Lampard Must Bin £175k-p/w Chelsea Shadow vs Real

Frank Lampard has re-arrived at Chelsea and been thrown in at the deep end without much hope of swimming.

Indeed, Lampard may well sink when the Blues take on Real Madrid this evening, with the Spanish giants easy favourites to take a win.

Carlo Ancelotti's men may well be off the pace in La Liga – sitting second to Barcelona – but in Europe they are the dominant force we have all come to expect. As such, Chelsea's hopes of sealing a place in the semi-finals are slim.

They have scored just 29 times in 30 Premier League outings while their interim boss lost his first game in charge at Wolves last weekend. All things point to a straightforward victory for Madrid, therefore.

That said, Lampard could boost his side's chances of securing an unlikely result by dropping Marc Cucurella to the bench.

How has Cucurella played this season?

The Spanish wing-back arrived in west London after Chelsea paid Brighton a fee of a whopping £60m.

The curly-haired sensation is often a marvel in offensive areas, using his immense energy to burst forward in search of crossing positions down the flanks.

It's an impressive aspect of the £175k-per-week defender's game, with Cucurella ranking in the top 13% of positionally similar players in Europe's top five leagues for passes into the final third.

Yet, despite ranking in the best 3% of full-backs for tackles per 90, it is in a defensive sense where the former Barca man is "completely out of his depth", as per writer Zach Lowy.

The fact of the matter is that the 24-year-old has very quickly become a liability at the back for Chelsea, with his performances at Stamford Bridge a "shadow" of what he produced on the south coast – in the words of content creator Sripad.

Indeed, the 5 foot 8 full-back has now been at fault on several occasions this term, most notably in the recent defeat to Aston Villa.

His "schoolboy defending", as pundit Lee Hendrie called it, ensured that he simply gifted a goal to Unai Emery's men with Cucurella's errant back pass finding Ollie Watkins who then scored.

Crucially, the ex-Getafe man also left Matheus Nunes unmarked in the build-up to his stunning winner at Molineux a matter of days ago too.

That type of form simply has to see him dropped, with Lampard surely better off settling for Ben Chilwell at left-back instead.

Although the 26-year-old has been injured for much of the campaign, he is a crucial cog in Chelsea's system and notably 'attacks space off-the-ball better than any full-back or wing-back in the game', as per BBC Sport's Raj Chohan.

Of course, Cucurella is also good in attacking areas but Chilwell offers that extra reliability and composure in the backline. That will undoubtedly be needed against Karim Benzema and co on Wednesday evening.

Leicestershire remain favourites as wickets tumble

ScorecardBen Sanderson gave Northamptonshire a boost•Getty Images

An extraordinary day’s cricket saw 21 wickets fall and Leicestershire, having declined to enforce the follow-on, close with a lead of 313 with four wickets remaining in their second innings.Captain Mark Cosgrove’s decision not to ask the visitors to bat again surprised many after the Leicestershire seamers occupied only 46.3 overs in dismissing Northants for 151. But Cosgrove felt the pitch – quick, with some nip in it for the seamers, but no minefield – might deteriorate sufficiently to make batting last a difficult prospect, however small the target.”With the pitch nipping around, and the occasional ball starting to keep low, making it tough to bat last, I felt it was more valuable to have the runs on the board,” said Cosgrove. “We’re 300 ahead, which is a good position to be in, hopefully we can get another hundred and get bowling at them again. The pitch isn’t a minefield, but if you keep putting the ball in the right area you’ll get enough chances to win the game.”Northants opener Jake Libby  said they were not surprised not to be batting again.”We thought we’d be back in the field, because of the amount of time left in the game and I guess their theory is the wicket is going to go a bit up and down.”There’s always going to be enough in the pitch to keep the bowlers interested, but there’s pace too, the ball comes on to the bat nicely, so you can get your runs too. We feel we’ve clawed our way back into the game, and if we can take their last four wickets quickly tomorrow, anything is possible.”Northants had begun the day well, picking up Leicestershire’s five remaining first innings wickets for just 21 runs, with Olly Stone and Ben Sanderson benefitting from bowling line and length, something the visitors signally failed to do on the first day of the game.Leicestershire’s bowlers picked up where their opponents left off, taking three wickets before lunch. Ben Duckett went leg before to Ben Raine, hit in front by a delivery that swung back in to the in-form left hander. Alex Wakely never looked comfortable before losing his off stump to the same bowler, but Libby had been batting well when he was unluckily caught down the leg side on 32 by wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien in Wayne White’s first over.The afternoon session was a procession. Northants quickly lost Josh Cobb who, having looked in good form, threw the bat at a wide delivery from Clint McKay and edged a catch behind. Richard Levi had struggled to 19, made from 61 balls, when he too fell to a wide delivery, edging Neil Dexter’s loosener to O’Brien.Dexter’s relatively gentle medium pace continued to prove effective as two balls later, Steven Crook pushed hard-handed at a straight delivery and edged to gully. Rory Kleinveldt also came and went  in short order, edging a Dexter out-swinger to first slip.Stone was bowled by a White delivery which stayed low, and Azharullah and Sanderson also fell to the allrounder, the former caught at first slip, the latter leg before.Leicestershire’s second innings batting proved equally fragile. Horton may have been a touch unfortunate to be given leg before to Kleinveldt, the ball striking the pad well above the knee roll, but Dexter was comprehensively bowled by Stone.Sanderson, formerly of Yorkshire before a four-year spell out of the first-class game, then picked up three quick wickets, including that of Cosgrove leg before with a delivery which stayed low, before O’Brien and Aadil Ali took the lead past 300 with a stand of 53 for the sixth wicket.Even then there was to be drama, with Ali edging the last ball of the day from Sanderson to wicketkeeper Adam Rossington.

West Ham’s £65k-p/w Flop Was ‘Comical’ Vs Newcastle

West Ham United proved that they are very much still in a relegation battle this season as they were thumped 5-1 at home by Newcastle United on Wednesday night, in a game which could potentially spell the end for David Moyes.

The pressure will surely now be ramped up on the Scottish manager after an embarrassing home defeat which leaves the Hammers only out of the bottom three on goal difference.

How did West Ham against Newcastle play out?

Although West Ham could have opened the scoring early on when Bruno Guimaraes hit his own post, it was one-way traffic for most of the 90 minutes.

Callum Wilson headed in from Allan Saint-Maximin’s cross to continue his fine run of form against the Hammers before Joelinton made it two after exploiting a Sunday League-esque defensive line from Moyes’ side.

Kurt Zouma gave the home side hope just before half-time after heading in Jarrod Bowen’s corner but any dreams of a comeback were quelled by Nayef Aguerd as he miscontrolled a simple pass, with Jacob Murphy robbing him of possession and squaring for Wilson for his second.

West Ham weren’t done there as Lukasz Fabianski gifted Alexander Isak the fourth.

The Polish ‘keeper made an inexplicable howler as he unnecessarily came flying out of his goal, only to fluff his lines and present the Swedish forward with an empty net to find.

That was before Joelinton compounded the home side’s misery by firing in a fifth, which the Hammers shot-stopper arguably could have kept out.

Who was West Ham’s worst performer against Newcastle?

There are plenty of names to choose from when deciding upon the Hammers’ worst player against the Toon, as individual errors from Aguerd and Fabianski were crucial in the visitors taking all three points.

However, there was another completely anonymous display from Tomas Soucek in West Ham’s midfield, with the Czech Republic international barely touching the ball in his 65 minutes on the pitch.

West Ham manager David Moyes.

As per Sofascore, the former Slavia Prague man would earn a woeful 6.3/10 rating for his performance, with only Emerson, Bowen, Fabianski and Aguerd rated lower from the West Ham players to feature in the game.

Despite his role as a midfielder, the 28-year-old simply let the game pass him by, as he managed just 13 touches of the ball and eight passes in his time on the pitch, with Fabianski managing 31 touches by comparison.

This has been the story of Soucek’s season as he possesses the 16th-best pass average in West Ham’s squad, but he has averaged 27 passes per game in the top flight, which emphasises just how little influence he had against a dominant Newcastle side on Wednesday.

Unsurprisingly, the £65k-per-week midfielder’s woeful display caught the eye of journalists on Twitter, with Barry Collins writing:

“What the hell has happened to Tomas Soucek? An absolute shadow of the player that arrived. Has zero presence.”

David Rivers suggested that Moyes’ faith in Soucek was a stackable offence in itself, suggesting that his decision to keep playing the out-of-form West Ham man was “becoming comical.”

Although fingers will naturally be pointed at Fabianski and Aguerd for their shocking mistakes, Soucek completely went missing again. Indeed, he simply isn’t fulfilling his role as a midfielder, as a return of no shots, no key passes, no dribbles and no tackles represents a horrific all-round display.

Leeds must unleash Patrick Bamford

Leeds United are back in Premier League action today as they travel to Chelsea, a side they dismantled earlier in the season and one which is certainly there for the taking once again.

It marks Javi Gracia’s third game in charge, as he looks to maintain his unbeaten start to life in the league with another big result to move them further from the relegation zone. The Whites sit just one point away from 18th-place Everton, meaning that avoiding defeat against Graham Potter’s stumbling outfit could be imperative to them remaining out of the bottom three.

The Blues have won just one game in all competitions since the turn of the new year, and having recently handed three points to Southampton, who the Yorkshire outfit beat last weekend, there is cause to believe that they can now do the same.

To give themselves the best possible chance of disrupting the rhythm of the hosts, perhaps the Spaniard could look to employ a tactical twist in starting two strikers and reverting to the 4-4-2 system he had employed at Watford.

This would therefore allow the lively Georginio Rutter to retain his spot, and for Patrick Bamford to return to hopefully terrorise the opposition’s back line.

Will Patrick Bamford start vs Chelsea?

There could be an expectation that the 29-year-old will be recalled for this clash, given his experience and undeniable quality despite his struggles in front of goal this season.

Should he return to his “dangerous” best, for which he has been lauded in the past by Darren Bent, he could cause untold issues for Wesley Fofana who could replace the injured Thiago Silva.

The Frenchman has made just six league appearances this season due to injury, and Bamford could capitalise on the possible rustiness and inexperience he could bring to their defence.

Also, with their heights being essentially the same, the Englishman offers a fine physical presence to more than compete with the 22-year-old.

This will in turn allow Rutter additional space to utilise his trickery, of which he has only shown brief glimpses since his January move, in the final third.

Whilst it has been a while since the former Chelsea striker has been in hot scoring form, a good performance today could be the kickstart he needs to recapture his form from the 2020/21 campaign. Scoring 17 and assisting a further eight, the lethal marksman was branded a “Leeds legend” by journalist Jake Winderman.

Should the £70k-per-week finisher now step up to help them avoid the drop once again, he could further cement this statement as a general consensus around Elland Road.

For now, Bamford must recapture his best form, having already proven that he has the quality to be an excellent Premier League performer, and help the Whites to the win by dominating Fofana this afternoon.

Most hundreds in a year, and a Kenyan record

The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket

Steven Lynch20-Nov-2006The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket:

Viv Richards scored seven hundreds in eleven Tests in 1976 © Getty Images
Who has scored the most centuries in Test matches in a calendar year? asked Kamran Zahid from the United States
The record is seven, shared by the West Indian Viv Richards and Aravinda de Silva of Sri Lanka. Richards scored seven centuries in 11 Tests in 1976, the year he set the overall record for runs in a calendar year, with 1710. de Silva equalled the mark in 1997, also in 11 Tests: six of his seven hundreds were scored in Colombo (the other one was in Chandigarh, in India). Watch out for Mohammad Yousuf, who has scored six centuries so far in 2006, and Ricky Ponting, who has scored five in six Tests this year to date. For a full list of the highest runscorers in a calendar year, click hereIs it true that the highest opening partnership in ODIs is held by two Kenyans? asked Philip Goulter from New Zealand
The Kenyan openers Deepak Chudasama (122) and Kennedy Otieno (144) put on 225 against Bangladesh at the Nairobi Gymkhana in October 1997. That was a new one-day international record at the time, but remained so for less than a year – Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar shared a stand of 252 against Sri Lanka in Colombo in July 1998. The record now is 286, set by Upul Tharanga and Sanath Jayasuriya for Sri Lanka against England at Headingley in July 2006.How many first-class matches had Jeff Thomson played before the 1974-75 Ashes series? Was his selection really as surprising as people make it out to be? asked Andy Rashleigh from Leeds
The super-fast Jeff Thomson was not entirely an unknown quantity when he was unleashed on England in the first Test of the 1974-75 Ashes series at Brisbane. For a start, he had played a Test before – against Pakistan at Melbourne in 1972-73 – although he went into that match with an injury, and failed to take a wicket. That was only his seventh first-class match, but because of injury he played only four more before surprising England at the Gabba.Is there a player who played for two different teams (for example, India and Pakistan) during his Test career? asked Harshal Vora from the United States
There are 14 men who have appeared for two different countries in Test cricket (this excludes the World XI players who played in the Super Series Test in Australia last year). Three of those played for India before moving to Pakistan after Partition. They were Amir Elahi, AH Kardar (who played for India as “A. Hafeez”), and Gul Mohammad. There are also five players who have played for both England and Australia: Billy Midwinter, who uniquely played for both sides against each other, and Jack Ferris, Billy Murdoch, Albert Trott and Sammy Woods, who played for England against South Africa after playing for the Aussies against England. The other two-country men are Frank Hearne and Frank Mitchell (England and South Africa), the Nawab of Pataudi senior (England and India), Sammy Guillen (West Indies and New Zealand), Kepler Wessels (Australia and South Africa) and John Traicos (South Africa and Zimbabwe). For a full list (including those World XI players), click here.Which Test captain was also an Olympic Boxing gold medallist? asked Tim Jameson from Coventry
This was Essex’s John Douglas – whose initials JWHT led to him being nicknamed “Johnny Won’t Hit Today” when he batted defensively in Australia – who captained England in 18 of his 23 Tests, including the 1911-12 and 1920-21 Ashes series Down Under. In 1908, Douglas won the middleweight boxing title at the London Olympics, beating another renowned allround sportsman, Reginald “Snowy” Baker from Australia, in the final. Douglas drowned in 1930, trying to save his father’s life when their ship sank in the North Sea.I recently did the Lord’s tour when I was in London, during which they talked about the only player to bat and bowl on both innings of a Test match on the same day. Could you help me with what match it was and when it happened? asked Rob Cohen from Australia
The player concerned was Courtney Walsh, and the match was at Lord’s, during West Indies’ 2000 series in England. Walsh was one of the not-out batsmen at the end of the first day, but was out to the first ball of the second, which also ended West Indies’ first innings. He then took 4 for 43 as England were bowled out for 143, but was called upon to bat again as West Indies collapsed to 54 all out, their lowest score against England at that point. There was time for seven balls that evening in England’s second innings, and Walsh bowled one of them to complete his unique set. This was the first Test match in which part of all four innings took place on one day of the game (England squeaked home to win the match by two wickets the next day). It happened again, as reader Rajiv pointed out, at Hamilton in December 2002, when Ashish Nehra and Tinu Yohannan of India repeated Walsh’s feat against New Zealand. Steven Lynch’s new book, The Cricinfo Guide to International Cricket 2007, is out now. Click here for more details, or here for our review.

Steven Smith banned for one Test, Bancroft given three demerit points

Australia captain Steven Smith will not play the fourth Test against South Africa in Johannesburg, after the ICC gave him the maximum penalty for tampering with the ball

Daniel Brettig in Cape Town25-Mar-2018Australia captain Steven Smith will not play the fourth Test against South Africa in Johannesburg, after the ICC gave him the maximum penalty for tampering with the ball on the third day of the Newlands Test. Fielder Cameron Bancroft, the player to actually tamper with the ball, was given three demerit points and fined 75% of his match fee after accepting the Level 2 charge.Earlier on Sunday, Smith was stood down as captain by Cricket Australia for the rest of the ongoing Cape Town Test, while David Warner was removed as vice-captain. Both players took the field under the temporary leadership of wicketkeeper Tim Paine.ICC chief executive David Richardson laid the charge against Smith under Article 2.2.1 of the ICC Code of Conduct which prohibits to ‘all types of conduct of a serious nature that is contrary to the spirit of the game’. Smith accepted the charge and the sanction of two suspension points, which equates to a ban for the next Test match, and the 100% fine of his match fee. He will have four demerit points added to his record.”The decision made by the leadership group of the Australian team to act in this way is clearly contrary to the spirit of the game, risks causing significant damage to the integrity of the match, the players and the sport itself and is therefore ‘serious’ in nature. As captain, Steve Smith must take full responsibility for the actions of his players and it is appropriate that he be suspended,” ICC CEO David Richardson said.”The game needs to have a hard look at itself. In recent weeks we have seen incidents of ugly sledging, send-offs, dissent against umpires’ decisions, a walk-off, ball tampering and some ordinary off-field behaviour. The ICC needs to do more to prevent poor behaviour and better police the spirit of the game, defining more clearly what is expected of players and enforcing the regulations in a consistent fashion. In addition and most importantly Member countries need to show more accountability for their teams’ conduct. Winning is important but not at the expense of the spirit of the game which is intrinsic and precious to the sport of cricket. We have to raise the bar across all areas.”The ICC confirmed that the umpires had been made aware of the possibility of ball tampering by television replays on the big screen at Newlands. The on-field umpires Richard Illingworth and Nigel Llong then spoke to Bancroft and Smith, before they the third umpire Ian Gould and fourth umpire Allahudien Palekar, laid the ball-tampering charges. They did not replace the ball nor award South Africa five penalty runs because they did not believe the ball’s condition had been changed.The match referee Andy Pycroft said he hoped Bancroft would learn from the episode. “To carry a foreign object on to the field of play with the intention of changing the condition of the ball to gain an unfair advantage over your opponent is against not only the Laws, but the Spirit of the game as well,” he said.”That said, I acknowledge that Cameron has accepted responsibility for his actions by pleading guilty to the charge and apologising publicly. As a young player starting out in international cricket, I hope the lessons learned from this episode will strongly influence the way he plays the game during the rest of his career.”

Cristiano Ronaldo reunion? Raphael Varane offered mega-deal by Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr after becoming disillusioned at Man Utd

Raphael Varane could once again be reunited with Cristiano Ronaldo, as Al-Nassr look to take advantage of him wanting out of Manchester United.

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  • Varane reportedly "disillusioned" at United
  • Al-Nassr contemplating summer offer
  • Would see another Ronaldo reunion
  • WHAT HAPPENED?

    According to the , the Frenchman has become "disillusioned" with the Manchester club and will move on when his contract expires in the summer. Saudi outfit Al-Nassr want to be front of the queue when Varane inevitably leaves, and are thought to be willing to offer the defender a staggering £50 million ($62.7m)-per year deal to tempt him to the Middle East.

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    THE BIGGER PICTURE

    Should Varane elect to make the switch, he will be reunited with Ronaldo once again. The pair were team-mates at Real Madrid for five years and won a staggering four Champions League titles together, before they linked back up at United for Ronaldo's second stint at Old Trafford. The Portuguese then left in late 2022 following his public denigration of the Red Devils. He has since settled in well in the Gulf state, prompting a host of fellow Premier League stars to make the mega-money switch.

  • DID YOU KNOW?

    Varane wouldn't just be linking up with Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. Former club rivals Sadio Mane and Aymeric Laporte ply their trade for the Riyadh-based team, while ex-United team-mate Alex Telles also moved last summer.

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    WHAT NEXT FOR VARANE?

    According to the report, the 30-year-old has grown frustrated over a lack of game time this season, as frustrations towards Erik Ten Hag have already been well documented. Varane could face an immediate spell on the pitch though, if fit, following the news of Lisandro Martinez's recent knee injury.

£115m Chelsea Man Breaks Silence After "Debut To Forget"

Moises Caicedo has taken to social media to talk about his dreadful debut for Chelsea after he gave away a penalty on his first outing for the club.

How much is Caicedo worth?

With new manager Mauricio Pochettino now calling the shots at Stamford Bridge, the good "vibes" are expected to return to West London and should be aided by some exciting summer arrivals.

Most notably, Caicedo has arrived to bolster the midfield after Chelsea agreed to pay Brighton and Hove Albion a whopping British-record fee of £115m – which is an awful lot more than his Transfermarkt value of £64.13m. While they also handed the Ecuadorian an eight-year contract.

However, it appears that change for the better won't simply happen overnight. Indeed, having drawn 1-1 against Liverpool in their first game of the Premier League season, the Blues then followed that up with a disappointing defeat away at West Ham United.

Nayef Aguerd opened the scoring after just seven minutes but Carney Chukwuemeka levelled things before half-time. Enzo Fernandez did have the chance to put his side 2-1 up but failed to convert his penalty.

Against the run of play, Michail Antonio then scored a fine goal to instead give the Hammers the lead and Caicedo was soon called upon by Pochettino to make his debut.

Moises Caicedo

Coming off the bench, however, the 21-year-old failed to have a positive impact – even though Aguerd was sent off with plenty of time still left on the clock.

In fact, not only did Caicedo not change the game in Chelsea's favour, he actually made things worse as he gave away a late penalty, allowing Lucas Paqueta to seal a famous 3-1 win for West Ham against their London rivals.

Now in the aftermath of the defeat, the young midfielder took to Instagram to express his feelings, writing: "It wasn’t the debut that I expected but I’m happy to get my first minutes with this big club

"We’ll keep working hard to put this team where it deserves. Thanks to the fans who are supporting me."

View this post on InstagramA post shared by Moisés Caicedo23 (@moises_caicedo55)

A few Chelsea players responded with messages of support for their new teammate. For instance, Enzo Fernandez said: "This is not how it starts, but how it ends. Let's go all out brother! We will all work together."

New club captain Reece James also chimed in with: "Together as one." And fellow summer signing Romeo Lavia added: "In this all together mi hermano."

Carney Chukwuemeka, Christopher Nkunku and Marc Cucurella also posted messages of support.

How bad was Caicedo on his Chelsea debut?

As per Staman Dave – a football analyst sometimes seen on Sky Sports – Caicedo truly had a nightmare debut. In just 38 minutes on the pitch, the midfielder finished the game having lost the ball eight times, made one error leading to a shot, and made two fouls – one of which was the penalty he conceded.

Read the latest Chelsea transfer news HERE…

In the player ratings for 90min, journalist Jude Summerfield slammed his efforts with a 2/10 rating and wrote: "Gave away a penalty to compound a poor day for Chelsea."

Adrian Kajumba of the Daily Mail wasn't any kinder either, as he wrote: "Moises Caicedo was booed when he entered the field just after the hour for his Chelsea debut. His crime? Seemingly his price tag, after his British-record £115million move. It was a debut to forget for the Ecuadorian who conceded the penalty from which West Ham sealed their win in injury time."

Vijay breaks run-drought with century

M Vijay’s 21st first-class ton and his century-stands with N Jagadeesan and Baba Indrajith took Tamil Nadu to 292 for 3 against Odisha on the opening day in Cuttack.Having elected to bat first, Tamil Nadu lost opener Abhinav Mukund early to a run out. Vijay battled through to add 145 for the second wicket with Jagadeesan, who contributed 88, before Govinda Poddar sent back the wicketkeeper. Tamil Nadu didn’t let the momentum slip as Vijay then found an ally in Indrajith. Vijay was set on 140 before being caught and bowled by fast bowler Suryakant Pradhan late in the day. Indrajith (41*) and Vijay Shankar (8*) were set to resume batting on the second day.DB Prasanth’s unbeaten 120 lifted Andhra, the current group toppers, to 252 for 2 at stumps as the visitors started strongly against Tripura in Agartala. Andhra, put in to bat first, lost opener KS Bharat early for 18. This brought Prasanth together with Hanuma Vihari (62*) as the pair put on 108 for the second-wicket. Vihari, the captain, was dismissed post lunch, following which Prashant put up a century-stand with Ricky Bhui (49*).

Mauricio Pochettino raging! Levi Colwill reveals ‘hairdryer treatment' from furious Chelsea boss after terrible first-half display against Preston

Levi Colwill revealed that the Chelsea players were given the "hairdryer treatment" from an angry Mauricio Pochettino at half time against Preston.

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  • Pochettino gave 'hairdryer treatment' to Chelsea players
  • Manager left angry after a poor first-half show
  • Chelsea beat Preston 4-0 after improved second period
  • WHAT HAPPENED?

    Chelsea defender Levi Colwill revealed that the entire squad received the so-called "hairdryer treatment" from an angry Mauricio Pochettino after the team's disastrous first-half showing against Preston North End. It was a tepid display from the Premier League club, who failed to breach the Championship side's defence once.

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    WHAT COLWILL SAID

    When asked if the team got the "hairdryer treatment" from their manager, Colwill told (via ): "Something like that! I think we needed it though, we weren't good enough, as everyone saw. The second half was much better."

    On his team-mates Raheem Sterling and Armando Broja, who both got on the scoresheet, the defender added: "Raheem [Sterling] normally practices free-kicks the day before a game and he always scores. I think he's scored two now — Newcastle and then today — so from that position, he's a specialist at free-kicks.

    "I love playing with Armando [Broja], he's a great striker and a good mate of mine. I always encourage him because I know how good he can be. Today he showed it with his goal."

  • WHAT JULIEN LAURENS SAID

    pundit Julien Laurens was in attendance at Stamford Bridge, meaning he too had to sit through the dire first-half display that got Pochettino so riled up. He slammed the Blues' performance in similar savage fashion, writing on X: "I'm at Chelsea-Preston in the FA Cup (because I love football that much…) and I don’t know what to say about this Chelsea team anymore."

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    THE BIGGER PICTURE

    Pochettino's scolding seemed to do the trick as the Blues came back strongly after half time, as they scored four times – with three goals coming in the space of 11 minutes. Strikes from Broja, Thiago Silva, Sterling and Enzo Fernandez rounded out what looked like like a convincing victory, although their first-half display suggests it was anything but.

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