Just three days after sealing back-to-back Premiership titles we’re off to Ewood Park to face a much improved Blackburn side hoping to clinch European football next season. Back to earth with a bang.
Jose Mourinho has offered to rest England trio Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and John Terry for the final two games of the season. Terry is definitely out anyway after suffering a gashed ankle during Saturday’s humbling of Manchester United.
Other first team regulars likely to be rested include Petr Cech, William Gallas and Claude Makelele, while Michael Essien and Didier Drogba have remained in London for treatment on unspecified injuries.
Prediction: Mourinho will no doubt want to better last season’s points total of 95 (victories in the final two games would give us 97) but with Blackburn needing just three more points to confirm a top-six finish and a place in next season’s UEFA Cup, it won’t be easy.
Mark Hughes seems to have abandoned the tactics that saw his side dubbed ‘Blackeye’ Rovers last season. He has turned Rovers into a decent footballing side and hopefully they will try to play us off the park rather than kick us off it. A hard-fought 1-1 draw.
Blackburn Rovers 1 – 0 Chelsea · Update
A strangely enjoyable defeat, if that makes sense. Maybe it was the lager, but I thought we played reasonably well, passed the ball really well, and could have had two, if not three penalties.
Yes, we’ve lost the chance to better our points total from last season, but we’re champions and that’s ultimately all that matters.
Match reports: BBC Sport; Sky Sports; ESPNSoccernet; Official Chelsea FC Website; Daily Telegraph; The Times; The Guardian; The Independent.
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