Posts Tagged ‘Fifield’

Ancelotti takes heart from Blues’ ‘control’

• Chelsea yet to concede a goal in the Champions League
• Lampard scored his first goal from open play this season

Carlo Ancelotti praised his team’s achievement in taking control of their Champions League qualification group by winning the three games missed by their talismanic forward Didier Drogba through suspension after Frank Lampard rediscovered his scoring touch against Atlético Madrid last night.

Potentially awkward opponents were eventually subdued here as Chelsea proved ruthless in front of goal where the Spanish were profligate, edging the hosts to within one win of the knock-out phase. For all their defensive frailties in recent Premier League defeats at Wigan and Aston Villa, Chelsea are now the only side not to have conceded in the Champions League so far this season.

Drogba, banned for his furious post-match reaction upon elimination against Barcelona at the semi-final stage last term, will be unleashed upon Atlético at the Vicente Calderón in a fortnight hoping to transfer potent domestic form – he has scored seven goals in nine league appearances to date – to the European arena.

• Kevin McCarra’s report: Chelsea 4-0 Atlético Madrid
• Dominic Fifield: Ancelotti takes heart from response
• Read Rob Smyth’s minute-by-minute report
• Chelsea want Kakuta transfer ban frozen

“It’s not been easy without Drogba, but all the players have done very well in this competition for us so far,’ said Ancelotti, after seeing his team extend their unbeaten home record in this competition to 20 matches. “We are in control now in this group, but our aim remains to finish in first place.

“That’s important to secure our future in the Champions League, and it’s still not certain. We have to secure more points still in the group. We played very well this evening and did better from set plays at both ends of the pitch. We had to avoid losing concentration, and we did that.”

That much was encouraging, particularly with Saturday’s match against Blackburn Rovers and next week’s collisions with Bolton Wanderers, in the Carling Cup and the Premier League, in mind. This team will be tested more aggressively in the air in those encounters, with Ancelotti no doubt heartened by Alex’s return to fitness after groin surgery. The Brazil international should be available against Rovers, where his brawn might be needed.

The visitors will arrive wary, too, of Lampard’s return to goalscoring form. The England midfielder had not scored from open play for his club this season before his 20-yard skimmer last night, and had gone 10 games without netting at all having been employed usually at the tip of a midfield diamond under Ancelotti. “Sometimes the goals don’t come and it’s been like that for me recently,” he said. “But I always believed and knew I had to keep working hard and the goals will come with a bit of luck.

“When you [usually] score fairly regularly, and when you don’t score, people ask questions. Sometimes my finishing hasn’t been quite what it was last season so I kept plugging away, but after a barren patch hopefully I’ll score some more. We’re playing good football, trying to play with flair, but we’re also trying to play with a real strength and team spirit and, if you can mix all that together, you’ve got a good team.”

“I’m happy for him, for sure,” added Ancelotti of the midfielder. “But Lampard is not only important scoring goals. He’s important because he works for 90 minutes on the pitch for the team. He’s an unselfish player. If he scores it’s better, but I want to speak about Lampard for his work, not just for his goals.”

Shevchenko leaves Chelsea to return to Dynamo Kyiv

• Record-signing rejoins Dynamo Kyiv as captain
• Deal agreed on last year of his Chelsea contract

Andriy Shevchenko’s ineffective and anti-climatic career at Chelsea came to an end last night after the Ukrainian forward signed a two-year deal at his former club Dynamo Kyiv, with Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti’s blessing, after mustering nine league goals during his time at the Premier League club. The 33-year-old, who cost a then English record £30m when he signed from Milan in 2006, is to be presented at a press conference in Kiev today and has been appointed Dynamo’s new captain. After talks with the Chelsea owner, Roman Abramovich, Shevchenko, right, has been released from the remaining 11 months of his £121,000-a-week contract at Stamford Bridge having accepted he would play a limited part in the first team following amicable talks with Ancelotti. ‘Roman Abramovich and everyone at Chelsea have been very kind to me,’ the striker said. Dominic Fifield

Man stabbed amid ‘large-scale’ trouble at West Ham match

• Man ’stable’ after being stabbed before match
• Alleged racist abuse directed at Carlton Cole

Violent clashes erupted outside the Boleyn Ground last night as West Ham and Millwall fans fought in the streets around Upton Park and riot police struggled to quell what was later described as “large-scale and planned trouble”, which left one man stabbed in the chest.

There were also flashpoints inside the stadium as the Premier League side won 3-1, with play suspended briefly after approximately 100 home supporters invaded the pitch following Junior Stanislas’ goal in extra-time that edged West Ham ahead. The home side’s manager, Gianfranco Zola, and his coach Kevin Keen attempted to usher fans from the field but appeals for them not to encroach on the pitch at the final whistle went ignored The Football Association intends to launch an inquiry into the ugly scenes inside the stadium, where missiles were thrown and police struggled to hold back fans. An FA spokesman condemned the violence last night – “We expect all culprits to be banned from football for life” – with the authorities also expected to investigate alleged monkey chants directed at the England striker Carlton Cole, who appeared to gesture towards the Millwall fans in the lower tier of the Sir Trevor Brooking stand as he departed the turf upon his substitution.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police confirmed that “hundreds” of supporters had fought in the streets around Upton Park tube station before kick-off, hurling bricks and bottles at each other. There were reports of darts being thrown and of some small fires having been lit and bollards ripped up, with more police rushed to the scene as the clashes intensified.

A 44-year-old man was described as being in a “stable” condition last night after being stabbed.

Thought of leaving Blues never crossed my mind, says Terry

• Defender confirms he will reject move to Eastlands
• Captain set for new deal worth £150,000 a week

John Terry is expected to agree an improved contract at Chelsea this week after the England captain finally broke his silence on Manchester City’s ambitious attempt to secure his services by committing his future to the London club.

City had a £30m bid for the centre-half rejected out of hand earlier this month but retained hope that Terry might agitate for a move to Eastlands for as long as he refused to comment publicly on the matter. The 28-year-old had privately been unnerved by Chelsea’s inability to secure a marquee signing this summer, and by two years of managerial upheaval since Jose Mourinho’s abrupt departure from the club, but insisted that leaving Stamford Bridge “was never a possibility”.

He had held talks with Roman Abramovich before the team’s departure for their four-match pre-season tour of the United States, but has since met the club’s owner and the chief executive, Peter Kenyon, for further discussions during their stay in the US as he sought assurances over their long-term vision at Stamford Bridge. Although Chelsea were always convinced that they would not lose the defender and believed they had an agreement in place with Terry, the player himself did not make up his mind definitively to stay until Saturday.

• Ancelotti insists he always knew Terry would stay
• Daniel Taylor on Terry’s decision to resist City’s millions
• Dominic Fifield: Chelsea’s pre-season is going to plan

The carefully worded statement released through Chelsea ahead of the team’s game against Club America will be the prelude for discussions to move on to securing the captain on improved terms likely to swell his weekly wage from £135,000 to nearer £150,000 – considerably short of what City were prepared to pay him – which should be signed before the end of the week. The new deal is not expected to extend the defender’s stay at the club beyond the three years still to run on his current contract.

“I am totally committed to Chelsea and always have been,” said Terry. “Chelsea have also made it clear to me consistently that there was never any intention to accept any kind of offer. When you are linked with any club, or with a manager [Mark Hughes] who I have huge respect for, it will always make headlines, but me leaving Chelsea was never a possibility.

“I know there has been comment that I should have made a statement earlier. However, throughout this period there have been numerous discussions between myself, the owner and the Chelsea board and we all agreed that the timing of any statement would suit everyone involved in those talks, not any outside influences or agendas. What is clear to me following those discussions is that Chelsea’s ambition remains as high as ever.”

That ambition has yet to yield either Franck Ribéry or David Villa, the players Terry suggested Chelsea should pursue in the wake of victory in the FA Cup final in May, though the club remain in the market for new blood. Securing their captain will provide a timely boost, particularly as Terry was genuinely intrigued by the project being put in place by the Abu Dhabi United Group at City, though Carlo Ancelotti insisted he was never perturbed by the issue. “There was not a problem because we have been sure that John stays at Chelsea,” said the Italian. “There’s never been a problem with this.”

The new Chelsea manager has already indicated he will build his team around its English core, typified by Terry, with the captain pinpointing the Italian’s influence as another reason to stay. “I am certain that he will take this club on to the next level,” he added. “Another important factor was knowing that Chelsea would be securing key current players for the long term. The strengthening of the squad around this core is crucial to pushing us on to greater success. I am as committed as ever to helping drive Chelsea forward and I will be proud to lead the team for as long as I can.”

The implications for City are less encouraging, though a move for Terry had always been hugely ambitious. Hughes still hopes to secure the Arsenal centre-half Kolo Touré, a long-standing target, as he seeks defensive reinforcements to complement the mouth-watering attacking resources already lured to Eastlands this summer.

Dominic Fifield: Johnson is shaping up for England

•Regular action after Chelsea sidelines has brought on his game
•Rivals’ injuries have helped his international opportunities

Fabio Capello has had his high-profile brushes with Harry Redknapp. Back in August the England coach was infuriated by the then Portsmouth manager’s assertion that the display against the Czechs had been “diabolical” and that the Italian was “killing” Steven Gerrard by pinning him to the left.

Ledley King’s call-up for the spring fixtures once Redknapp had moved to Tottenham Hotspur prompted simmering tensions to boil over again. Yet, when Capello considers one of only two constants across his back-line from the last five internationals, he might just have reason to offer thanks to ‘Arry.

Glen Johnson is not the complete right-back. There are elements to his game, particularly defensively, that remain raw and were exposed at times even by Kazakhstan’s Zhambyl Kukeyev on Saturday. Yet a position that might have been a problem for Capello, with Gary Neville not what he once was and Wes Brown absent nursing ankle problems since last November, no longer seems so fragile.

Redknapp lured Johnson from Chelsea’s reserves to Fratton Park back in the summer of 2006, initially on a year’s loan and then as a £4m permanent transfer. The player’s mentor has since moved on and last season ended in a relegation battle but the first signing of the Roman Abramovich era has not looked back.

Life was not always as rosy as this. Back in Chelsea’s second string, with any progress after his £6m move from West Ham stifled, there had been only exasperation. “I didn’t so much lose confidence, I just wasn’t given a chance,” said Johnson.

“I couldn’t show what I could do. Playing one game in six weeks is no good for anybody, no matter what age you are. It was a difficult time. Obviously at the start you can bite your tongue and bear it. But there’s only so much you can take.

“Portsmouth made me love the game again. When I was at Chelsea I used to say to my mates that I’m paid to play football but football’s what I’m doing least. It’s kind of crazy, really. I didn’t stop loving the game but I was frustrated every day and Portsmouth brought the love back. Harry signed me, played me every week and that helped me out. The whole thing was good for me, really.”

He has been a regular at Fratton Park since, flitting between right-back and a more advanced role under Paul Hart as Portsmouth sought the bite to edge them clear of the condemned. The talent and ability that shone through, albeit briefly, in the young Johnson at Upton Park is more obvious these days. There is the marauding threat down the flank – mirroring Ashley Cole’s charges with England on the opposite flank – and the pace to recover what mistakes that flare up in his game.

He was not at his best at the Central stadium, caught out by Kukeyev’s first-minute surge. But he grew into the contest, eventually stifled the Kazakh winger and then ventured forward to set up England’s third goal.

The 24-year-old has shared duties with Brown over Capello’s 14-match reign to date but, whereas the Manchester United player was once the first choice selected for the trickier ties in Croatia and Belarus, roles have now been reversed. It is hard to imagine Johnson, if fit, not starting the autumn qualifiers against the Croats and Ukraine. Certainly there should be a 15th cap against Andorra on Wednesday when England will surely stretch their perfect record in the group to seven games and leave them three points from South Africa.

Not that Johnson is taking anything for granted. The defender described the team’s display in Almaty as “far from our best” even if their Kazakhs’ shoddy fitness for a game at this level ensured England would eventually run riot.

“It was comfortable in the end and they didn’t really look like scoring other than in the first minute when they caught us on the back foot,” said Johnson. “But we know we can play a lot better than that. They were a surprise package and the manager warned us it wouldn’t be easy. The pitch isn’t great and it’s been tough for the boys. The whole squad hadn’t really slept for three days given the time difference and all those things play a part. But we got the job done.”

Capello will have been impressed with his player’s perseverance after a slack start. His potential suitors will have noted the burst of speed and skill, even on a bobbly surface, to wriggle away from his marker and centre for Wayne Rooney’s third goal.

Liverpool have admired Johnson’s progress from afar. Much will depend upon Pompey’s prospective takeover but the full-back may yet be offered the temptation of a move back to a Champions League club.

“I haven’t got a decision to make asyet,” he said. “Nothing’s been said and, as far as I’m concerned, I’m a Ports-mouth player and I will be for some time to come.”