Man City 1 -0 Chelsea

After 5 straight league wins on the spin, the first real test of the 2010/11 season was always going to come at Eastlands. After the exit from the Carling cup, albeit with the kids and reserves on show, it was going to be interesting to see how the Blues responded and sadly it was with an away defeat.

Carlo put out a full strength line up with only Lamps missing through injury but despite two pretty much nailed on penalty claims, the reality was that, in a tense and tactical encounter, City came out on top thanks to a single moment of magic from Tevez the Troll.

The 'in game' tweets went like this

• After giving the kids & reserves a run out (& breaking a few of 'em) in the Carling Cup, its back 2 the serious stuff with a trip 2 Man City

• It's pretty much a full strength blues line up with only Lamps still missing. City have started brightly but the opening 15mins is goalless

• Nic's had a sloppy start giving up too much possession but on 27mins Bran hits the bar from our 1st corner - Hart saves the 2nd attempt

• This game needs some pace to liven things up & it comes in the final 10mins but fails to deliver a goal. The half ends 0-0

• No changes at half time & more of the same until 12mins. Ramires looses possession from a corner & the Troll scores from a quick break 1-0

• Chelsea have to press now & gaps are opening up - Zirkov replaces Jedi so no holding man & Sturridge surprisingly replaces the Drog

• Young Josh McEachran is on 4 the last 10mins but the blues are just huffing & puffing with no penetration & City see this out 4 a big win.

So the first big test of the season leaves us coming up short and now we have to get up for Marseilles in the CL group stages and the small matter of Arsenal at home on Sunday. More work to do Carlo

Come on you Blues !!

Wigan 0 - 6 Chelsea

Another emphatic scoreline though the first half performance didn't give much indication of it. Indeed, Wigan gave a good account of themselves and had the best two chances of the opening exchanges before Ash broke down the left on 34mins and found Lamps in the box. His shot was parried by Kirkland but Malouda was on hand to tap in from close range.

Within 3mins of the restart, the Jedi fights free of some tough challenges and finds Nic with a superb ball - Nic shoots across Kirkland and its 0-2. Another quick break, this time from a Cech clearance and Malouda crosses for the Drog who guides the ball back to Nic for his 2nd and our 3rd. That would have been game over in the Jose years but not for this Chelsea. Ferrieia is replaced bt Bran and Kalou comes on for Malouda on 73mins and promptly scores from a sweet Drogba pass. More changes and Yossi is on for Ess and in the 89th min, Ash and the Drog combine nicely on the left and when the cross comes in, Kalou is on hand to head home for 0-5. Into the last minute and the Drog, who has been brilliantly unselfish today, switches the ball from left to right and as the ball is crossed in, Yossi is on hand to score his first Chelsea goal and our 6th on the day.

Yet another drubbing six goal drubbing - COME ON YOU BLUES

BBC report is here

Chelsea 6 - 0 WBA

After a less than impressive pre-season and a world cup that's best forgotten, the Blues got back to business with a 17:30 home game against newly promoted West Brom. Though the Ramieresfinally gone through on Friday, the lad was not paraded in front of his new fans before kick off. Thankfully the side saw the return of Cech and Alex to shore up the back and the Drog to lead the line however the accident prone Ferreria was preferred at right back to Iva.

Before the game, Carlo had come out and said we weren't interested in Luiz as we had JT, Alex Iva and young Bruma. Its a shame no one had mentioned that Iva was our cover at right back for Paulo and so we genuinely do look light at the back. Still it didn't seem to matter today as normal maxi goal service was resumed.

Here are the in game tweets that came live from the Brigdge earlier today.

• Off to our opening game of the season at home to WBA. Hoping to put a miserable pre season behind us with a convincing win. Come on U Blues !!
• 5mins gone and the keeper spills a free kick from the Drog - Malouda is on hand to tap home and its 1-0

• We've taken the foot off the gas & WBA are playing some tidy stuff. Lamps plays Malouda in on 36mins then drills a free kick at the keeper.

• Albion are playing some neat football with a few chances but a Drogba special goes thru the wall on 44mins to make it 2-0 at half time

• An Albion free kick grazes the bar on 52mins but we go straight up the other end where JT connects with a corner & the Drog prods home. 3-0

• Its smooth, smooth Chelsea now - Anelka to Cole to Lamps and its 4-0. That's why we're champions. Yossi is on to give Lamps a rest.

• Drogba cuts inside on the edge of the box, let's flys & a cruel deflection makes it 5-0 on 68mins. He too is given a rest an on comes Kalou

• Pre-season?? Wot pre-season?? Normal service is resumed as a sweeping move ends with Malouda tapping home a 6th. It ends Chelsea 6 - 0 WBA

It wont be this easy every week and we looked a lot better with Iva at right back but hopefully we'll see a few more signings before the window closes

COME ON U BLUES !!

Terence Trent D'Arby - wonderfull world

Hadn't seen this for ages
Mad as a box of frogs but what a voice (and some neat guitar to boot) ....
Enjoy

FA Cup Final - Chelsea 1 - 0 Pompey

Have you ever seen the Blues win a double - I have !!!!

A great day at Wembley if a somewhat bizzar game of football - The Blues should have been 5 up by half time yet 2 missed penalties made it a nail biting affair.

In the opening 45mins, Lamps hit the post, Kalou hit the bar (from 5 yards out - possibly the worse miss ever at Wembley), JT headed against the post and the Drog hit the bar with a rocket that James just got his hand to. Add to that another Drogba effort that scraped the outside of the post and you can understand why at half time we were starting to worry. All this and Cech still had to make a fine save from Piquionne on 22mins but the half amazingly ended all square.

The second half started in a more balanced vein and within 10mins we could and should have been behind. Belletti brought down Dindane in the box but thankfully Boetang decided to pass the ball tamely at Cechs feet for an easy save. Within 5mins we were ahead as the Drog buried a a trademark dipping free-kick beautifully past the despairing James. It should have been all over in the 88th min when Lamps was bundled over in the box but amazingly he scuffed his penanlty chance. It mattered not a jot as 5 nervy minutes later the singing and dancing began.

BTW, in case you missed it, mines a double !!!!

COME ON U BLUES

Chelsea 8 - 0 Wigan

It had to be done in style and it was !!!

Only one tweet possible today ....

"Championez, championez, ole ole ole !! 103 goals scored, four wins of 7 goals or more & the golden boot to Drogba - championez !!!"

..... now off to wembley with thoughs of a double

Come on U Blues !!!!

Liverpool 0 - 2 Chelsea

A trip to Anfield is never easy and this one was made that much harder by the thought that victory today would put us one step closer a momentous premier league title and keep us on course for a historic double. Carlo tinkered only as needed with JT returning to the heart of the defence and Bran moving to his more familiar right back role.

The nail biting in game teweets went like this

• The TV's on Sky, the volume is up and the bum is squeaking. Come on U Blues !!

• Its a bright opening 15mins but Drogba spends too much of it off getting treatment. Kalou is doing his usual tripping & tumbling routine

• The Blues look very tense. Best chance goes to Aquilani as Maxi sets him free in the box on 28mins but he bottles it and Bran covers

• Disaster for Liverpool as Gerrard back passes to the Drog who rounds Reina to make it 0-1on 33mins completely against the run of play

• Lamps runs in unchallenged on 36mins but drives just wide & then does the same 2mins later to release Nic but his effort is blocked.

• Babel replaces Maxi & there are cards for Malouda & Ballack. Wiley ignores a big pen shout on 45mins as Lucas brings down Kalou. Still 0-1

• No changes at 1/2 time. Kalou skips into the box on 50mins out foxing Mascherano but his goal line cross misses out everyone

• Malouda flicks a ball out to Nic on 53mins and this time his cross is slid home by Lamps. Its 2-0 and the travelling Blues start to sing !!

• Alex puts in a great last ditch challenge on Babel on 59min. At 0-2 we still don't look comfortable. Both Nic & Malouda test Reina on 66mins

• JT gives away a handball on 73mins but it comes to nowt. Into the last 10mins & a laboured counter attack sees Reina save from Nic & Kalou

• 5mins to go & its ole passing that precedes Zhirkov replacing Kalou. Cech makes his 1st save in stoppage time (says it all) & it ends 0-2. Over to u Fergie

Thoughts turn now to the Stadium of light for the visit of Man U to Sunderland. The need a win as a draw would leave only mathematics of overhauling a 10 goal difference

Come on U Blues !!!

Beyond Oblivion - beyond the download ?

I sadly missed a tweet (or trick yesterday) on another interesting twist in the whole music download saga. Indeed, if you were preocupied with the Spotify announcement which was big news in itself, this may well have passed you by.

So, if you also missed it, News Corp has made an interesting, if surprising, investment in a digital music start-up company whose stated aim is " shifting the burden for paying for music to device manufacturers and broadband providers, giving consumers free, legal access to an unlimited number of tracks."

Let the cheering commence amongst all digital downloaders - but hang on, this must live in the land of 'too good to be true' right - whats the catch

Well, according to Beyond Oblivion's founder Adam Kidron, there isn't one. Content is essentially 'licensed' to devices and services from which unlimited access is provided thus making the actual cost "pretty much invisible to the customer". Beyond claim this approach will will stimulate the device sales and they will also tier their charges based on the device and market types (presumably a smartphone is cheaper than a PC and South America is cheaper than Europe). The Beyond system can also create protected versions of any file already on a customers device and in a surprising statement "essentially legalise pirated tracks wit the rights owners". “There is no illegal music in the Beyond world because we pay royalties no matter what its source,” Mr Kidron said.

Beyond will pay monthly royalties from its licence revenue based on the number of times tracks have been played with guaranteed minimums for the record companies and maximum caps to avoid unexpected usage spikes.

Beyond told the Financial Times they "expected to pay out well over $100m in royalties to music companies within five years, but believed it was ultimately possible, via its potential agreements with device manufacturers and the music industry, to add $10bn or more to last year’s global digital music revenues of $3.7bn."

So this is kinda like pay per use but not quite .... frankly it all sounds a bit confusing and I'm never entirely convinced by claims to make price "virtually invisible" but its clearly a market move to keep an eye on.

What d'ya think ?

Chelsea 7 - 0 Stoke

A crunch home game against Stoke, following a disappointing defeat to Spurs, would normally be a banana skin for the Chelsea of old but not today as the mighty Blues ran in 7 goals for the 3rd time this season to go emphatically back to the top of the league.

Having seen Man U turn over Spurs the previous day, the pressure was on but it didn't show as the Blues played with great tempo from the start and bludgeoned Stoke with a text book lesson in attacking football. No doubt some nit pickers will claim that Kalou's second goal was two footed and should not have stood but that would really be harsh. The questions were asked and the Blues answered them with a hat trick from Kalou, two goals from Lamps and one each for Malouda and Sturridge (his first premiership goal)

The 'in game' tweets went like this

• When was the last time a home game with Stoke prompted such nerves? Ash is back, Bran replaces JT, Ballack holds & Kalou joins the front 3
• Stoke start with 4 centre backs as their back 4 - this will be tough. Lamps drives on 11mins & the block falls to Ash whose shot is parried
• Bennett waves away a stong penalty shout & 2 blatant free kicks on the edge of the box. Drogba has a gr8 header saved by Sorensen on 20mins

• Its all Chelsea but some nervy finishing is the problem tho on 23mins the Drog controls with a back heel & crosses for Kalou to head home

• Anelka's crossfield pass finds Drogba on 30mins & he flicks 1st time 2 Lamps whose drive is parried by Sorensen but Kalou follows in for 2-0

• Ballacks having one of his better games in the holding role. Huth hauls Kalou down in the box on 43mins & Lamps slots home the pen for 3-0

• No change @ 1/2time. Kalou & Cole wriggle into the box on 55 & 57mins to no effect. Kalou whips in a cross on 62min but it misses Drog & Nic

• Kalou beats the offside from a Lamps thru ball on 68min & takes two attempts to get his hat trick - his reward to to be replaced by Joe Cole

• Joe Cole crosses on 72min but Malouda misses from 1yrd out, Ballack blasts over 4mins l8r and Malouda misses again from a sweeping counter

• Hutchinson & Sturridge replace Paulo & Nic on 80mins. Joe Cole finds Lamps with a great cross & he side foots home 4 his 20th of the season ..ed. It was actually Hutchinsons cross !!

• Sturridge is played in by Drogba on 87mins & he rounds the keeper for our 6th. Malouda makes it 7 from a beautiful first time Joe Cole cross 2mins later

Now comes the small matter of a trip to Anfield next week. A win is essential (unless ManU drop points at Sunderland please g-d) and you'd like to think that Rafa's boys would fancy taking things a bit easy to not give ManU the upper hand again. Well ..... you'd like to think that but back in the real world ........

Spurs 2 - 1 Chelsea

This was the first of the more difficult games in our run in and inevitably it ended in a defeat that actually could have been much heavier. To say the Blues didn't turn up (which we didn't) would be harsh on a Spurs side who were at it from the off. They were hungrier, quicker and should have put the game out of sight at the start of the second half when leading 2-0, Defoe was clean through and missed - shades of a certain FA Cup quarter final.

Tweeting this shambles was difficult but here you go

• After ManU's injury time escape earlier today thoughts turn to WHL. Deco, Malouda and Cole all start. Ash makes the bench

• Spurs start brightly using plenty of width to stretch the play. Malouda draws a good save from Gomez on 6mins but Spurs are on top.

• Spurs have a pen shout waved away on 13mins but get one for a JT hand ball a minute later. Defoe makes it 1-0 and its a huge goal to concede

• Replays show the JTs handball as a bit suss but the Blues were too deep & got punished. Pav' draws a great save from Cech on 24mins.

• Bentley misses a sitter on 30mins. Mikel is struggling so Ballack's on & Deco holds. Malouda rolls Dawson to net on 38mins but its offside

• Too many Blue passes getting blocked thru the middle & we're caught by a quick counter on 43mins as Bale skins Ferreira to drive past Cech.

• Carlo makes a double sub at half time with Nic & Bran on for Ferreira and Cole. All subs used but Drogba is hurt in warm up - wot now !!

• Defoe breaks clean thru on 48mins 1on1 with Cech who makes a gr8 save. This is really ragged. JTs booked on 60min & then sent off 2mins l8r

• The title charge is unravelling. Bently trys a wonder chip on 74min but Cech tips over. Bran drives just over on 77min but its all Spurs

• Cech saves from Bale on 81mins & Dawson makes a gr8 block on Drogba a min l8r. Bale & Pav miss 2 more easy chances as we go into injury time

• 5mins of injury time & Lamps connects with a cross from Bran for 2-1. Alex misses a header, the Spurs fans panic but its too little too late

To equalise would have been a travesty. we were well beaten and now have to face an inevitably bruising encounter with Stoke at home without JT.

Chelsea 1 - 0 Bolton

It was always going to be tough to play a Tuesday fixture following a hard fought FA cup semi final victory and anyone who thought Bolton were likely to just turn up and roll over were living in 'cloud fergie land'.

Carlo rang the changes starting with Anelka and Drogba at the expense of Malouda and Cole. Ballack (fast picking up the new mantle of Captain Slow) replaced Deco but these changes only served to break up the fluent and flowing Chelsea of late. Build up play was laboured and the lack of pace combined with a resilient and tough tackling Bolton side made for a nervy game that was settled by a solitary goal from Anelka. Only Zhirkov, playing his best game for the Blues, and with stitches in a head wound following a bad clash in the fist half, offered any real pace or gile. Indeed, it was only once Cole and Malouda had been introduced late in the second half that we looked like the Chelsea of recent games.

Still, in the end its all about the points at the business end of the season and the result leaves us 4 points clear with 4 games to go

The nervous 'in game tweets' went like this

• Home to Bolton and a chance to open a 4pt gap. Nic & the Drog up top, Cole and Deco are rested so in come Kalou and Mr Slow (Ballack)

• Early chances go to the Blues but JT picks up a knock on 10mins & is struggling. Another 10mins gone and Zhirkov is felled with a head wound

• A Drogba freekick is parried by Jaaskelainen but bounces wide off Kalou on 25mins. With 3mins to go he turns provider for Nic to heads home

• More tempo needed in the 2nd half & perhaps an 'appearance' from the invisible Ballack - we get neither as Kalou squanders 2 good chances

• With 15mins gone there's a bit more zip. Zhirkov (our best player by a mile) has a shot well saved on 64mins. Malouda replaces Nic on 66mins

• 15mins to go & Bolton are still in this so Cole in on for Kalou. Lamps hits the post 2mins later. Coyle throws on 2 strikers for the last 10

• There's 4mins of nervy fergie time as Zhirkov finds Cole but he cant convert. The Blues see it out to go 4points clear with 4 games to go.

Man U 1 - 2 Chelsea

A massive game that was overshadowed by the injury to Wayne Rooney (which was certainly over hyped by the media) ended in a well deserved victory for the Blues. Carlo took a, some might say, huge gamble by leaving out Diddier Drogba and sticking with the side that thumped Villa 7-1 but in reality he could do little else after such a result.

There will also inevitably be lots of talk about refereeing decisions and the "offside goal" from the Drog to make it 0-2 but few can argue that in the first half Chelsea were far the better side. Man U came out frighting in the second half but never really troubled Cech and the Blues ran out deserved winners.

The frantic 'in game' tweets went like this

• Its a lively start from both sides - Park is like a man possessed closing down everywhere. Wot odds on a dodgy Mike Dean penalty decision?

• Chelsea have settled the better and it shows on 20mins as Malouda bursts into the box and his cross is back heeled home by Joe Cole for 0-1

• Mike Dean has a look as Park goes down in the box but his hands stay down. Neville then similarly bundles over Anelka so that's one each

• Chelsea have dropped the tempo & Man U are getting more possession. JT clatters Berbatov in the last min of the half but it comes to nothing

• United start the 2nd half brightly but the 1st chance goes to the Blues as Ferreira scuffs a 1 on 1 with VdS. Its all Man U since then

• Berbatov heads wide on 60 & 67mins as pressure mounts on the Blues so the Drog replaces Anelka on 70min. Nani & Macheda on 4 Park & Scholes

• Kalou replaces Cole on 72min as the Blues freshen it up. Its a gr8 change as Kalou finds Drogba on 78mins who lashes home. it looked offside

• Hang on 10mins 2 go & the other subs Nani & Macheda combine to bundle home a Man U response. Ballack comes on for Deco to face the onslaught

• My bum is squeaking - this is tense stuff. We're into 4mins of Fergie time as Berbatov scuffs a volley

• VdS rushes the Blues box in the final minute but Cech collects from the free kick. The Blues collect all 3 points in a vital 1-2 victory.

The title wasn't won or lost today - Arsenal still have the easiest run in and Spurs will have a big say as they play us both - but its good to be back on top and have the matter in our own hands.

COME ON U BLUES !!

The Digital Economy Bill - an affront to our liberty

I've been a bit of a latecomer to the whole Digital Economy Bill debate and I'm shocked by the lack of coverage on something that, in its current form, is so clearly an affront to our liberty. The Dark Lord Mandelson is parading large parts of this bill under a banner of standing up for the artists and copyright protection but, by any stretch of the imagination, it is simply ham fisted legislation of the worst kind.

Having been a musician in a previous life I'm fully behind anything that empowers and rewards artists for their art. I'm totally against copyright theft but I hope I'm also a pragmatist who can recognise new market dynamics as and when they arise. Most artists want to reach the widest possible audience and indeed, it is audience that ultimately drives success. The web has empowered artists in a way that wasn't imaginable when I first picked up a guitar and law makers clearly need a much better grasp of the dynamics at play before they start wading in with their size 10's

Today came news of an amendment which simply makes matters worse. Drafted on Tuesday, Clause 18 will, amongst other aberrations, allow courts to grant injunctions against websites that aid copyright infringement. Fair enough on the face of it but lets dig in a little deeper. The clause states a website can be targeted based on "a location on the internet which the court is satisfied has been, is being or is likely to be used for or in connection with an activity that infringes copyright".

Hang on !!! "likely to be used" !!! How on earth can that be established. Are we really supposed to accept that the courts should be allowed to bring injunctions against websites they think might, at some point in the future, be used for copyright infringement. Is this crystal ball legislation ?? and remember this comes from the same Dark Lord Mandleson who recommended that users who infringe copyrights should have their Internet connections cut-off - completely ignoring the fall-out to anyone connected / related to the "offender" - children, partners, parents .... whoever !!

If ever a bill needed public outcry to drive amendment then its this one.

Get informed people - BTW, JP Rangaswami. has some excellent posts on this topic - and rise up !!

Chelsea 7 - 1 Aston Villa

After an expected but none the less welcome response to the Blackburn draw by thumping Pompey 0-5 away, the Blues faced the much more daunting task of a home fixture against an Aston Villa outfit still in the hint for 4th place.

With Drogba surprisingly rested (though we were subsequently told he was injured ) but still on bench it fell to Lamps and the rejuvenated Malouda to put on a show of ruthless attacking efficiency. The 'in game' tweets follow

• Home to the Villa with an injured Drogba on the bench so the front 3 is Anelka, Cole & Malouda 3:10 PM

• Villa have set up with 10 men behind the ball & are looking to hit us on the break but on 15mins a drive from Malouda is turned in by Lamps 3:17 PM

• Anelka looks to be relishing his lone role through the middle. Lamps & Deco both go close but as expected Villa equalize from Carew on 30min 3:30 PM

• This is a lively one. Ref Walton has no idea & is booking every challenge. Malouda & Lamps havin a good game but Joe Cole is ....... 3:41 PM

• The Blues have all the possession. A pen shout on Malouda is waved away but a 2nd shout on Zhirkov is successful. Lamps buries the pen. 2-1 3:45 PM

• No changes at 1/2 time but Villa have set up 4-4-2. A stunning move on 56mins culminates in cross from Zhirkov that finds Malouda for 3-1 4:16 PM

• The Blues look up for this as Anelka releases Zhirkov who's brought down by Dunn in the box. Lamps gets a hatrick, his 20th goal & its 4-1 4:20 PM
  

• What looked like a tricky tie at 3pm is now a rout on 68mins as another sweeping move finds Lamps in the box - he rolls in Malouda & its 5-1 4:27 PM

• Ballack, Kalou & van Aarnholt replace Deco, Cole & Zhirkov for the last 15mins as thoughts of Old Trafford loom large. 4:38 PM

• Into the last 10mins & Kalou nearly makes it 6 but 2mins later he links up with Anelka who splits the defenders & rolls him in for 6-1 4:43 PM

• Lamps gets his 4th and our 7th. The day gets even better as news comes thru that the Arse drop points to a last min equalizer at Birmingham 4:55 PM

The tweets tell only part of the story - this was the complete dismantling of a top 6 side with aspiration of Champions League slot and beautifully sets up the next match - the small matter of a trip to Old Trafford

COME ON U BLUES !!!

Joe' s Black Rock serves up an eclectic mix

Got my first real listen to the new album from Joe Bonamassa - Black Rock - and it has me a little preplexed. You probably know the story by now - it was recorded at the new Black Rock Studios, Santorini, Greece hence the album title and surprisingly, for a blues album, has a good few greek influences thrown in - particularly on the cover of Leonard Cohens Bird on a Wire.

Hear Joe's description (BTW Joe, why do you always tell us your date of birth in these clips) here

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/mpd/permalink/m38LBGORO84QAZ

It possibly overdoes the covers a little with Jeff Becks Spanish Boots and Otis Rush's Three Times A Fool, but all in all its a really well put together album..... but that's the problem. Its well put together, beautifully and cleverly arranged with some tradmake JB solos and riffs but to my ears its just a little bit off - almost trying too hard to be different. I cant put my finger on it, but I just preferred the Ballard of John Henry which seemed a more complete and coherent body of work.

Anyway, that's the joy of music - we all get to listen and decide ourselves so go check it out.

Blackburn 1 - 1 Chelsea

After the nightmare of a Champions League exit at the hands of the special one it was up to Ewood Park for a tough away test of our powers of recovery and title aspirations. Kalou came in for the ineffective Ballack and for 45mins it looked like the disappointment had been shaken off as the Drog put us ahead on 5 mins.

Sadly, instead of building on the great start we simply went backwards, failed to turn up for the second half and got what we deserved when Blackbun equalized. A spirited final 10mins was no substitute for the missing 75 and the Blues we left no advantage and no room for error left in a faltering title challenge.

The tweets when like this

• The Blues have to put the disappointment of Tuesday behind them with a tough trip to Blackburn. Wins for the Arse and Mancs make a win vital
• The Blues have started brightly - no Ballack thank g-d - and we're ahead on 5mins as Anelka picks out the Drog who slots home. 1-0
• Its got a bit scrappy since the goal with Blackburn threatening on the break. Kalou, Alex & Kalou all go close
• On 38mins Malouda cracks one at Brown as the Blues step up a gear but then Bran is injured & replaced by Zhirkov as the half peters out 1-0
• Blackburn start the 2nd half brightly with Pedersens long throws causing problems. The Blues look stretched as Roberts replaces Kalinic
• The Blues are making hard work of this and 1-0 away is never safe and on 69mins inevitably Douf equalizes as the title challenge slips away
• 2mins later & Drogba lashes a free kick against the wall as Deco comes on for Kalou. Into the last 10mins, the Blues lack guile or invention
• Carlo & Uncle Fester shake their heads as Blackburn continue to frustrate. The pressure grows as Drogba lashes wide from a Deco corner
• 4mins of injury time & the Blues are battling but it makes no difference. Its another 2 vital points dropped. Advantage Man U & the Arse
  
  If we're honest, most of us saw this coming - tough away game after a Euro defeat. Champions elect win these - we're just not quite there

Chelsea 2 - 4 Man City

After the disappointment of the San Siro its back to the cut an thrust of the premiership on a day when more column inches and TV news minutes were given to the possibility of a handshake than the reality of a devastating earthquake.

That said there was a football match to play as well and unfortunately the Blues didn't show up. With Malouda in at left back, the iffy Hilario between the sticks (when will Ross Turnbull actually get a real game) and Joe Cole up front with Anelka and Drogba it still looked a pretty strong line up. After going ahead in the 40th minute things just fell apart - conceeding two goals either side of the break, some odd substitutions (Joe Cole wasn't great but Ballack was worse) anjd even shoddier defending consigned us to to a painful home defeat and worse still left the door ajar for Man U and Arsenal.

The 'in game' tweets are shown below

Pre Match - An earthquake in Chile or a handshake at the Bridge. The one that's getting the most news coverage @ present shows the sad state of UK press
Small matter of a football match today. Man City at home with 1st choice no left or right back, no keeper & limited midfield options. Its getting tough
Malouda starts at left back & JT sports a dodgy mohawke. Joe Cole joins Drog and Nic up top & the Jedi holds. OMG a handshake - just joking
13:08 - A sluggish opening 20mins is punctuated by a thunderous drive from Malouda on 10mins that flys just over. Man City are set out to frustrate.
13:26 - Lamps finds the Drog with a miss hit on 35mins but he shoots over. 5mins later Joe Cole slots Lamps thru & he slots home past Given for 1-0
13:30 - It lasts precisely 3mins as Mikel misses a simple header and Tevez wriggles past JT and Ricky to then scuff a shot past Hilario. Its 1-1
13:50 - No changes at 1/2 time tho Carlo must have been fuming. It's worse after 5mins as a Blues attack breaks down & Bellamy breaks & slots home.
14:05 - An hour gone - SWP on for City, Sturridge & Belletti replaces the hapless Mikel & Joe Cole. It makes no difference so Kalou's on for Ricky
14:20 - With 15mins left its an inevitable penalty against us from Mike Dean with a red for Belletti to boot. The Troll makes it 3-1 and game over
14:25 - Ballack clatters the Troll from behind & he's off so the Blues are down to 9men with 10mins to go. Home record gone and the league... ???
14:32 - Bellamy makes it 4-1 on a 2 vs 5 break from the half way line. It means nothing against 9men tho goal difference might be an issue in May
14: 26 - 5mins of injury time and Lamps converts a penalty to make it 4-2. Helps the goal difference but not much else. Man U & the Arse are smiling.

So Carlo has a lot of work to do with a missfiring side and only limited resources available - no Cech, Bozzy, Ess, Cole, Zhirkov or Deco and now suspensions for belletti and Ballack (the latter being no great loss in my booK). A tough andx phyisical FA Cup quarter final awaits before a derby day visit of West Ham and the the small mater of Jose and Inter.

Its gonna be a tough month or so - Come on u Blues !!

The end of the Road ....

I was really saddened to read in the FT yesterday that EMI (probably our last great British music institution - albeit one that's burning an ever deepening hole in Guy Hands pockets over at Terra Firma) have put the iconic Abbey Road Studios up for sale.

As a budding, but not so young muso, in the early 80's I was fortunate enough to spend some time there - though never actually got to record anything much to my dismay - and it was always a place of awe and reverence. Not characteristics shared by many of the guys at EMI who, whilst they rightly assert that modern technology allows you to create music in your bedroom, clearly don't get the magic that happens post the initial creation stage when great musicians get together in a great setting with great procurers and engineers.

EMI would not comment officially but the FT believes it had been considering bids that could raise tens of millions of pounds. As was rightly reported, the Abbey Road brand is probably worth even more than the studio and the property which was bought for £100,000 back in 1929. Whilst it will always be the home of the Beatles greatest hits to most people, it was Pink Floyd's Dark Sides of the Moon that really made me think about what great musicians could do in a great studio.

To be fair EMI has tried to leverage the Abbey Road brand through the Abbey Road Live concert series but this was not well promoted and one assumes not particularly successfully given the current statements.

Expect the usual ringing of hands from the likes of McCartney, Marttin, Gilmour etc al and just hope that someone steps in soon

New Joe Bonamassa Album

Joe Bonamassa's new album Black Rock is slated for release shortly - Amazon are showing it up for pre-order with a March 22nd release date - but there was an early review on guitarniose.com. Hard to believe but this is Joes 10th album and will be his last before the upcomming Black Country release (his colaboration with Glenn Hughes and Jason Bonham).

The review concludes with the following...

" Black Rock is a great album and an example of great songwriting, arrangements and of course guitar playing and tone. Joe experiments with guitar tone more than most which brings a nice quality to each track, you never tire of hearing that same sound although and yet it is always unmistakably Joe. Is this album better than The Ballad Of John Henry? Well it is difficult to compare because this album has a totally different feel to it. I love The Ballad Of John Henry, it was my favourite album of 2009 chock full of incredible covers and originals. Black Rock doesn’t quite have the same initial impact for me but grows on you with each listen and after 10 or so listens start to finish I can say that this is probably going to be one of the most played albums in my iTunes this year."

Chelsea 2 - 0 Arsenal

What looked like a difficult tie against a so called resurgent Arsenal, whose boss was convinced their thumping by Man U was just an aberration - see more comments below, turned into another thumping albeit without much possession.

The Blues stated with Drogba and Anelka in front of a Lamps, Ballack and Jedi diamond with Ricky joining JT at the back. In a week that saw way too much written about JT's off field situation, it was, as ever, the returning Drog that did the damage in a 25min spell of clinical finishing and sweeping counter attacks. That Arsenal had almost 65% of subsequent possession was of little consequence as the Blues could have had three with Drogba clattered the crossbar with a second half free kick. Havinng promised not tweet as this was supposed to be a nail biter, I soon scummed so here are the in match items

• 16:10 The Blues are ahead in 7mins. Inevitably its JT who connects with a corner from Malouda and his goal bound header is tapped home by the Drog
• 16:30 Arsenal have responded well with plenty of possession as you'd expect but in a sweeping Blues counter attack Lamps find the Drog for 2-0
• 16:50 Again Arsenal have responded with lots of possession (a lot of it being given away by Ballack tho) but the half ends with the Blues ahead.
• 17: 35 The rain is teaming down & Arsenal are having a real go as the Blues sit back too deep. With 20mins to go Arsenal thro on Eboue & Rosicy
• 17:55 Joe Cole is on for the last 5mins & Kalou joins him for added time. A new front 2 but its the Blues back 4 who won this today. It ends 2-0

As often happens, the post match Daily Bung in the Telegraph captured the mood of on Mr Wenger perfectly ..

"....yet despite seeing his side once again defend with all the intelligence of a Tony Cascarino column ghostwritten by George W. Bush, Wenger insisted he was "completely happy" with the performance at Stamford Bridge.

Really Arsene? Were you completely happy with Gael Clichy, who moved off the far post and shuffled nervously along the goal line for Drogba's first goal like a toddler who has just wet themselves and is trying to avoid showing their parents? Were you completely happy with Manuel Almunia, who did a marvellous impression of a waxwork figure as he stared ahead with the cold, dead eyes of a bedraggled sniper as Drogba fired past him for the second goal?

Wenger also found the time to have a dig at Carlo Ancelotti's table-topping side, for apparently not winning with the requisite flair. Shame on them, that successful, winning team: they must learn to pass, rather than shoot, ad infinitum. The bounders.

"You have to congratulate Chelsea but we didn't get a demonstration of football," the Frenchman screeched haughtily. "We had 70 per cent possession of the ball. We were not running after the ball. They [Chelsea] did not dominate.

"We were always in an attacking position. We were always risking everything going forward and they were good on counter-attacks. We were a bit uncertain at the start, but when we got into it we were completely dominant (one problem Arsene: at that point you were two goals down and playing against a confident, powerful team that do not like to hand goals to their opponents on a plate, all without the help of a recognised striker on the pitch. Still at least you dominated possession)."

When asked about his opposite number's comments, Ancelotti could barely disguise his confusion. After all, for all these years he has been labouring under the misapprehension that football is about winning matches. Silly sausage.

"Maybe Arsenal had more possession than us, but that is not football," he said. "Football is about results. I think we deserved to win. When you speak about a match, you can't speak only about possession of the ball. No. You have to control the attack and defence.

"When we went ahead, it was very important to play on the counter-attack. Our second goal was an unbelievable goal. Fantastic movement, fantastic pass and a fantastic shot from Didier. This is football."

That's you told, Arsene.

Hull 1 - 1 Chelsea

The Blues travelled to the KC stadium buoyed by a good though hard fought result on Saturday however we came up against a resolute and hard working Hull side that ultimately frustrated us on the night and put a dent in the title challenge.

The in game tweets went

• 20:16 Away to Hull for our game in hand but the Blues, even with the returning Drog, are behind inside 30mins from another set piece disaster as Mouyokolo heads home
• 20:30 The Blues have upped the tempo and Anelka's brought down on the edge of the box. The Drog takes the free kick and scores. Its 1-1 & game on.
• 21:00 Its a lively start to the 2nd half with chances at both ends but with an hour gone its still 1-1
• 21: 25 Into the last 20mins & this could go either way. Joe Cole is on for the ineffective Ballack but as we enter the final 10mins its still 1-1
• 21:33 Carlo brings on Ash & Sturridge in a last throw of the dice but Hull hold on for a vital point and put a dent in the Blues title challenge

So the lead is down to 2 points when it could have been 4 and now Sundays home game to Arsenal takes on even greater significance

Burnely 1 - 2 Chelsea

Its away to Burnley today to try and build on Wednesdays return to the top of the league after beating Birmingham. Carlo brings in Alex and Zhirkov for Deco and Ricky respectively with Malouda and Anelka up top so it looks like Ballack will be asked to hold. The Drog and Kalou are back but rested after their return from the African Nations

Its a bright start for the Blues with Anelka and Lamps combining well and the first chance comes on 8mins from a nice interchange between them but Lamps fires over the bar. New boy Leon Cort is having a good game in the Burnley defence with 3 timely blocks but he can do nothing when on 26mins a sweeping Blues break sees Joe Cole float a peach of a cross that Malouda knocks down for Anelka to tap home. The Blues have gone to sleep a bit after the goal with Ballack, Anelka and Cole all guilty of careless passing but the half still ends 0-1

No changes at half time but within 2mins Burnley are level as Alex fails to clear a through ball and Fletcher peels off him to drive past Cech. There's a suspicion of hand ball and Alex really should have done better but now its game on. Chelsea have been stung into life and Joe Cole has the ball in the net on 55mins but is ruled offside. Its all Chelsea but Burnley are looking to strike on the counter so with 20mins to go Carlo brings on Sturridege for Joe Cole. Ash breaks into the box but his shot is blocked and he takes a bad turm of the ankle as well so he's replaced by Deco - Zirkov drops to left back. Into the last 10mins and Lamps finds Sturridge who turns brilliantly in the box but his shot is cleared for a corner. Lamps takes it and JT rises on the penalty spot to head down and home to put the Blues back in front. Chelsea continue to press forward but without any further score so it ends 1-2 to the mighty Blues and that opens up a 4 point lead at the top.

Come on U Blues !!

Chelsea 3 - 0 Birmingham.

A chilly, and what we initially thought would be a nervous, night at the Bridge ended in a comprehensive 3-0 victory for the mighty Blues. Better still we go back to the top of the league by virtue of points and goals as Arsenal could only manage a 0-0 draw away to the Villa

In truth it should have been more as Birmingham, on the back of a 15 game unbeaten streak, were comprehensively outplayed and dismantled in the first half. Goals from Malouda and Lamps punctuated the half but there should have been more from Cole and Anelka The Blues almost let the Brummies back into the game during a sloppy 10mins in the second half but the tempo was raised and Lamps raced half the length of the pitch to turn from provider to finisher to add a 3rd goal in the final minute.

Top of the league and having a laugh ? Oh yes !!

Chelsea 7 - 2 Sunderland

Back to the premiership for the visit of Sunderland. It's our first game without the "African Nations 4" so Carlo goes with Anelka, Malouda and Joe Cole up top with Beletti holding and Ballack in the Essien role.

Its a really bright start from the Blues with 3 chances going begging in the first 5mins to Ashley and Joe Cole and finally a Carvaliho header. The misses may not prove costly though as within 2mins Ballack releases Anelka who dances round Fullop inn the Sunderland goal to make it 1-0. Another 10mins gone and its 2-0 as Malouda picks up the ball in the centre circle beats 2 challenges, conjures up a couple of step overs and then drill home a right foot drive - quite brilliant. The shooting boots are on today as its 3-0 with just 20mins gone as a beautiful through ball from JT in brought down in the box by Ashley Cole who drags the ball back to evade a diving tackle from Cana before expertly poking the ball home. Ash is running riot down the left and its 4-0 inside 34mins as he floats in another cross that Lamps slides in to volley home. The half ends with no further goals but Chelsea have been totally dominant.

The second half is underway with Zirkov and Alex on for JT and Ashley Cole while Sunderland bring on Zenden for Steed Malbranque. Its more of the same though as Anelka hits a spectacular drive on 49mins which draws an equally spectacular save from Fulop. Its only temporary respite as Joe Cole puts in a superb cross that is headed home by Ballack - that's 5-0. The Blues take their foot off the gas and get punished as Jones knocks a header down to Zenden who slots home past Cech. Carlo looks furious. The smile is back on his face though as Zirkov sends in a cross that Fulop flaps at only for the ball to fall to Anelka who easily slots home to bring up the half dozen with 25mins still to play. Even a 6-1 Cech can still cause a flutter as he comes out too far and only prods away unconvincingly a ball that Alex and Ricky had well covered. Chelsea are just unstoppable and on 75mins Anelka would have had his httrick but for another splendid save from Fulop. Alex thunders a deflected free kick with 5mins to go that reaches Belletti and the Joe Cole who heads against the post. With a minute of normal time to go its 7-1 as Anelka drives in a cross that Lamps heads home and, even though a late lapse in concentration gifts Sunderland a consolation, it ends in a comprehensive 7-2 victory for the mighty Blues.

Hughes, Bonamassa and Bonham - wow

You know that I've been blogging and tweeting about Joe Bonamassa and how I love his fusion of rock and blues.

Well both he and Glenn Hughes (the self proclaimed "Voice of Rock - though who would argue?) have themselves been tweeting about sessions with a new band having played together at the recent King of Blues Jam at the Guitar Centre in LA. Following that show, Joe and Glenn turned up again at a tribute to John Bonham playing alongside his son Jason.

Here's a little reminder of Glenns vocals






So it wasn't a big surprise to hear about the birth of a new project called "Black Country". The news broke on Joe's twitter feed and the details were in Guitar Noise on Friday.

Taking its name from the West Midlands area where Bonham and Hughes both come from its gonna be interesting to see what comes from this new outfit that has Jason Bonham on drums, Derek Sherinian on keyboards, Glenn Hughes on bass and vocals and Joe Bonamassa on guitar and vocals.

Chelsea 5 - 0 Watford

The FA Cup campaign kicks off the new year with the visit of Watford to the Bridge as we start the defence of what has become our trophy of the noughties. Once again, I'm at the game so here are the in game tweets and the link to the BBC match report.

• 3:10 - 4mins gone and Sturridge gets on the end of a JT knock down to score his 1st Chelsea goal. Its 1-0 to the Blues
• 3:18 - Its 2-0 within 10min as a Joe Cole shot causes chaos in the Watford defence and the ball pinballs into the net. Will go down as an own goal
• 3:25 - All Chelsea - First Alex draws a cracking save from Loach & Belletti hits a volley just over before Malouda deflects a Zirkov shot for 3-0
• 4:23 - Just over an hour gone and Lamps makes it 4 with a superb drive from the edge of the box.
• 4:28 - Its becoming a rout as Sturridge makes it 5-0 in his last action of the half. He's replaced by Fabio Borini

So a cruise through into the 4th round is complete and the day is an even bigger celebration as Man U lost to Leeds Utd earlier in the day. An away tie with Preston beckons

Come on you BLUES !!