Chelsea fans buzzing over chance to hand out capital punishment

On the eve of the biggest game in modern Chelsea history, we Blues fans are running the gamut of emotions. Begin your journey at Excitement Towers, with brief stopovers in Trepidation Street and Butterflies Alley. In keeping with the recent Fanzone fashion of musical reference, we may yet finish in (sorry) Desolation Row. And if you think that was a cheap gag, be thankful I’ve resisted the temptation to refer to it all riding on a Simple Twist of Fate.

The chance of being the first London club to win this trophy has got every fan buzzing. And because of the turmoil that seems to have beset Chelsea this season – real or imagined, we may well be losing a manager and several key players this summer – it’s given the supporters a little of that siege mentality that Mourinho was so successful in instilling in his title-winning squads. United have played some outstanding football this season and it would take a real churl to think of them as anything other than worthy League champions. But there aren’t many teams in English football with a better recent record against the Mancs. Go back, even before Roman’s arrival, and take a look at the stats. We like playing Man U. There’s even a 5-0 hammering back there on the stats sheet – I remember laughing and, mea culpa, jeering as David Beckham was substituted – not to mention the confidence the team can take from its run of results in the last few weeks. Arsenal beaten. Liverpool finally put to the sword in this very competition. United escorted out of Stamford Bridge with yet another bloody nose.

Then there’s the kerfuffle around the players. With many thinking that Drogba, among others, will be plying his trade in a differently-coloured shirt next season, this is the big man’s chance to give his fans – and they’re still numerous, even after his rent-a-quote antics – the ultimate farewell gift. I’m pleased to see that both Vidic and Rooney have chosen to preface the final by accusing Drogba of cheating. I don’t believe for a second that it’ll “spur him on”, any more than Benitez’ sour assessment did in the semi-final. If you can’t get motivated for this, you should be doing something else for a living. But Vidic and Rooney clearly fear him, as does everyone else in the United side. We’ve seen him dominate Puyol, Thuram and Carragher. We know he only needs a moment. And, like Ballack, like Lampard and Terry, like Essien, he’s a big-game player. Chelsea, both upfront and in the middle, have guile and craft, but they also have power. Opta have already disproved the long ball myth in their end of season stats report: only Arsenal played fewer long passes than Chelsea in 07-08. But when the direct approach is needed, there are few forward lines that can use it so effectively.

In terms of the actual journey to Moscow, there’s been a fair bit of trepidation mixed in with the excitement. Will we be able to get there? Will we be beaten into a bloody pulp the moment we step off the plane? Will the local bar owners serve draught Kronenberg? As a response to this, I have to doff my cap to the English-speaking Moscow residents that have wandered onto the forums at CFCnet.co.uk in the last week or two to offer and advice and a certain amount of reassurance. Despite initial impressions – that this final appeared to have been planned by someone with all the nous and acumen of Boris Johnson – most people I’ve spoken to seem to be pretty confident that they know where they’re going and what they should and shouldn’t get up to.

Finally, I’m quite relieved to see that the Chelsea squad has – so far – resisted the temptation to have a pop at their counterparts. Perhaps Messrs Rooney and Vidic think they’re indulging in what the press laughably refers to as “mind games”.

It’s clearly not their strong suit.

Rob Hobson
Cfcnet.co.uk