Chelsea and Stamford Bridge get a lift.
Stamford Bridge is always blue. This weekend, it had both shades on the pitch. The ones wearing the light shade have had all the success in the past years, while the ones in dark shades have had to go through issues of various colours. Ownership, managerial, and injury worries have been the focus, more than opponents on a football field.
The citadel of Chelsea has seen better days, but this day would be as good as any other, as their often maligned lineup stood up and got counted. In an epic battle that unfolded, they went toe to toe with the treble winners and emerged with a draw in a goal feast.
It is not the goals that mattered, [well anyway there were eight of them, four apiece], but the pace and the open battles that made it wonderful viewing. Manchester City who have over the past few years blown away pretty much most of what they face, seem to be in that trough that everything in this cyclical world descends inevitability into. Chelsea after a few seasons of being mediocre are on the upswing.
It was a courageous display. It does take one of that kind to charge into the Manchester City half and their famed defence, knowing that a slip would mean a blistering counterattack. In a match that extended to almost 100 minutes, Chelsea looked dangerous from the very start. Their front four Raheem Sterling, Nicholas Jackson, Conor Gallagher, and Cole Palmer, were sharp and fluid. Sterling was imperious, running into the back peddling Man City defenders, while the others were getting into good positions in and about the box.
Ank kumar, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
While Haaland did what he does best, score, and Man City netted four in all, it is what Chelsea did that deserves more space and ink. Reece James on the way back from injury was simply brilliant. It has been a long since we saw brooding James in the familiar overlapping role, cutting in and out on the wings creating overloads. Cucurella was industrious, and always on the run. He might have just been unlucky to have conceded the goal. Haaland seemed to topple over from Cucurella's breath rather than anything else. The VAR looked and saw something that no one else in the world seemed to see. It is one of those seasons. Sanchez was busy and brilliant in the goal. Thiago Silva, on the cusp of 40's continued to be the rock and even scored with a glancing header. All of Chelsea's squad on the field were working hard and it showed.
In a slugfest, rich with goals and attacks, it was however the tall and gangly Cole Palmer who stood out. Rising through the Manchester City academy and until last year in light blue shirts, he went a shade darker with a transfer and has excelled since. After Stones had rather foolishly slid into Broja to concede a spot kick, the young Palmer stepped up.
The air was as sharp as it could be. Stamford Bridge was having its roof blown off by the crescendo of the blue fans, looking for parity and a sense of pride. Ederson with his reputation and imposing presence stood crouched. In what could be career-defining moment, the young boy from Wythenshawe stepped up and coolly slotted in past a diving Ederson. The celebration was a statement too, almost a shrug of the shoulder, an awkward half-stretch of his arms, and a slow walk to the back line.
All of Wythenshawe, the small town outside Manchester would be proud, they have added another fine guy to the list of their folks, Tyson Fury, Marcus Rashford, and yes, Anthony Taylor, the man in black who stood a few yards away as Palmer slotted the ball into the goal and himself into Chelsea folklore.
The Blue's had a point, but more than that, it was a show worthy of three. In a match where they were better most of the time, they met the might of the champions everywhere on the field with aplomb. They creep into the top half and a few more of these, and they will be well and truly in the hunt for the top four in the least.
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