CHELSEA vs BLACKBURN ROVERS 15/01/11

Chelsea meet Blackburn Rovers at the Bridge as they get back to the Premier League after an emphatic 7-0 demolition of Ipswich Town.

Daniel Sturridge is the man of the moment having scored 7 goals in 2 games, 5 coming in the reserves in a 7-3 win over rivals Spurs.

Daniel recorded a 31.0% accuracy rate (shots on target of total shots) and averaged 0.714 goals per game in 2009/10 whilst being top scorer in the FA Cup for the blues last year.

He very much deserves a start upfront especially whilst the likes of Didier Drogba still looks short of fitness and form.

This is set to be the 110th meeting against Rovers in all competitions Chelsea have won 45 (41.28%), drawn 29 (26.61%) and lost 35 (32.11%) of the previous 109. Chelsea have also kept a clean sheet on 32 occasions. (29.36%)

Chelsea last lost to Rovers in the league in 2006, 0-1 away from home, Chelsea had already confirmed back to back league titles by then. At Home the last league defeat was 2003 (1-2).

In the last 18 league games Chelsea have won 12 (66.67%), whilst drawing 4 (22.22%) and losing twice (11.11%).

Chelsea are just 2 goals away from 100 goals at home versus Blackburn Rovers

Chelsea’s premier league history with Blackburn is nothing more than a cliché. A game of two halves, the first half; Chelsea had only won once in 15.

In the second half they have only lost once, the swing in fortunes began with an emphatic 4-3 away win back in 1998. Super Sub Tore Andre Flo scored twice in the last ten minutes

Blackburn were 3-2 up and on course for all three points before the Norwegian international made his impact when he came off the bench to grab two goals in the final eight minutes, a  first win at Ewood Park for 22 years.

The win at Ewood Park back in October this season is the only time Chelsea have come from a goal down to secure all three points this season, and was our last away win in the league.

It may also be the first time since Blackburn and Moscow that Chelsea record back to back wins in all competitions.

Blackburn are 1-0-4 in their last five away games, ranked 17th in the league and incidentally Chelsea are ranked 18th away from home with a 0-2-3 record, but at home the Blues are 2-2-1 and ranked 11th in the league.

At the Bridge, 1.60 points per home game is compared to Blackburn’s 0.60 points per away game.

Chelsea’s record over Blackburn in recent seasons and the current home versus away form of the two sides would suggest a home win and a big weight off  the team’s shoulders as they look to regain some confidence and a place in the top 4 of the Premier League.

Joe Cole arrived at Chelsea in the summer of 2003 for a £6.6 Million fee from West Ham Utd.

Signed by Claudio Ranieri as part of what was then, a dramatic change in the playing staff, after the arrival of new owner Roman Abramovich earlier that summer.

When Jose Mourinho took over in 2004 and implemented an attacking 4-3-3 system that saw his wide men run riot – Joe was used as cover for the injury prone Arjen Robben or Damien Duff, he popped up with a number of crucial goals securing first a Carling Cup (his first medal in professional football) and then Chelsea’s first championship in 50 years.

The next season saw perhaps the best form of his career as he helped secure back to back league titles for the first time in the clubs history, the standout moment being the fine individual goal that ripped apart Manchester Utd’s defence in a devastating 3-0 win that all but wrapped up the title.

Injury would dominate the rest of his time at Chelsea and spent most of his time being employed as an impact substitute having made 93 substitute appearances out of a total of 282 games for Chelsea.

Joe has scored 39 goals over 7 years at the club. His most prolific year being 2005/06 when he netted 11 times in 46 games (23.91%) in all competitions and found himself in the PFA Team of the Year for 2006.

In 2007/08 he netted a further 10 goals in 54 appearances (18.52%). leading to him being voted Chelsea Player of the Year in 2008.

After an 8 month lay-off, he made a return to the starting squad in Chelsea’s Carling Cup Match with Queen’s Park Rangers on September 23, 2009, in which he was also captained the side to a solid 1-0 victory.

Cole made his first Premier League appearance of the 2009-10 campaign against Blackburn Rovers. He played in the attacking midfield role and influenced Chelsea to a 5 goal demolition against Blackburn.

On the 8th November 2009 Cole played his 250th game for Chelsea, coming on as a substitute against Manchester United on his 28th birthday.

Later on 21st of November 2009 he scored the last goal in Chelsea’s 4-0 win against Wolverhampton.

Towards to end of the season, he scored the opener against Manchester United at Old Trafford on the 3rd of April 2010, after 19 minutes with a masterful back heel flick from a Florent Malouda cross, Chelsea went on to win the game 2-1

Overall Joe has scored 52 times in 396 appearance (13.13%) for West Ham and Chelsea and has netted 10 goals for England in 54 appearances (18.52%), including the memorable flick and dipping volley in the 34th minute, against Sweden on the 20th of June in the 2006 Germany World Cup, Joe later added an 85th minute assist for Steven Gerrard to score, Cole was awarded the Man of the match award for his performance and received great praise from Swedish fans and media.

Joe Cole’s Chelsea Honours:

* First Division/Premier League: 3 (2004-05, 2005-06, 2009-10)
* FA Cup: 3 (2006-07, 2008-09, 2009-10)
* Football League Cup: 2 (2004-05, 2006-07)
* FA Charity Shield/FA Community Shield: 2 (2005, 2009)

Joe Cole is the 7th all time European game appearance maker for Chelsea with 53 appearances, of which 16 were from the bench.

Joe has been released as a free agent after failing to agree terms and will be allowed to leave when his contract expires at the end of the June. TheChels.co.uk would like to thank Joe Cole for his excellent spell at the club and wish him all the best for the future.

The current manager of Chelsea, having been appointed on 1 June 2009, during his first season in charge he led the club to the League & FA Cup Double, becoming the first Chelsea manager to achieve the feat, and the first Italian manager to win the Premier League title.

Carlo opened the season with a penalty shoot-out win over Man Utd in the Community Shield, ending a hoodoo of several years without a shoot-out win.

Sealing the title on the final day of the season in emphatic style with an 8-0 victory over Wigan Athletic and recording the club’s record top-flight win in the process.

This magnificent performance also led the club to move onto 103 league goals for the season – a new club record in any division. The first team to score more than 100 goals in the top flight of English football since Tottenham Hotspur in the 1962-63 First Division season.

Chelsea were also the only team in premier league history to record maximum 12 points from games against the so-called big four (Arsenal, Man Utd and Liverpool), and did so with only conceding 1 goal.

Under Carlo’s management Chelsea registered 39 wins from 56 games (69.64%), drawing 9 and losing 8. His overall managerial record is a win percentage of 55.33%.

Michael Ballack scored 17 goals from 105 league games whilst at Chelsea and scored 27 in 167 games in all competitions since joining in 2006 on a free transfer from Bayern Munich.

On the 27 August 2006, Ballack earned his English League début for Chelsea against Blackburn Rovers.

In making his UEFA Champions League début for Chelsea against Werder Bremen on the 12 September 2007, Ballack scored his first goal for Chelsea. Ballack added his first league goal on the 21 October 2006 against Portsmouth at home with a header.

His first FA Cup goal came in the 109th minute in a semi-final match against Blackburn Rovers on the 15 April 2007, to win 2-1 at Old Trafford to seal a cup final place.

On the 26 December 2007, Ballack made his league return, after a long standing injury, in a thrilling game against Aston Villa. He came on for the injured Frank Lampard. In first-half stoppage time, he won a penalty after being brought down in the box by Zat Knight, which Andriy Shevchenko converted.

In the 88th minute, with the score tied at 3–3, Ballack stepped up to take a free-kick, which he buried into the bottom left corner , the match ended in a 4–4 draw, with Gareth Barry scoring a last minute penalty.

Ballack, has always stepped up and scored vital goals and, on 26 April 2008, he scored a header and a penalty to give Chelsea a 2–1 win over Manchester Utd. He was named Man of The Match for his performance. With two games left in the season, his performance brought Chelsea on level terms with the eventual champions Manchester Utd.

Ballack captained the Chelsea team in the absence of John Terry and Frank Lampard in a 2–1 victory over Newcastle Utd on the 29 December 2007. Ballack then went on to play his 50th game for Chelsea and scored the winning goal in a 2–1 win against local rivals Fulham.

In his final season at the club, Ballack played as a deep lying playmaker in the Makelele position as well as alongside Frank Lampard in the Centre Midfield.

Scoring in 2 of the first 3 home league games against Tottenham Hotspur and Burnley, he also scored away at Sunderland, meaning 3 goals in 6 league games.

He helped guide Chelsea to an impressive start to the campaign, at a crucial time when Frank Lampard was short of goals.

Ballack achieved his best season with Chelsea winning the League and FA Cup Double.

Michael Ballack’s Chelsea Honours:

* Premier League: 1 (2009–10)
* FA Cup: 3 (2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10)
* Football League Cup: 1 (2006–07)
* FA Community Shield: 1 (2009-10)

TheChels.org would like to thank Michael for being part of record breaking and memorable time in Chelsea’s history and wish him all the best for the future.

Juliano Belletti joined Chelsea on the 23rd of August 2007, when the club officially announced a three-year contract, signing from Barcelona for an undisclosed fee.

He made his Premier League debut for Chelsea on the 25th August 2007 when he came on as a substitute in the 64th minute against Portsmouth at Stamford Bridge. He made his first start for away at Aston Villa.

Following the departure of Jose Mourinho, Belletti became a regular starter in the right-back position for Premier League, Champions League, and Carling Cup games, facing competition from Paulo Ferreira and Michael Essien for his place in the team.

In his first season at Chelsea, Belletti scored two goals, both shots from long-range, the first away at Wigan Athletic in November 2007 and the second at Stamford Bridge against Tottenham Hotspur in January 2008. The latter was eventually voted by Chelsea supporters as Chelsea Goal of the Season in 2007-08.

Jose Bosingwa’s arrival at the start of the 2008-09 season, meant Belletti had to relinquish the right-back position at Stamford Bridge. However, Luiz Felipe Scolari instead deployed Belletti as a utility player, providing valuable back-up in the central midfield, defensive midfield and right wing positions.

His long-range shots have given him cult status among Chelsea supporters, with screams of ‘shout’ whenever Belletti was in range and having his name sung to the White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army hit.

In October 2008, he added to his collection of spectacular goals with a powerful shot from 30 yards into the top corner against Middlesbrough at the Riverside, his fourth league goal for the club.

Belletti scored his third goal of the 2008-09 season with a last minute header against Stoke City, to draw the teams level before team-mate Frank Lampard scored the winner in the dying seconds.

Belletti came on as a substitute in the FA Cup final against Portsmouth. Despite committing a foul which earned Portsmouth a penalty, Belletti was ultimately on the winning team as Chelsea won 1-0.

Belletti has made a total 54 appearance scoring 5 goals (18.52%) in all competitions.

Juliano Belletti’s Chelsea Honours:

* Premier League: 1 (2009-10)
* FA Cup: 2 (2008-09, 2009-10)
* FA Community Shield: 1 (2009)

Juliano, also boasts a World Cup winners medal from 2002 and the UEFA Champions League with Barcelona in 2005/06. Similar to many of his Chelsea colleagues, he also won back to back league titles in 2004/05 and 2005/06 with Barcelona in ‘La Liga’

Juliano will be available on a free transfer from July, shortly after his 34th Birthday, after completing his three year contract with the club.

He will long remain a cult hero and TheChels.org would like to wish him well for the future.