The Shed End

The first weekend of the Premiership has come and gone and DAMN I’m feeling good. United draw with Newcastle and Chelsea comes out and puts their collective foot down and abuses Pompey 4-0. It’s not only the scoreline, but the play itself. One game doesn’t mean continued commitment to it, but Chelsea played some absolutely wonderful football on Sunday.

The midfield was loaded, and worked beautifully. There is so much creativity back there that now that I’ve seen them going full bore, I have no worries about making it work. From Ballack’s cheeky flick to Joey Cole for the first goal, to the countless times Anelka was set free with a clever ball, to the dominate spells of possession Chelsea had. It was just great to see. Speaking of Anelka, I never thought I’d say this again after that shit he pulled in the Champions League final but — I’m glad he’s with Chelsea… for now. Like I said, one game doesn’t absolve him of what happened in Moscow, but he was playing fantastic football this past weekend. Good runs, was aggressive (see his goal for proof), and was a pain for the Portsmouth backline. And with Drogba out, that’s exactly what we needed.

One game in, not going to blow this out of proportion.  But needless to say, seeing this put any worries I had coming into the season to rest in a big way.

Yes. It is that time again. Never do the minutes, hours, days and months seem to pass so slow than to those spent during the offseason for football fans. But mourn no longer, the Premiership is back and with that comes the return of all the anger, frustration, absolute elation and unbelievable highs that come with being a supporter. It also means for me that the time of letting this little blog gather dust and wilt away is over.

The offseason for Chelsea can be summed up by one word — regroup. I say regroup because Chelsea has done nothing but make themselve vastly superior to last season. Most notably with the removal of Avram Grant and the appointment of Luiz Felipe Scolari. With Scolari comes an amazing résumé and the always promising aspect of more attractive football coming to Stamford Bridge. And while the transfer window might not have been as active as some might have thought, Chelsea have made moves:

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I’d be lying to everyone is I was to say I was extremely familiar with José Bosingwa and what to expect from him, but I did see his performances in EURO 2008 and thought his selection to the UEFA Team of the Tournament was well deserved. And of course EVERY football fan is familiar with one Mr. Deco and while he hadn’t had the best season with Barca last season, I still rate him REALLY high and am really going to enjoy seeing him a Chelsea kit this season.

No major losses for the club, losing Sidwell was a blessing of sorts and considering they received him on a free transfer last season — a £5m profit is wonderful. Maka leaving, while sad, I don’t see effecting the club to much. Mostly due to the fact that the midfield for Chelsea is absolutely loaded, and the best of the lot — Michael Essien — I fear is destined to be punished for his versatility and made to be play every which way instead of just letting the man do what he does best, dominate the game.

But that was the offseason, THIS is the start of the new campaign. This is the elderly Chelsea trying to keep up with Fergie and his band of morons. And it all starts with Red faced Harry Redknapp and the current FA Cup trophy holder, Portsmouth.

There isn’t much of a preview I can do for this thread simply because I’m honestly more interested than opinionated of what’s going to happen. My gut feeling tells me one thing; Chelsea is going to come out with a bang. If only due to the fact that I’m sure the boys will want to make themselves stand out to Big Phil, and playing time is not guaranteed. If I had to call out a scoreline it would be 2-0, with the scorers being up to your imagination.

As for the season overall, I’ll go ahead and put this on record before one ball is kicked in anger: Chelsea will win the Premiership this season. And I don’t this it’ll be anywhere NEAR as close as it was last season. United have quality, but as of right now I just don’t know where the goals are going to come from. As great as he is, Ronaldo isn’t going to have another season like he did last year. Liverpool are.. well, Liverpool. Arsenal are always a wildcard for me but I think the loss of Hleb and Flamini will be much more difficult to deal with than many Gooners might like the believe. With all this said, the transfer window is still open for 18 more days and a lot can change in that time. But mark it down, Chelsea for the title. In Europe? I’m not jinxing myself, and I’m still not over last May so I’ll wait on that.

Sunday, 17 August 2008. Of course I will not be at my home, I’ll be on my annual trip to Boston to see the Red Sox. But luckily I’ve found what appears to be a damn good pub to catch the game at. So I will be watching the boys come Sunday, bright and early — 8:30AM. Couldn’t be happier for the season to be back! And hope all of you have a great time watching the season unfold, Chelsea fan or not. But more so for all you that follow the Chels.

Expect an update Monday with my thoughts on the match — C’Mon The Chels!

Drogba’s staying, but he’s out for a while. 5-0 over AV Milan, Sheva’s getting annoyed. The Lampard saga is tired, yet ongoing. All things that come with the wonderful preseason. But the important thing is:

12 DAYS UNTIL SEASON OPENER!

Paris Saint Germain have confirmed Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele is set to join the club.

Sad day for Chelsea fans.  Maka was a rock for Chelsea during his 5 year stay at the club.  I usually don’t care about when players leave but with Maka, it’s different and I do wish him all the best at PSG.

Slowly but surely the season is approaching. But not soon enough for my liking. Yes I have the Red Sox, whom are my first love. Yes the Patriots will be reporting to training camp soon, and the return of American football is always a wonderful thing. Yes the MLS and the USL are currently playing, but my Saturday and Sunday morning needs Premier League football. The good thing about this time of year is that the transfer window usually starts to get a little more busy. And Chelsea are not just staying behind the scenes, the headlines dealing with Chelsea are numerous.

• From the possibility of Chelsea brining in Kaka for a world-record €100m (£79.3m). To Milan wasting to time to come right back out and announce that Kaka would be going no where, or at least not for that “little”. Oh but it does not stop there. Kaka’s handlers have come out and said that not only is the move a possibility, but a definite. In their own words, a “deal will definitely happen.” Not that saying this is ground breaking or news to anyone, but bringing Kaka to Chelsea would be the greatest move the club has ever made. Yes the money is ridiculous. But for Chelsea, money is nothing. And if Roman is willing to pony up for someone of Kaka’s ilk, I love the idea and I need it to happen.

• But the stories are not only about the possibility of players coming in. Now Drogba is back in the news due to him being left behind as Chelsea fly out for their preseason tour of Asia. It would seem that it’s all but settled he’ll be leaving the club this summer. My thoughts on Drogba leaving are no secret, I want him to. After what happened in the Champions League final, I have no time for him. He showed himself to only be worried about — well — himself. And not to give a shit about what position he put Chelsea Football Club or his teammates in.

• Yesterday I read that according to his agents, Chelsea have also put in a £31.75m bid for Robinho. Of course every Brazilian will be linked with Chelsea due to Scolari but this is one I wouldn’t mind see come through as well. He’s young (24), skilled, and would no doubt help in brining some more attacking football to Stamford Bridge.

• And of course, Frank Lampard. With whom I just cannot be botherd to talk about again. http://theshedend.org/?p=14

Things are changing at Chelsea. Just how much is yet to be seen, but will be interesting to continue watching.

Petr Cech talks exclusively to Chelsea TV about returning to training.

Now that Ronaldinho has moved… is THIS the one move to trigger all the others?

The Frank Lampard saga at Chelsea is one that just will not seem to come to an end.  The two sides claim to want the same thing, and yet for two years now this story has persisted.  Chelsea wants Frank to stay.  Frank “wants” to stay.  Inter would like Frank to leave, and have offered a £7.95million bid in hopes of landing him.  Am I tired of this situation?  Absolutely, but while that may be the case, my thoughts on this are the same as they’ve been since murmors of Frank leaving first popped up.

Before I go any further, allow me to make one thing crystal clear:  I love Frank Lampard.  The amazing moments he’s produced for Chelsea over the years will live in my memory forever.  For the past 6-7 years, along with John Terry, has been the face of the club.  But the situation lends itself for me to be impartial to the player and look at it more from being a supporter of Chelsea Football Club.

The key question is obviously:  Do I think Chelsea should sell Frank Lampard to Internazionale?

Answer: Yes, for the following reasons:

1. 1978:  That makes Frank Lampard 30 years old.  And while he is by no means done, I don’t see him having more than one more outstanding seasons in him.  Thankfully, Chelsea have gotten the best years of the career, and there is nothing wrong with getting as much as you can get for a player before it’s clear he’s on the decline.
2. Ballack, Deco, Essien, Lampard:  That is a lot of big players (and big egos), and I don’t think Scolari can keep all of them happy.  And out of those four, I would have to say I’d take the first three on that list.  Yes I know Deco is older than Frank, but I’ve always rated him higher than Frank.
3. Get the money:  I personally believe that this move IS going to happen.  If not now, Frank will move on a free transfer and Chelsea will be left holding their collective junk.  If it is inevitable, as I believe it is, then get what you can for Frank now which isn’t much due to his remaining contract.  Get what you can for him now.

I know many people can only see Frank Lampard as the Chelsea legend and someone who is untouchable when it comes to transfer rumors.  And all I can say to them is that I understand where you are all coming from.  But for me, sorry, but I support Chelsea Football Club.  Not the players, not the manager, but the badge on their kits.  I’ll thank Frank for everything he’s done for Chelsea if he should leave and wish him good luck but that’s about it.  Same for when Jose went to Inter.  I’ll always love Jose for his Chelsea years, but I’ll never care what happens during his Inter career.

It’ll be interesting to see what Chelsea’s attitude is towards a transfer if Inter bumps it’s offer up to £8-£10million, which would be hard to see due to his 1 year left on the contract.  But who knows what José has up his sleaves.

NEWS FLASH:

Internazionale have confirmed they will try to secure a deal for Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard.

Yep.  As if anyone in the world DIDN’T know this already, it’s official.  Jose’s coming for his boy.