FULHAM 2 - CHELSEA 2

Clint Dempsey's last-minute header dented Chelsea's Barclays Premier League title challenge as Fulham earned a battling 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage. Chelsea, who have now taken just 10 points from their last 21, had been on course for a west London derby win after two second-half strikes from Frank Lampard.

 

But Dempsey, who had given Fulham the lead after 10 minutes, popped up with seconds remaining to extend the Cottagers' unbeaten run to nine games. Chelsea now head into the new year three points behind league pace-setters Liverpool, who had signed off 2008 earlier in the day with a 5-1 win at Newcastle.

 

BOLA BOYZ  CHELSEA

CHELSEA 2 - WEST BROM 0

Chelsea went back to the top of the Premier League with a comfortable 2-0 win over rock-bottom West Brom at Stamford Bridge. Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard were on target for the Blues as they recorded their first home league win in four games.

 

The Blues took just three minutes to go in front with Drogba, making his first league appearance since the end of September, heading home a cross from Joe Cole. It was the Ivorian's second goal of the season and his first in the Barclays Premier League this term. Lampard, captain in the absence of the suspended John Terry, scored Chelsea's second goal in the first half injury time.

 

BOLA BOYZ  CHELSEA

MICHAEL ESSIEN IS GHANA'S BEST

Michael Essien has been named Ghana Footballer of the Year after a media poll in Accra. Inter Milan's Sulley Muntari and Hearts' Laryea Kingston came second and third respectively.

 

Essien is a regular African Footballer of the Year finalist, has been sidelined since mid-year after picking up an injury while playing for Ghana against Libya in 2010 World Cup qualifier. His absence has been a major factor for Chelsea's inconsistent form lately.

 

BOLA BOYZ  CHELSEA

EVERTON 0 - CHELSEA 0

Chelsea had John Terry sent off at Goodison Park but were able to hold Everton to a goalless draw. The Blues relinquish their 100 per cent away record and miss the opportunity to sit top of the Premier League table at Christmas, while the Toffees remain in the European hunt despite their failure to breach 10-men.

 

The hosts began the game in the more positive fashion, making a mockery of their failings on home turf this season. However, despite Phil Neville and Marouane Fellaini keeping Petr Cech on his toes, the Chelsea rearguard was rarely threatened.

 

BOLA BOYZ  CHELSEA 

SCOLARI OKAY WITH FANS BOO

Luiz Felipe Scolari has admitted that supporters were entitled to boo the side after Chelsea dropped further points at Stamford Bridge and missed the chance to leapfrog Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.

 

The 1-1 draw against West Ham means that Chelsea have already dropped 14 points at home, the same as the whole of last season, and has left Scolari admitting that he needs to bring about a rapid improvement.

 

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA 

DECO WANTS TO IMPROVE HOME SHOW

Deco maintains Chelsea can work out their Stamford Bridge problems and end a run of poor home form. Despite their superb 100% away form which has yielded eight straight victories, Luiz Felipe Scolari's men have managed only three league wins at home.

 

Liverpool brought an amazing 86-match unbeaten league run to an end on October 26 and the Blues are without a domestic win at Stamford Bridge ever since. Portuguese midfielder Deco is convinced the squad will soon put the issue right.

 

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA 

CHELSEA 1 - WEST HAM 1

Gianfranco Zola enjoyed a successful return to Stamford Bridge as his West Ham side held Chelsea to a 1-1 draw. The ex-Chelsea striker, voted the club's best-ever player after a memorable seven-year spell with the Blues, inspired the Hammers to a resolute performance which prevented his former club climbing back to the top of the table.

 

Chelsea dominated possession throughout but the visitors were solid at the back and snatched a surprise lead through a 33rd-minute strike by Craig Bellamy. Didier Drogba replaced Michael Ballack at the break and top scorer Nicolas Anelka equalised within six minutes of the restart with his 100th Premier League goal.

 

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA

CHELSEA 2 - CFR CLUJ 1

Chelsea qualified to the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 2-1 victory over CFR Cluj. Ivory Coast striker Salomon Kalou opened the scoring from close range for his fourth of the season. But, Yssouf Kone headed beyond Peter Cech into the top corner from Panin's cross for the equaliser.

 

In the 65th minute, Scolari sent Didier Drogba to replace Kalou, and he scored the winner to mark his comeback. However, Drogba's efforts were not enough for Chelsea to finish top of Group A after Roma defeated Bordeaux. Chelsea have only themselves to blame for finishing second. They squandered two chances to top the group, but Scolari insists he feels `zero pressure' as coach of Chelsea.

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA 

NOW SCOLARI WANT ANOTHER STRIKER

Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari will ask owner Roman Abramovich for
the cash to sign a striker in the January transfer window. Scolari has
only one fit striker for the Premier League game against Bolton
Wanderers with Didier Drogba suspended and Franco Di Santo sidelined
by a hamstring injury.

Chief executive Peter Kenyon has insisted Chelsea will do little, if
any, business when the window opens next month but Scolari has his
eyes on some much-needed firepower in attack.

BOLTON 0 - CHELSEA 2

Nicolas Anelka struck the 99th goal of his Premier League career to help Chelsea to a 2-0 win and place in the record books. On his old Bolton stamping ground 11 months after a £15million move, a diving header from Anelka gave the Blues an 11th consecutive away win in the league, with eight this season.

 

Deco's sumptuous scissor-kick 12 minutes later sealed the victory as Chelsea rewrite the record set 48 years ago by Bill Nicholson's Tottenham side.With leaders Liverpool winning at Blackburn, the win keeps Chelsea hot on the heels of the Merseyside club at the top of the table.

BOLA BOYZ    CHELSEA 

LAMPARD WANTS CHELSEA TO TRY DIFFERENT STYLES

Chelsea may have to ''mix things up'' to get themselves back on track in the title race according to Frank Lampard. The defeat to Arsenal last weekend makes Luiz Felipe Scolari's men have failed to beat any of their top three rivals at home.

 

The Blues are already out of the Carling Cup and need to beat CFR Cluj next week to qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League. Lampard, though, believes the Blues have got plenty of different options to get the job done.

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA 

DROGBA FULLY COMMITTED TO CHELSEA

Didier Drogba's agent insists the player never met anyone from Inter
Milan last month. Drogba was reported to have attended a dinner with
Inter's sporting director Marco Branca and Jorge Mendes, agent of
Nerazzuri coach Jose Mourinho.

Chelsea have refused to comment on the reports, as has Drogba, but now
Thierno Seydi has stated that no meeting took place. Seydi insists
that Drogba is fully committed to the Chelsea cause.

CHELSEA 1 - ARSENAL 2

A dramatic second-half Robin van Persie brace saw Arsenal come from
behind to secure a vital 2-1 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The
Gunners imploded to gift the Blues the lead on 31 minutes when keeper
Manuel Almunia collected a corner but threw the ball to Jose Bosingwa,
who put in a great cross from the right which the unlucky Johan
Djourou steered into his own goal.

But Van Persie equalised on 59 minutes when smashing a right-footed
effort into the top corner from the edge of the box, although replays
showed he was offside. He then added a second three minutes later to
stun Stamford Bridge when latching onto a fine header down by Emmanuel
Adebayor and hitting a great left-footed effort on the turn into the
bottom right-hand corner past the despairing dive of Petr Cech.

CECH BACKS GALLAS

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech has complete faith in William Gallas' honesty after his former team-mate sparked a row with his public criticism of Arsenal.

 

Gallas stripped of the Arsenal captaincy and dropped for last week's defeat at Manchester City for the outspoken attack when he also questioned his team-mates' fighting spirit.

 

Cech played with Gallas for two years at Stamford Bridge before joining Gunners in 2006 and Ashley Cole went in the opposite direction. The Czech Republic international has no doubt Gallas was only speaking his mind when he made his feelings public.

 

BORDEAUX 1 - CHELSEA 1

Chelsea squandered the chance to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League with another dreadful European away performance against Bordeaux. Alou Diarra's 82nd-minute equaliser forced 10-man Chelsea to put their qualification celebrations on hold and leaves them needing a win against Cluj in the final round to ensure a place in the next phase.

Nicolas Anelka's 60th-minute strike, his 14th of the season, looked set to give Chelsea their first away win in Europe this season. It was an extremely poor performance from Scolari's side who had goalkeeper Petr Cech to thank for keeping them in the game in the first half. In the 86th minutes, Frank Lampard was then sent off for a second bookable offence as Chelsea's night ended on a sour note.

ROBINHO IN SCOLARI'S WISH LIST

Speculation that Chelsea still have an interest in signing Robinho has
mounted after reports from Brazil quote Luiz Felipe Scolari as
suggesting Manchester City star Robinho could have a future at
Stamford Bridge.

City beat the Blues to the forward's signature on transfer deadline
day in the summer, but Scolari appears still to be keen on the
24-year-old. Robinho signed for City sight unseeen for a record
£32.5million fee, having fallen out with Real, but has been in
free-scoring form and has started to enjoy life in Manchester, even
choosing to tour the city on a municipal bus.

CHELSEA 0 - NEWCASTLE 0

Chelsea squandered a great chance to pull clear of Liverpool at the
top of the Barclays Premier League as stubborn Newcastle held them to
a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea dominated the game but
could not find a way to break the deadlock.

Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given saved superbly from Frank Lampard and
Ashley Cole went agonisingly close with a header - but Chelsea failed
to capitalise on Liverpool's home draw with Fulham. The Blues remain
top on goal difference but failed to win at home for the second
successive game.

GERMANY 1 - ENGLAND 2

England travelled to the German capital ravaged by injuries and
surrounded by debate regarding the importance of Wednesday's friendly,
but Capello's side produced a thoroughly convincing display to secure
a fifth successive win.

A late John Terry header ensured England continued their resurgence
under Fabio Capello with a 2-1 victory over Germany in Berlin to end
2008 on a high. The Three Lions, who recorded a famous 5-1 success on
their last visit to Germany, took a scrappy lead in the 23rd minute as
centre-back Matthew Upson poked home after Rene Adler had flapped at a
Stewart Downing corner.

After the break, England continued to enjoy the better of proceedings
but substitute goalkeeper Scott Carson endure a horrible mix-up with
Terry to allow Germany striker Patrick Helmes to equalise on 63
minutes. Terry headed a late winner at the Olympic Stadium after
Matthew Upson's first-half opener was cancelled out by Patrick Helmes,
and the Chelsea defender was pleased to secure the win.

Injuries forced Fabio Capello to name an experimental line-up in
Wednesday's friendly in Berlin, with Aston Villa striker Gabriel
Agbonlahor making his debut. But an England side which also included
fringe players such as Shaun Wright-Phillips, Michael Carrick and
Stewart Downing put on a highly impressive performance.

DROGBA BANNED

Didier Drogba has been clobbered with a three-match ban for his coin-throwing shame. The Chelsea striker, 30, last night admitted an FA charge of violent conduct over the flashpoint during last week's Carling Cup defeat by Burnley. A disciplinary panel today imposed an immediate three-game suspension from Saturday's home match against Newcastle and the following dates with Arsenal and Bolton.

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA 

INJURY HIT ENGLAND

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have both been forced to withdraw
from the England squad ahead of Wednesday's friendly with Germany.
Liverpool stated on Sunday that Gerrard would be unavailable after
picking up a groin injury at Bolton the day before.

England asked Gerrard to report for duty but he has now had to
officially pull out following a check by the Football Association's
medical staff. Fellow midfielder Frank Lampard will also miss out
after scans on a rib injury he picked up in Chelsea's game at West
Brom on Saturday revealed he would not be fit enough to be involved at
the Olympic Stadium.

Scott Parker of West Ham and Fulham's Jimmy Bullard have been called
up to replace Gerrard and Lampard. The likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio
Ferdinand, Ashley Cole and Joe Cole are also absent through injury,
but captain John Terry has been declared fit following a foot problem.

WEST BROM 0 - CHELSEA 3

Chelsea roared back to the top of the Premier League table on Saturday
evening as Nicolas Anelka continued his prolific form to take them
back to the top of the Barclays Premier League following a 3-0 win at
West Brom. Portuguese full-back Jose Bosingwa opened the scoring for
Luiz Felipe Scolari's side, before Nicolas Anelka wrapped up the
points with a brace before the interval.

Anelka's double took his tally to 12 league goals for the season and
eight in the last four games. The Blues also equalled Tottenham's
48-year-old record with a 10th successive away win in the top flight.
The Blues had numerous opportunities to stretch their lead after the
break but, with the result already beyond doubt, they were ultimately
let down by some wayward finishing.

Despite the comfortable win, captain John Terry will need a scan on
his foot injury to determine whether he can join up with Fabio
Capello's squad for Wednesday's friendly international with Germany.

DROGBA CHARGED

Didier Drogba has been charged with violent conduct by the FA for
throwing a coin back into the crowd during Chelsea's Carling Cup
fourth-round defeat against Burnley at Stamford Bridge. The striker
was prevented from celebrating his first goal of the season when an
object was thrown on to the pitch and, despite apologising for
slinging it back, Drogba is facing disciplinary action.

Referee Kieth Stroud booked the 30-year-old at the time of the
incident but that was for celebrating in front of the away fans, he
did not see the missile throwing incident. Professional Footballers'
Association (PFA) chief Gordon Taylor expects the Ivory Coast
international to be given a three-match ban by the FA.

CHELSEA 1 - BURNLEY 1 (BURNLEY WON PENALTIES)

Burnley are through to the quarter-finals of the Carling Cup after
sensationally knocking Chelsea out on penalties. The match was tied at
1-1 after 90 minutes, before both team failed to score anymore in the
extra-time.

Chelsea opened the scoring after 37th minutes through Didier Drogba,
who has just returned from injury. However, Burnley equalised by
Akinbiyi goal in the 70th minute. The scored tied until the end of
extra-time. Obi Mikel and Wayne Bridge failed to score from the spot.

TERRY SALUTES ANELKA

Chelsea captain, John Terry hailed Nicolas Anelka after the
Frenchman's rich vein of striking form saw Chelsea return to the top
of the table with a 2-0 win over Blackburn Rovers on Sunday. Anelka
grabbed both goals at a rain-soaked Ewood Park to give him 10 goals
for the season and take him clear as the Premier League's top scorer.

Anelka's form means Chelsea are hardly missing Didier Drogba, who is
still not ready to return to first team action after injuring his knee
whilst on Champions League duty against CFR Cluj in early October.
Anelka's brace took his weekly goals total to five after hitting a
hat-trick in last week's 5-0 demolition of Sunderland. Chelsea's first
goal came after Jose Bosingwa's long-range shot hit Anelka and
deflected in.

Premier League Leading Goal Scorers @ 10/11/08
Nicolas Anelka 10
Amr Zaki 8
Darren Bent 7
Robinho 7
Jermain Defoe 6

CHELSEA 2 - BLACKBURN 0

Chelsea are back on top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win over
Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park. The shot from Bosingwa was deflected
by Nicolas Anelka to wrong-foot Rovers' keeper Paul Robinson for the
first.

The French striker doubles the Blues' lead with another goal in the
68th minutes from a through ball by Frank Lampard which is also his
10th of the season. Despite the rain, Blackburn made it a difficult
task for Chelsea to collect a full 3 points from Ewood Park. Finally,
the Blues' victory was achieved without Didier Drogba, but Anelka has
established himself as the club's current favourite.

THE PREMIER LEAGUE IS VERY PHYSICAL

Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari is enjoying managing in the
physicality of the Premier League. The committed nature of England's
top flight has been called into question following Arsenal's loss to
Stoke City last weekend.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger intimated that some Potters players sought
to injure his squad during the encounter. Scolari concedes the Premier
League is a combative division but is not of the belief that players'
safety is in jeopardy.

OWEN IS HEADING FOR STAMFORD BRIDGE?

Michael Owen can be at Chelsea in January, as reported by a few British media. The Newcastle striker is expected to join Stamford Bridge for £5million, as the Blues is looking for some cut-price forwards. Their main target, Luis Fabiano of Sevilla, is now too expensive, at £25million.

Owen's contract set to run out next summer, the Stamford Bridge outfit hope they will be able to land their target on the cheap, although whether they will be keen to match his approximate £120,000-a-week salary is another question. Chelsea might face competition from North London rivals Spurs, also interested in Owen, who consider the Newcastle man a cheaper alternative to another of their reported targets, White Hart Lane old boy Jermain Defoe.

BOLA BOYZ CHELSEA

ROMA 3 - CHELSEA 1

Chelsea suffered the first loss of their UEFA Champions League campaign after going down 3-1 to Roma in the Stadio Olimpico. Two costly errors by John Mikel Obi sent 10-man Chelsea crashing to shock defeat to Serie A strugglers Roma.

 

The hosts stormed into a three-goal lead inside 58 minutes thanks to Christian Panucci and two goals from Mirko Vucinic. Chelsea reduced the deficit through captain John Terry in the 75th minute. It was not enough to save them from a humiliating defeat, their worst since 5-1 thrashing by Barcelona in 2000. Their miserable night ended in more woe with Deco dismissed for a second bookable offence in the 80th minute.

 

BOLA BOYZ  CHELSEA  

BALLACK IS STILL GERMAN'S SKIPPER

Michael Ballack will remain Germany's captain after apologizing for and settling his differences with coach Joachim Loew during a private talk. The German football federation took nearly 24 hours to give a statement on the meeting that took place on Thursday evening.

 

Ballack caused an uproar last week when he criticize Loew's selection of players and accuse the coach of showing disrespect to some older players in a newspaper interview to . Loew reacted by requesting the Chelsea midfielder to explain his statements in person.

 

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA

ESSIEN COULD BE OUT TILL MARCH

Injured Chelsea star Michael Essien has admitted it could be as late as March before he returns to action. The Ghana midfielder needed surgery on a knee injury after landing awkwardly during the World Cup qualifier against Libya in September.

 

Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari claimed earlier in the week that Essien could be back by January but the 25-year-old, currently at the Centre Technique National Fernand-Sastre (CTNFS) in Clairefontaine, France, believes he could be sidelined for longer.

 

BOLA BOYZ   CHELSEA

LAMPARD PICKS RONALDO AS BEST PLAYER

Frank Lampard feels Cristiano Ronaldo would be a worthy recipient of the FIFA World Player of the Year award. The Chelsea midfielder feels that with Ronaldo's 42 goals in a season, performances and wins the league and the Champions League is going to be hard to beat.

 

He also agrees with Ronaldo;s remark that The World Player of the Year award should go to a top player, and it goes generally to those that have won things as well. Both midfielders were named on the shortlist for the prestigious gong this week.

 

NO HAL   GOOD FOOD   MAT KEPOH   TIME FOR LAUGH

CHELSEA 5 - SUNDERLAND 0

A hattrick by Nicolas Anelka proves that he is still the man to watch at Chelsea. The teeming rain which drenched Stamford Bridge didn't stop The Blues from recording a big win over helpless Sunderland who lost manager Roy Keane after half-time verbal argument with the officials.

 

Chelsea opened the scoring through Alex, and Frank Lampard didn't want to miss the joy too as he scored the fouth goal of match. Joe Cole and Deco also played their best football as they created so many scoring chances for the forwards.

CALVALHO OUT AGAIN WITH INJURY

Chelsea's Ricardo Carvalho may spend three weeks on the sidelines again after limping out during their 3-0 victory over Hull City. Blues boss Luiz Felipe Scolari revealed his Portuguese defender sustained a thigh injury near the end of the game will be out until November.

 

The 30-year-old had only returned to action last week following a month out with a knee problem. He could now miss up to four Premier League games, a UEFA Champions League clash with Roma, a Carling Cup date with Burnley and Portugal's friendly against Brazil on 19th November.

HULL CITY 0 - CHELSEA 3

Chelsea send Hull City back to earth with a 3-0 triumph. Hull had gone into the game at the KC Stadium trailing the Blues only on goal difference but a superb strike from Frank Lampard after just two minutes established superiority.

Hull, who had won their previous four games, battled hard but in the end were well beaten by a Chelsea side whose extra class was evident. Chelsea doubled their lead in the 50th minute through Anelka before Malouda scored from a Carvalho cross after 75 minutes.

CHELSEA 0 - LIVERPOOL 1

Liverpool ended Chelsea's remarkable unbeaten run at Stamford Bridge with a 1-0 win on Sunday. Spanish schemer Xabi Alonso grabbed the only goal of the game as the Reds opened a 3 points lead in pursuit of the Premier League title.

 

After the start, the hosts dominate much of the early possession as Liverpool adopted a more cautious approach. However, Rafa Benitez's side quickly established a foothold and took the lead on 10 minutes when Alonso's drive was deflected past a helpless Petr Cech by Portuguese full-back Jose Bosingwa.

NO ACTIONS AGAINST DROGBA

Didier Drogba escapes disciplinary action from the Football Association over comments in his autobiography saying he wished he had punched Nemanja Vidic in last season's Champions League final.

Drogba was shown the red card for slapping the Manchester United defender with 3 minutes to go, and in his book said he now wishes he had punched Vidic. However, after studying the comments the FA have decided to take no action.

CHELSEA 1 - ROMA 0

It was a game between two evenly matched sides that failed to live up to the pre-match billing during a disappointing opening period, with chances few and far between. Until a second-half winner by Chelsea captain John Terry ended Roma's stubborn resistance in the 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.

Terry headed home from Frank Lampard's 77th-minute corner to keep Luiz Felipe Scolari's side top of Champions League Group A. Tempers then threatened to boil over on more than one occasion before the Stamford Bridge faithful were able to celebrate a crucial success.

RONALDO & FABREGAS FOR BALLON d'OR

Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard are among 11 Premier League players shortlisted for this year's Ballon d'Or. The trio are the only England players nominated for the award alongside the likes of Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo, the clear favourite and Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.

The France Football magazine today revealed the condensed list of 30 contenders for their European golden ball award. Spain are represented by seven players after winning Euro 2008 in the summer - Torres and Fabregas being joined by Marcos Senna, Sergio Ramos, Iker Casillas, David Villa and Xavi.

Nominees
Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Nemanja Vidic, Edwin van der Sar (all Manchester United), Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Michael Ballack (all Chelsea), Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres (both Liverpool), Cesc Fabregas, Emmanuel Adebayor (both Arsenal), Iker Casillas, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Rafael van der Vaart, Sergio Ramos, Pepe (all Real Madrid), Lionel Messi, Xavi, Samuel Eto'o (all Barcelona), Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid), David Villa (Valencia), Marcos Senna (Villarreal), Kaka (AC Milan), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Inter Milan), Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Franck Ribery, Luca Toni (both Bayern Munich), Andrei Arshavin (Zenit St Petersburg), Yuri Zhirkov (CSKA Moscow). Karim Benzema (Lyon)

CHELSEA 5 - MIDDLESBOROUGH 0

Luiz Felipe Scolari brushed aside Chelsea's injury problems after seeing his side destroy Middlesbrough. Scolari's unbeaten league leaders are most bookmakers' tip for the title and their stunning 5-0 demolition of Middlesbrough on Saturday will only have shortened the odds on them wresting the crown away from Manchester United. But he Brazillian insists it is too early to start billing Chelsea as Premier League title favourites.

 

Chelsea haven't lost in the league for 10 months, but the manager says he will only start to believe he can claim the title in his first season in charge if they remain in pole position as the campaign reaches its climax in May. despite the absence of the likes of Petr Cech, Didier Drogba, Michael Ballack and Ashley and Joe Cole, they emerged on the right end of a 5-0 romp with their position at the top of the Premier League further enhanced. Two goals from Salomon Kalou and others from Juliano Belletti, Frank Lampard and Florent Malouda ensured Middlesbrough were outclassed by a Chelsea side missing seven first-team regulars.