Spurs played with same furor and composure seen against Arsenal, pressing hard together as a unit but not wasting energy chasing the ball when Chelsea had possession in non-dangerous areas. Everyone played well, with exceptional performances from Dawson, Modric, Bale, and Gomes when he was called upon. Even Younes Kaboul somehow managed not to get torn apart by the in-form Malouda out on the wing.
Before the game, the worry was that Tottenham wouldn't have the energy after an extra-time Wembley loss to Pompey and a labor intensive fight with Arsenal, but that was far from the case. Despite seven players playing three games in a week (Gomes, Dawson, Bale, Modric, Huddlestone, Defoe, and Pavlyuchenko), Spurs we're attacking and defending with gusto all game; much of this can be attributed to the Spurs' youth. The average age of their outfield ten was 24.7 years, whereas the Pensioners fielded a team averaging nearly 30 years of age (29.8). All one has to do is look at the way Gareth Bale (age 20, also playing like the world's best left wing back right now) turned Paulo Ferreira (31) inside out before blasting past Cech with his weaker foot (seen here, about 3:30 in) .
On a related note, Chelsea is too old to fight on so many fronts. I said this in the summer, predicting a CL exit, and I still think they can only win either the Prem or the FA Cup, but not both. This is barring a return to fitness of Essien, Cashley, and Carvalho, which would provide fresh legs (although not match-fit ones). Saturday was forgettable for Chelsea and, in particular, John Terry, who was sent off for two mistimed tackles even though he claimed "twice I got the ball." Apparently JT does live in an alternate reality from the rest of us, both on and off the pitch.
Chelsea played with the same indifference shown by Spurs against Sunderland two weekends ago. While watching the game I was dumbfounded by their apparent lack of urgency; Ancelotti must have felt the same way. Only Lampard did not look like a League 2 player, being ever-consistent in what is one of his best career seasons.
While Chelsea could hardly find any positives, the opposite was to be said of Spurs. Their mistakes came on the offensive front, where they failed to put away a plethora of "easy" chances. This was epitomized in stoppage time when a 3 v1 led to Bale playing Super Pav through on goal, only for his shot to be pushed agonizingly wide. If Tottenham wish to continue their rampage through the top of the table, they cannot waste chances like that next week at Old Trafford.
Bouncing back to beat Arsenal and Chelsea after losing in a semi-final to a relegated team is never easy, but Spurs can keep their heads held high in their quest for Champions League football. Its gonna take another spectacular performance against Man United on Saturday.
Before the game, the worry was that Tottenham wouldn't have the energy after an extra-time Wembley loss to Pompey and a labor intensive fight with Arsenal, but that was far from the case. Despite seven players playing three games in a week (Gomes, Dawson, Bale, Modric, Huddlestone, Defoe, and Pavlyuchenko), Spurs we're attacking and defending with gusto all game; much of this can be attributed to the Spurs' youth. The average age of their outfield ten was 24.7 years, whereas the Pensioners fielded a team averaging nearly 30 years of age (29.8). All one has to do is look at the way Gareth Bale (age 20, also playing like the world's best left wing back right now) turned Paulo Ferreira (31) inside out before blasting past Cech with his weaker foot (seen here, about 3:30 in) .
On a related note, Chelsea is too old to fight on so many fronts. I said this in the summer, predicting a CL exit, and I still think they can only win either the Prem or the FA Cup, but not both. This is barring a return to fitness of Essien, Cashley, and Carvalho, which would provide fresh legs (although not match-fit ones). Saturday was forgettable for Chelsea and, in particular, John Terry, who was sent off for two mistimed tackles even though he claimed "twice I got the ball." Apparently JT does live in an alternate reality from the rest of us, both on and off the pitch.
Chelsea played with the same indifference shown by Spurs against Sunderland two weekends ago. While watching the game I was dumbfounded by their apparent lack of urgency; Ancelotti must have felt the same way. Only Lampard did not look like a League 2 player, being ever-consistent in what is one of his best career seasons.
While Chelsea could hardly find any positives, the opposite was to be said of Spurs. Their mistakes came on the offensive front, where they failed to put away a plethora of "easy" chances. This was epitomized in stoppage time when a 3 v1 led to Bale playing Super Pav through on goal, only for his shot to be pushed agonizingly wide. If Tottenham wish to continue their rampage through the top of the table, they cannot waste chances like that next week at Old Trafford.
Bouncing back to beat Arsenal and Chelsea after losing in a semi-final to a relegated team is never easy, but Spurs can keep their heads held high in their quest for Champions League football. Its gonna take another spectacular performance against Man United on Saturday.
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