Chelsea Blackburn Jan 15 2011

2-0. Result!

Right?

A comfy 2-0 win. Petr Cech threatened only once. A goal by Ivanovic off a corner. Then, off an Ivanovic header, Anelka gets a lovely goal-line touch to smooth the ball in.

Chelsea rarely threatened, 2 goals netted, 3 points bagged. End of the “bad spell.”

Right?

Not so fast, Optimist Boy.

In truth, this win was more like slapping a fresh coat of paint on rotting wood than it was a erecting a new structure on a solid foundation.

For one thing, Ancelotti once again trotted out his old faithfuls to start the match. On the bench stewed the red-hot Daniel Sturridge, the increasingly assertive Josh McEachran and even the wasteful but creative Solomon Kalou. Instead we got the same group that’s struggled for so many games, including Drogba, Anelka, Malouda and Essien.

It was as if there hadn’t been talk all week about benching the aging stars and giving the new generation a chance. It was as if McEachran and Sturridge’s excellent FA Cup play hadn’t happened.

Anelka vs Blackburn Jan 15 2011

And yet at first, it seemed to work. Maybe the old warhorses had their pride wounded. Maybe Lampard’s frank assessment stung them. Whatever the reason, they came out with fierce energy, passion and creativity. Malouda even chased across the field to win a ball!

It was great. For 10 minutes. And then slowly, like a termite-infested plank crumbling to the touch, it all fell apart. Gone was the creativity. Attacks broke down at the edge of the box. Cole and Malouda continued their drought on the left. Bosingwa lobbed-in inaccurate crosses from the right. Rovers easily choked anything down the middle.

Perhaps worst of all, Lampard set Drogba free with a great through ball, but the Ivorian had neither the pace nor the strength to beat his defender. A chance on which he used to feast was wasted. The moment was a microcosm of his loss of form since malaria sapped his everything.

And so the malaise returned. You could feel the confidence and the energy ebbing away. It all seemed so fruitless. But stubborn, loyal Ancelotti made no personnel changes at halftime.

Ivanovic scores 1-0 Chelsea Blackburn 15 jan 2011

Then, a lucky break at 57 minutes. Off a corner, Terry wins a header and Ivanovic scuffles it in at the far post. An ugly goal. But a beautiful goal. The pressure was off. Surely now the game would flow?

Not so fast, Optimist Boy.

The malaise continued. Still the old guard couldn’t get their flow going. Not even with Blackburn chasing the game and space opening up. The second goal, fittingly, came off another set piece. This time Ivanovic won the header and sent the ball low, where Anelka added a sweet touch (his first Premier League goal since these two teams last met at Ewood on October 30th.)

That was at 76 minutes.

At last, Ancelotti made substitutions. Kalou for Anelka. McEachran for Essien. Later, with barely five minutes left, Sturridge for Malouda.

And then the game started to flow.

The difference was McEachran. Somehow McEachran found time and space where no-one else could. Where Ramires passes sideways, McEachran passes everywhere. His vision and touch opened-up chance after chance. In just 14 minutes of play, 17 year-old Josh McEachran changed the game.

And in so doing, he really put Chelsea’s plight in perspective. Essien isn’t back from his serious injury. Nor is Bosingwa. Neither might be right until next season. Lampard again disappeared for long stretches. He too needs time to heal. Drogba is a shadow of himself, weak and slow.

Drogba vs Blackburn Jan 15 2011

These men are great warriors. They’ve proven themselves repeatedly. I don’t blame Ancelotti for wanting to trust them.

But they’re clearly not at their best. Not a single one of them. And meanwhile, as the season’s progressed, Josh McEachran and Daniel Sturridge have made a strong case for themselves. It seems unbelievable to be writing this, but a 17 year-old boy might be a better choice than the all-world Bison. And an impatient 21 year-old Sturridge really should get his big chance over ailing Drogba. These youngsters aren’t the same players they were at the beginning of the season. They’ve improved. It showed again on Sunday.

The danger is that a 2-0 fresh coat of paint disguises all of that. It looks so pretty. But the foundation is rotting. It needs new material. And the time to start building is now.