Chelsea FC: A season review
It’s an incredible achievement by this group of players. A lot of people had written us off but we showed again what kind of character these players have - Roberto Di Matteo
Last season was a dream season for Chelsea F.C. Of course, their ‘revolutionary’ manager Andre Villas Boas was sacked. Of course they finished the Premier League in sixth place, below Newcastle. But come the morning of 20th May 2012, it was all forgotten.
Chelsea had completed one of the most historic campaigns in Champions league history. They had defeated Napoli, Barcelona and Bayern Munich against the odds and the man who delivered Roman Abramovich his first UCL was made permanent manager. A new ‘blue revolution’ started. Players like Azpilicueta, Hazard and Oscar were brought in. But Di Matteo was sacked in November, following a pathetic run in the Champions League group stages. They thrashed lowly FC Nordsjelland twice but could garner only 4 points from their remaining four fixtures. They finished third in their group and parachuted into the lowly Europa League.
Rafael Benitez was appointed ‘Interim’ manager by Chelsea. And in hindsight, it seems a good move. But at the time, there was disbelief and anger amongst the Stamford Bridge faithful. The man who had insulted Chelsea again and again as Liverpool manager was going to be their manager. Protests continued until the last day of the season. The protests were loud if the team lost and minimal if it won, but present nevertheless.
Chelsea, until the last couple of weeks, was stuck in a battle for fourth place with London rivals Tottenham and Arsenal. It was certainly an improvement on last season when it was only their UCL win in Munich which let them participate in the Champions League – at Tottenham’s expense. Under Di Matteo, Chelsea played a rather imbalanced style of football. They seemed too top heavy at times and while Mata, Hazard and Oscar were building a formidable unit amongst themselves, the lack of goals for Fernando Torres was still a major concern. Benitez’s arrival looked like it could be a catalyst for Torres to improve and sure enough there were signs of improvement in Torres. But in the EPL, he started another dry run after scoring a goal in the 8-0 mauling of Aston Villa. He broke it on the last day of the season with a delightful near-post volley. Undoubtedly the lowest points of Chelsea’s campaign was the 1-0 loss they suffered to QPR.
But there were plenty of highs in various English competitions. In the League Cup, a weakened Chelsea defeated United 5-4 and thrashed old rivals Leeds United 5-1, after going a goal down, in the FA cup. They faced Manchester United in the FA cup, and at Old Trafford, performed a rousing comeback to draw the match at 2-2 after going 2-0 down in the first half. At Stamford Bridge, a solitary Demba Ba goal was enough to defeat United. And even though they lost to the other Manchester team (Manchester City) in the semi finals, it did not matter. Another low point was their 2-0 loss to Swansea in the Capital One Cup, but this too did not matter.
It did not matter because they were having a great run in Europe, or rather the Europa League. After reaching the round of 32, they defeated Sparta Prague, Steaua Bucuresti, Rubin Kazan and FC Basel. This led them to the finals in Amsterdam. If there were two players who shined throughout the Europa League campaign, they were David Luiz and Fernando Torres. In Europe, Benitez often opted to use Luiz in midfield
It was where he shone brilliantly. The zenith of his success came against FC Basel when he controlled the whole game and to cap it off, he curled in a beautiful goal with his wrong (left) foot which had the perfect amount of bend, speed, dip and swerve on it.
But it was the much maligned Torres who seemed to be taking Chelsea through almost single handedly. He scored 6 goals in the 9 matches Chelsea played, and though people tend to forget it, Victor Moses, too, was brilliant in the Europa League with 4 goals. The final in Ajax was always Chelsea’s game to win. And they won it. A brilliant Fernando Torres opener was cancelled out by a Cardozo penalty and just when it seemed that the match may be going into extra-time, Ivanovic rose highest to launch a header in the back of the net, and Chelsea became the only club to hold both the Europa League and the Champions League simultaneously. Albeit for only 10 days. After the Europa League win, even better news came for Chelsea fans all over the world. After a protracted drama, Lampard’s contract had finally received an extension and those who love the man would have a chance to see him at the highest level for another season.
All new main squad arrivals, except for Marin, had a good season. Hazard, Moses and Oscar showed a lot of their quality and with age and experience they could only get better. Lukaku, De Bruyne, Piazon and Courtois are some players that should be a part of Chelsea in the seasons to come. Demba Ba was brought in during the winter transfer window to provide a back-up for the Spanish number ‘9’ and in fairness, Demba Ba has had a good time at Stamford Bridge. His real contribution though was his cohesion with the three playmakers (Oscar, Hazard and Mata). The ‘three amigos’ of the Chelsea squad have combined for 56 assists and 46 goals this season. Even Messi, Xavi, Iniesta and Fabregas together have fewer assists than them.
A separate word for Fernando Torres though, for most of the season the world was baying for his blood. Credit must go to Chelsea fans, management and staff for keeping faith in him. After all, a haul of 23 goals and 7 assists is nothing to scoff at. And the unquantifiable quality was ever present in his displays, he harassed his opponents with his perseverance and hard work. Frank Lampard, like every year, was again the talisman. During a purple patch which extended from December to February, he scored in almost every game and became the only midfielder to score 10 or more league goals for 10 consecutive seasons.
Player of the Year
Juan Mata: The Spanish midfielder, for me, is the best midfielder in England at the moment. His creativity and vision are unparalleled. He has quick feet and a quicker brain. With 20 goals and 28 assists, he is undoubtedly Chelsea’s best player. And this year, he has even added to his stamina and tried to complete his defensive duties; all in all the perfect team man.
Match of the year
There are no doubts when it comes to this one. The 8-0 annihilation of Aston Villa was historic and the finest hour of the season for the Blues. Everything they did was perfect, every pass was accurate and every effort reaped a goal. No less than 7 players found themselves on the score-sheet and all this after the Villa keeper, Brad Guzan, made half a dozen world class saves.
Most Valuable Player
Eden Hazard: Now this is a man who lives up to his name. He came and took the Premier League by storm. The first few weeks, defenders found it impossible to stop him as he weaved his magic around them. The former French Player of the Year is blessed with a wonderful sense of balance, blistering pace, excellent reading of the game and two feet which can shoot equally well. His 14 goals and 20 assists played a crucial part in Chelsea’s good season.
Goal of the year
This was a tough one, but I would go for Ba’s goal against Manchester United in the FA Cup quarterfinal replay. Ba was picked out with a 35-yard pinpoint chipped pass by Mata; the former then adjusted his body position brilliantly and applied an unbelievable touch to send it on to goal. In terms of quality and sense of occasion, that goal stands out for me.
Moment of the year
One would think that a Europa League win would in fact qualify as anyone’s moment of the year, but not for me. For me, the best moment of the year came when Frank Lampard scored his record breaking 203rd goal for the Blues and overtook Bobby Tambling. It might be churlish to designate a personal achievement as the most important moment for a club, but the service he has given to the club, the success he has got for them, the love he has for the club and its fans gives him the right.
