Boxing Day Blues
Last updated : 26 December 2003 By Rich Godden
Today's performance left me absolutely gobsmacked. When did our defence become so shaky? When was the last time Carlo Cudicini didn't save a shot in a game? When are our strikers going to start scoring regularly? When did Lamps lose his touch?
The only positive to take from this game, in my opinion, is our reaction to going 4-1 down. Only then did I think we started to show what Chelsea is all about and there were good chances for us to get back in the game. But the story of our season is the chances we're missing.
Considering the extent that we outshot Charlton by, you would have expected us to be the side winning the match 4-2! Against Fulham last week, chance after chance was spurned. And it's been the same old story for 80% of our games this season.
Thank god Eidur Gudjohnsen is now back from injury. I felt so sorry for Eidur when I heard about his injury as he was slowly but surely easing himself back to his best. If his performance today was anything to go by the month off has done him no harm.
I felt that Eidur represented our best chance of getting back into the game and, though he got the ball in the back of the net once, he was also behind another couple of great chances. On another day he might have had a hat trick- today, we'll put it down to a touch of rustiness...
Our defence each need to take home a video of today's game and watch it over and over. It needs to be drummed into their heads that this is not the way to defend. William Gallas will be back in the team for Pompey, along with Mario Melchiot and Baba I expect. Unless Claudio is going to give this defence a second chance in three weeks to redeem themselves.
Now onto the midfield. Jesper Gronkjaer was poor, as was Joe Cole. Why is Joe spending half of his time on the turf, pleading for free kicks? I would have thought he could do more damage when he's on his feet, not on the ground.
Frank Lampard looked bright at times but, overall, he will be disappointed with his performance. The same could be said for Claude Makelele. We certainly missed the presence of Damien Duff in midfield.
But there's one last question to be asked: How much for Roberto Ayala and David Trezeguet??
