very special.


BEST
Opponent. I would have to say Arsenal when they had players such as [Thierry] Henry, [Dennis] Bergkamp, [Robert] Pires and [Marc] Overmars. They also had such a good defence with the likes of Tony Adams and [Martin] Keown, as well as David Seaman in goal. Ray Parlour was also in that side and I played with him later on at Middlesbrough. They had a phenomenal team and there were players like Kanu on the bench who would also come on and weave his magic, so that's probably the best side I've played against.
WORST
Music. Definitely full-on rave music, that's certainly not my thing.
EASIEST
TV. The easiest thing for me to watch on TV is Modern Family. We're always a bit late catching on to these things but that's what we're enjoying most at the moment.

HARDEST
Training. Any training session that involves running is probably the least enjoyable for me personally.