I posted on the previous blog so wont repeat other than to say I can't wait to watch the game highlights tonight. Great to see the team being applauded at last for the way we are playing. TSSO has certainly made his mark early on his return to club football and asnwered all the critics about his ability to perform at this level of the game. Early days of course by the signs are ominous for the EPL and Europe. If we keep playing like this and Man USA continue to fall back then we shall be installed as firm favourites for the double.

KTBFFH

An ominous 4-0 which shows Europe why we are the no.1 seeds in Europe and CL favourites.

GOOD
1. Lamps - Another goal and another MOTM performance. He seems to enjoy playing alongside Deco and Mikel. Needs 1 more to become our highest European goalscorer and i expect him to get it against Cluj.
2. Ricky - Must be the best defender in Europe. A master of getting away with the shirt pull and seems to have great pace when covering JT or piling forward. An awesome defender.
3. Mikel - 3 games this season led to our 3 best results. Allows Lamps and Deco the freedom to play and as with the 3rd goal, he was able to show how much more he can offer than Makelele when going forward. A definite starter for me in every game.
4. A Cole/Bosingwa - Limitless energy, great at going forward and still able to defend. Only conceded twice this season and a lot of praise goes to them.
5. Malouda/Anelka - Our French contingent appear to have benefitted from playing regularly. A goal each and both seemed to put in a lot more effort than last season. I suspect that both will start on Sunday, but when Ballack and Didier are both fit, will they still be in the team?
6. The result - A 4-0 achieved in 2nd gear bodes well for this season. All roads lead to Rome and if we don't face Inter along the way, it's surely time that the gods shine down on us and give us the luck to win this competition that Liverpool and Utd have benefitted from.

BAD
1. Performance after half time - Still resembled the Jose formula of stopping at 2-0. Fell asleep and led to sloppy play. Can't afford to do that on Sunday.
2. Joe's reaction to being subbed - Seeing his number come up, he turned to the crowd and shouted, "For Fuck Sake" and trudged off the field. I know he doesn't like being taken off, but he should just accept Scolari's decision. Seemed to fall out with Ranieri, Jose and Avram at various stages, hopefully not again with Felipe.
3. Subs - Still no sign of Di Santo, Sincalir or Ivanovic.

it was a good performance. not exactly great but if we win 4-0 on second gear, i guess people can be forgiven for calling us great. for me, Mikel, Lamps and Bosingwa were absolutely brilliant. a few stray passes and getting knocked over over a bit for Mikel but other than that, he's a master. Deco though, was a letdown . not exactly disappointing, but he just had too many stray passes for one his caliber and seemed just too soft tonight, getting tackled easily.
oh, and i've believed i've mentioned before that Malouda should be given a chance to prove his worth before being sold. guess he won't be goin anywhere afterall after tonight's performance huh. i felt happy for him when he scored, he well deserved it for that amazing workrate he put in.

but yea, i was hoping to at least see di Santo get some action.

I was rather surprised by Malouda. He hasn't played like that for us... ever. He really should have had 2 goals- Anelka should have fed him rather than burying his shot in the side netting in the second half. It wasn't even that he was playing against bad opposition. Not that Bordeaux looked good, but he played with a verve and a vision he hasn't had with us. Everything seemed to come off for him.

It makes me think that the Grant year was truly terrible for the players. The day to day managing must have been so awful that the dressing room was lost. Makes me very happy that Scolari is there. His project seems to be coming along nicely so far!

Oooh Aaah Maloooodaaah!

I think it was Andy Gray who made a decent point about Malouda and co-incidentally i remembered an article I read which said how Malouda enjoys playing in the CL more as a result of him neglected in the Prem courtesy Avram G. One of the reasons could be because he gets a split second extra on the ball int he European games compared to the Prem where defenders would probably hound him immediately.
His cross for Anelka in the second half. Whoa!! what a beauty! Low, fast, beat everybody including Anelka. If only he was expecting such quality coming!
And given the scheme of things Malouda looks more suited to play a part in swift one touch footie we play now compared to having Kalou around. Kalou would be ofcourse perfect foil to the power play of Drogba.
Oh My! we are being a little spoilt for choices here.
Cant wait for even the Carling Cup in which I am sure Di Santo, Sinclair would all feature.
Awesome day!

Obi for president, :>S
Cant wait to see him castrating:>b Scholes on Sun.

OBI-9! **I know theres one geez in here thats missing Essien.

Only got to see the last five minutes due to extreme laziness on my part, not being bothered to get up in time to watch the game. In that time Chelsea hit the woodwork twice (three times if you count the goal) and scored.

Class performance. Good start to the season. Hopefully it will continue on Sunday.

A very good all round performance especially the first half, we were slick and very comfortable against a poor team, our sloppy start to the second was a little disappointing, but Bordeaux did come out and have a bit of a go.

On Malouda, he has come in for a hell of a lot of stick from some posters but not from me I might add. But perhaps he's another confidence player and needs to be loved, and I think his rehabilitation started against Citeh on Saturday with a reasonably good game and continued last night. He did look a lot happier and grew as the game went on, I agree only time will tell if it continues, but if some people can recall we've had a few players over the recent years where the first season was poor and the second was a vast improvement.

As another perspective on player like Malouda not performing... if you think back to pre roman days when we have an above average team. In that team there would have been 3 or 4 average players or players that didn't perform each week. Now with a vastly superior team the spot light gets shone very brightly on players who don't perform straight away.

Clearly the EPL is a tough league to play in for non english schooled players and it takes time to adjust and not every player will adjust and some players will adjust faster (take Bosingwa and Deco for instance). Also not every emerging english trained youth/reserve player will make it either.

So while our expectations are high now particularly when big is paid in transfer fees, we should all remember that it will take time for new players to adjust and any review of a players performance under Average Grunt should be invalid. Players like Anelka and Malouda are now in their second season and are now playing under the guidance of a top class manager. If they don't perform this season then they should quite rightly be viewed as not up to the new Chelsea standard.

I hope both Malouda, Anelka, Mikel and all the upcoming players such as Di Santo and Sinclair get a fair run this season both by the manager and the fans and when each player has a bad day lets not get too carried away with the criticism unless they become consistently bad.

All in all my confidence this season is sky high and I am really enjoying the style of football and the results. May it continue and we bring home the double (EPL and CL) and maybe even the FA Cup to make it a treble. I can't wait to the Man U clash to see how this team performs against the current double holders.

KTBFFH

In the positive we HAVE to add Scolari

To see him demanding more, being so animated on the touchline, keeping his feet on the groud was to me the biggest positive.

Others would revel in 4-0 but nope, he wants us to control the game better, better passing, more intelligence, this way we wont reach for the skies and fall when we play a decent team.

Genius and a true gentleman if you have heard him talk of referees and JT's red card being withdrawn!

I'm very pleased with the score, even more pleased that Big Phil's asking for more.

Personally, I wasn't able to watch the match - I was at my Sixth form's Prizegiving, collecting a prize - but I think it's quite nice that whilst I was winning something, so were my club. :)

Excellent performance. The difference a good manager makes is there for all to see in the performances of Malouda, the use of the brilliant Mikel and the intelligence, enthusiasm and vim of the front six - imagine what we might have achieved if Scolari had come straight in last September?

That's nine months we ain't never going to get back.

All I have to say is, when hoardes of people left after about 80minutes, I said to the guys with me, I hope we score another goal..

We did

Then another few thousand left, and I said I hope we score another goal..

We did, and Beletti's attempt was a cracker!

Why bother coming if you're going to leave after 80mins, when we're 2-0 up.. pathetic

Congratulations Emma on your prize :)

As i wrote on the last page, it was a great performance and a fantastic start in the campaign..
I was a bit baffled myself as to why Uncle Phil took Joey off so late in the game (Joe didn't look too happy with the decision either!) but hey, the guy knows what he's doing and is getting the best out of ALL of the lads, so who are we to argue?

Good to see the whole team pushing forward also, not just leaving it to the same few..also, fantastic to see Phil not letting the boys rest after they were ahead by 2 goals..most teams would be comfortable with having a 2 goal lead and then just defend for the rest of the night but not Phil!!

"imagine what we might have achieved if Scolari had come straight in last September? "

imagine if he had come in 2004

Bugger off Henry you tiresome monomaniac.

Seconded...

Not the most exciting game overall, but a cracking statement of intent in terms of the competition. Mikel will be the reason why people stop banging on about how good Fabregas is this season; that boy knows how to pass a ball and then some. Good to see Phil urging them forward and also that Malouda is starting to find his feet - very pleasing.

Didn't see any of the Roma v Cluj game other than the goals - no idea if Roma were poor overall but Cluj took both of their goals extremely well; might be a little tricker than we thought out there.

'Halsey has been informed he will now take charge of the League Two encounter between Chester and Shrewsbury on Sunday.'

Snicker.

I've heard the FA are going to investigate comments made by Ye Olde Red Nose concerning J.T getting his red card rescinded..Apparently it's because he's England Captain, and it would never of happened if it was a Man Usa player..hmmm..

Does the pratt never think before he opens his fat mouth??!!

I will be amazed if anything happens to McFergie,the FA are scared of upsetting him.

If only Fergie was just ranting, but there is a subtle sub text and a craft to what Fergie is doing, as there always is.

There is a big game on Sunday, he's just had a bad weekend and lost a key player, quite justifiably, and we have just had one restored to us.

As in the run in to the end of last season when he and the Portugeezer were rarely off our screens whinging, he is sending some coded messages to the FA and match officials.

1. You have just done Chelsea a massive favour we expect to see things swing the other way on Sunday and the key decisions going our way.

2. We'd better see some serious leniency from you lot next time we land ourselves in the sh*te.

Fergie was always going to be unsettling people prior to this game, even though its very early days, and the ruling on JT has given him something to hang his hat on.

ducked out of work for lunch late yesterday to catch the first half, then relied on live blogs on the internet for the second. this is the first time i was able to watch a game live this season, and all i can say is..wow. i completely take back the things i said about lampard over the summer. every touch he makes seems to open the opposition up and that back heel was a delicious piece of class. every cross bosignwa made was menacing, and joe cole was a recurring nuisance. anekla fluffed waaay too many chances for my liking, but i believe he is improving with all this playing time. i was very pleased to see that quality goal from malouda, the finishing was top notch, and hopefully a sign of more to come.
im saving my lunch break for the first half of man u-villareal today, hopefully their woes will continue into the weekend despite the return of c-ron. it will also be interesting to see the formation SAF comes out with and how he plans to stick ronaldo, berba, tevez, and rooney into a formation together.

@ 21. BLUEBAYOU

I didn't think of it that way but you're spot on..
he does't seem to just reserve the snidey, childish comments for just before a game anymore though, does he? It's seems he's digging at Chelsea constantly in any way he can..i just hope that this time something is done about it, though i wouldn't bet on it..as LYNN says, he seems to be untouchable..

Chelsea are a real thorn in his side, aren't they?..

Pathetic, sad old man!

It's a huge compliment that red nose is constantly aiming verbal attacks at us. It's a well known fact that when he does that he's worried. & if they're that worried, it means we're doing pretty well. Same as his comment at the beginning of the season about our average squad age.

Another thing, Scolari's press conferences are interesting and amusing like Jose's were but he doesn't get involved in any war of words it seems and doesn't take any shit from the media. Good to see and encouraging because we could get more decisions in our favour with a manager who is liked by the governing bodies.

Good game, good win. Not much to say, but one thing makes me happy more than anything else - it is our manager - Big Phil (B.Ph). I do want to sing hosannas, I believe it is little bit too early, but I think we finally have got proper manager. The one who has not got anything to prove and the one who knows "little bit" about football!!!

Watched the mancs tonight. Nothing for us to be overly worried about, apart from Ronaldo returning. However, I think we've kept him quiet whenever we've played them and A.Cole & Bosingwa should have the measure of him. He also used to be managed by Big Phil so if anyone knows how to stop Ronaldo it's him.

I'm slightly worried about a backlash from the mancs considering how they've been playing recently. Anyone agree?

@ Number9 - a wounded tiger is always dangerous and they'll be out to prove a point on Sunday. Our tiresome home record seems to get in the way of our home PL games but I hope the worst we'll get is a draw. Lest we forget that ManUSA are notoriously slow starters but possibly the best finishers in the race for the league and whatever happens on Sunday it's not a disaster for either team, in fact one might argue it could favour them as that's the second of 3 massive away games done for them (Us and Liverscum, with just Arse to go) whereas we still have to visit 3.

But I'm always pessimistic because it means I feel so much better when the result goes our way. It's my first visit of the season and thats not a bad way to return, a homer against one of our biggest enemies. Aches and bruises fading now, shock dissipating, just some normal sleep and I'm back in contention for the blogs first team!

Oh, and Sir Rednose of Salford Quays is just doing the mind game bollocks again. Good to see LGF ignoring him completely. I sense a clash coming our way. And in the battle of Taggart vs Popeye Doyle, my money's on Popeye.

We have a new assistant:

LINK

Well that came from left field. Will be interesting to see another old boy in the dugout. The good part is baldy has a wealth of experience managing/coaching in the english game. How will he fit in to the brazilian revolution ? well time will tell but as a player he was a artist in midfield so should be on the same wave length as Big Phil.

I am sure the senior players will respond well to baldy being part of the team again. Whose to say that he may one day take over from Big Phil with Zola as his assistant ! I am not so sure even after an apprenticeship at West Spam that Zola will have the experience to lead a top club in the same way Big Phil seems to have.

KTBFFH

I like the fact that Scolari is bringing in another ex-BLue but Ray Wilkins! Who even knew that he was still a coach. All i remember him from is sitting next to Luca and jumping around in the San Siro when Dennis Wise.

I would have preferred Brendan Rodgers who's one of the best young coaches around.

Good luck to baldy though. He can help the players when we travel to Old Trafford or Italy and can give some advice to the plethora of midfielders we have at the club. Hopefully he'll also look to encourage the youngsters as he was involved with the recent Internation Under-18 tournament at Cobham.

I suspect Big Phil was looking for experience in his coach rather than youth with Brendon. He needs that english management experience that Baldy has and your right his experience with European footbal will also be invaluable as the CL progresses.

Wonder who approached who for the job ...

When Dennis Wise SCORED.

Ray Wilkins..... Good old 'sideways' Ray.

Seems a funny choice, but I guess if the plan was to get a Chelsea man in, at least he fits the bill. However his coaching career is now so long ago, I think his role may be confined to putting out the cones in the morning.... And perhaps, in a nutshell, that is why Stevie Clarke was no longer interested in hanging about!

Great to see Fergie getting himself into a drunken stupor over Terry's card being rescinded, and also to see them continue to misfire up front against Vilarreal.

Having said that, our long unbeaten record at home is giving me jitters lately, and I don't have a great feeling about the weekend.

It seems Malouda's new found confidence has him commenting in the media now... perhaps he is getting carried away a little bit by saying the performance was "perfect"...

LINK

And this quote from Uncle Harry hits the nail on the head. Lets see if Fabio does stick with a wining team and only let Stevie Me have a subs role for a while...

LINK

We all know Utd will probably start putting some kind of run together and climb up the table, lets hope and make sure it doesn't start on Sunday. The interesting thing which some people may have overlooked to their slow start from the previous two seasons is, that perhaps they are missing a certain Mr Queiroz more than they thought.
And for all the hype that surrounds Utd, when you sit down and analyze last season there was very little to choose between us for the big prizes, a couple of points and some carpentry materials, and we had a buffoon in charge as well!

Good news about Ray Wilkins if true, trouble is I can't a single other source that states this.

Goal.com has the story as well....

@ Clive...

You have hit the nail on head with Queerarse's influence and role at Man U. Ferguson has become more of a figure head/motivator/head basher than a true coach and needs a loyal assistant who is more upto speed with latest coaching methods.

While one can never count your chickens or write off Man U's chances I do believe they are suffering the old problem of keeping at the top this year. It will take them time to bed in their new attack plus C Ron cannot possible replicate last years goal scoring feats (can he ?).. so I am predicting they won't be as strong this year and we are sitting pretty to take over again IF we can keep the bulk of our team on the park.

My prediction is 2-0 with Cole and Lampard scoring....

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for Butch Wilkins since my first season attending The Bridge was 76-77 when he captained the side to promotion back to the top division, unbeaten at home in the league.

As ChelseaTony says however all the stories on this seem to be just quoting from The Sun - and they're not trailing A WORLD EXCLUSIVE ANNOUNCEMENT on the official website yet......

IF true, i'll be really pleased..just to see the look on my Pa's face really! It'll be hilarious! He's always had a soft spot for "Butch" from when he played at Man Ure but it really gets my Dad's goat when Wilkins is on TV bulling up Chelsea and hardly ever comments on any game that goes on down Manchester way..He always says; "Oh, i see he's got his Chelsea cap on AGAIN today..huh!" and shakes his head with disgust..

Oooh!! I can't resist..i'm gonna have to text him and break the good news!! :D

Confirmed on the official site: LINK

Great news.

Excellent..happy days! :)))

welcome back home, Ray x x

I'm pleased to see Ray (Butch) Wilkins return. He's Chelsea through and through and was my favourite player at the time. I saw his debut and most of his home games and although he later got a reputation for sideways passing in his early days he was very attacking. His brother Graham was skilful too.

I don't think Big Phil needs a coach. I think Butch is here to give a bit of history about the opponents, know which junction to turn off for away games and the odd bit of translation.

@43. Mark25 - "His brother Graham was skilful too" - Hmm, think nostalgia might be colouring the memories a bit there.

My recollection is of him getting endless stick from the fans for another missed tackle or mis-placed pass and for generally not being nearly as good as his younger, smarter brother.

Scott Cheshire puts it kindly as "lacked the consistency and physique to become a top-class defender".

Still great news about Butch - how could I ever have doubted The Sun ;-)

@ 44. BLUEBOYDAVE

I only said he was skilful - I never vouched for his defending!

I know its bit offtopic...but ,what about this guys?Will they ever get a chance?

LINK

LINK

LINK

I am bit worried.

Pleased to see Ray Wilins returning.

Sinclair doesn't have much hope of getting a run in the team if even Kalou looks like he'll be on benchwarming duties.

Can't have our fullbacks flying up too often on Sunday with their pace and attacking power. And the slackness against Bordeaux will cost us if it shows on Sunday. Loose back passes on more than one occasion. Rooney scored from one last season. Hopefully, Terry, Carvalho, MIKEL and DECO are careful about that