Didier has been such a great servant of the club that the notion of him leaving just doesn’t make sense. Why would you let someone like Didier leave? He’s scored more than 150 goals for the club and has scored in so many important games and has given some great memories. Above all, he’s still on top of his game. He scored in the FA Cup semi final and final. He scored in the champions league semi final and final. He balied us out when we were staring at another champions league heartbreak with couple of minutes left on the clock. He took the most decisive kick in the shoot out to hand us the bloody trophy. Why would you let Didier Drogba leave?

In simple terms, Drogba wants a new challenge and if he has to stay at Chelsea he some expectations. On the other hand, Chelsea want to refresh the team. Drogba’s expectations in terms of money and role cannot be matched by Chelsea FC. That’s because Chelsea are at a stage where they need to revisit their aspirations and ideologies and hence their squad.

Drogba wants to stay with Chelsea FC but he wants to stay on his terms. His terms being a 2 year contract at a higher cost and a continued key role in Chelsea’s progress and success. Now you can’t ask for official confirmation for such things. These are based on popular news stories which we consume as near-truths that we can use to make our opinions.

Drogba loves Chelsea FC. I can’t doubt that one bit. He probably is more emotionally attached to and connected with Chelsea FC than most of the other players that have played or playing alongside him. He has had several ‘like-swings’ with Chelsea over his career. When he joined Chelsea, he did so very reluctantly. In fact, he was honest to say that he didn’t like Chelsea in the beginning and he had longed to go back to Marseille. It was his relationship with Jose Mourinho that was instrumental in creating the bonding for him wih Chelsea FC. When Jose left, Drogba was visibly upset, disappointed and even inconsolable. At that time, he was strongly rumoured to leave as well. I think the most important period of the resurrection of his love for Chelsea FC came under Guus Hiddink. That’s when he recovered his joy for playing for Chelsea FC and it has continued and improved ever since.

Drogba is an emotional man. He needs to be happy personally in order to be on top of his game. He needs to trust and respect his manager. If he does that, he walk through fire for his manager. He loves the Chelsea support. He has long been a crowd favourite at Stamford Bridge and the support in general. He knows that he’s loved by the Chelsea fans and he’s the first one to acknowledge the support as well. So there’s no doubt that he loves Chelsea and loves to continue to play for Chelsea FC.

Drogba is leaving because we are unable to come to a conclusion on meeting his terms and conditions. An improved two-year contract with a promise of the continued role and significance in Chelsea is too big an ask even for the man of Drogba’s calibre and trackrecord for Chelsea. The way I would love to see this develop is here: Drogba to get a one-year contract and let Torres lead the line for Chelsea, while Drogba can be our plan B and can continue to contribute to us in developing the likes of Lukaku and Sturridge. Unfortunately, Drogba does seem to want a 2-year or 3-year contract with an expectation to continue being first choice striker for Chelsea.

I don’t see that happening because of one important reason – ‘the squad needs a refresh’. Drogba personifies this Chelsea team in many ways – spirited, determined, dogged, physical & skillful. His mental strength and physical strength are more important in his game than his technical strength. So true for Chelsea too. This Chelsea team has also made a name for itself based on its spirit and determination than skill and creativity.

Real Madrid made a similar refresh of the squad when Jose Mourinho came in. Raul, the legendary striker had to make way for Higuain and Benzema. In his last season which was injury-ridden, Raul still got 7 goals and 3 assists in 11 starts. He wasn’t done. Even with Schalke, he had scored 40 goals and 13 assists in 2 season. But still Real Madrid moved on and they were right. Barcelona did the same thing with their legends like Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o. In his last season at Barca, Eto’o had 39 goals and 6 assists in 49 goals, and he was only 28 then! So it is by no means a bad thing or an act of ingratitude. Drogba leaving Chelsea does have some hidden benefits for Chelsea.

I’m not being less grateful here. I think most would agree with me that while our methods have earned all possible trophies from premier league to champions league, we are frowned upon because we don’t produce the brand of football that’s universally acceptable, particularly for such an expensively assembled team. But I don’t mean our approach so far was flawed. In fact, our approach so far has made perfect sense for a club that’s come into the big league wanting to create history. and history remembers success more than anything. In the first 8 seasons under Roman, we have won 3 premier league titles, 4 FA cups, 2 league titles and 1 champions league title – with key contribution from Drogba in all 10 of them. So no one can fault our means.

But I think we have reached a stage where we need to turn a page and move ahead. More than ever before, we have joined an elite group of clubs – clubs that have won every significant thing on sight. It’s a great time to refresh and adopt a new identity for the club.

Much of Chelsea’s approach to its playing style comes from Drogba, his presence and his
strengths. If Roman wants to see Chelsea play a different style of football the first change he needs to do is replacing Drogba. And that’s why, in my opinion, Fernando Torres was brought in at such a high cost despite the financial fairplay constraints. That’s why a grafter like Juan Mata was brought in too. That’s why a ball playing Brazilian defender in David Luiz was brought to replace more static Carvalho and Alex. And that’s why we have more Brazilian-Spanish presence in the dressing room now. And this presence hasn’t really turned into an on-pitch influence yet. The reason is we have Drogba and he will be our saviour.

In a game like the champions league final on Saturday, if Torres had started instead of Drogba, I can guarantee that Chelsea would have attacked much more. That’s because you need play ball and attack if you need goals from Torres. On the other hand, Drogba can create a goal out of nothing. He’s pure magic. He can score goals for you no matter how you play. So he certainly gives us a cushion and comfort to sit back because he will get a chance and he will score. And we have come to a point where we need more than success to satisfy ourselves.

It’s a bit like the Maslow’s ‘hierarchy of needs’ if you’re familiar with that. He says human needs and the nature of needs graduate as soon as the current needs are fulfilled. If one is struggling to afford food, clothing and shelter, then that and that alone remains his priority. As soon as they become affordable his needs now graduate to a higher plane. He wants safety and security. Once he achieves that he wants love, friendship and intimacy. Once he achieves that, he looks for esteem – respect by others, status, recognition and prestige. In my view Chelsea FC have been going through these exact phases.

Just before Roman took over, when the club was facing dire consequences, nobody would have cared about our playing style. Same can be said about the relegation battlers in the last few weeks of the premier league. Their need to stay up is the prime motive. Rest everything comes later. After Roman bought Chelsea, we wanted to steady the ship which we did with the trophies. With the champions league win we have a come a full circle. Even before the champions league win, the club’s needs have moved on. Trophies are always important but the key shift was from ‘how many’ to ‘how’.

Chelsea clearly want a different identity in the footballing world than the one it has now. Chelsea want to be respected, admired and adored. To fulfill this desire or need, we need to adopt a different style and approach to our football. Our team is certainly capable of producing any style of football even today but it’s just that the presence of Drogba certainly wants to go for the safer and less-risky methods than the more attacking, cavalier approach.

We can’t be underdogs. For the kind of investment that has gone into the club and with the kind of players that we have on our rolls, we can’t be calling ourselves underdogs. We should be on a par with any team on any patch and take the bull by its horns and tame it to win the trophy. That’s what I think the club wants ‘now’. My emphasis on ‘now’ because that’s a new requirement as we have been collecting trophies.

Exactly why did we buy a £50m Fernando Torres when we had a goal machine in Drogba? Because we wanted to move in a different dirction. Torres was bought exactly with those expectations. As it’s been brought out by interview, there was probably a promise of building the team around Torres and getting the best out of him. I know I could be shot for this but I’d still say it: ability-wise Torres is the best player in our team. If you want to get the best out of his ability, you need to have players that will get the best out of him. It’s not Kalou, Sturridge or Malouda. It’s Mata. It’s Modric. It’s Silva. Those kind of players that love the ball. You will see Chelsea buying more of those kind of players because that’s the way we want to go.

Fernando Torres has my sympathy for what’s happened to him here at Chelsea. From being a world class striker he’s been reduced to a second fiddle benchwarmer who starts in matches that don’t matter and gets ignored for the real big games. In his interview with Guillem Balague, he’s talked in detail of his life at Chelsea. I hope there was no mis-translation because Guillem is a Spanish native that speaks good English and is also a decent journalist.

This season I have felt things that I never had before.  I’ve felt like they treated me in a way that I didn’t expect, not in the way that was spoken of when they signed me.  We’ve had a lot of talks and we’ll talk about my future at the end of the season because the role I’ve had this season is not for me, nor is it the one I expected to play when I came here. I’m not comfortable.  A victory like this one against Munich does compensate, but I want them to tell me what is going to happen in the future.  Football has been fair on us, on me.  Now I do feel like football is worth it but I’ve been through a difficult time. The worst in my career.  And I don’t want to go through it again.

I don’t know. There have been a lot of ups and downs, there’s been many times when I’ve felt lost, I wasn’t sure what to do.  I felt like I didn’t know where I belonged.  I’m eternally grateful to my family who have been by my side and also for the support of the owners who have stuck by me.  And especially to the fans, if it hadn’t been for them this season I would have given up. The ideal situation for next season would be for someone to tell me what is going to happen and what sort of role I will have within the team, what my duties are, what they expect of me and then judge whether it is worth it.

You can see this in two ways. One is badly-timed interview when we have not even finished celebrating the champions league win. The other is, this is a perfectly-timed interview as discussions with Drogba are happening this week to conclude on his future. Or this could just be desparation.

In a way, I’m happy that Torres is unhappy. For a £50m striker earning a big pay packet, he has to be restless, impatient and hungry to contribute. That’s exactly what he’s done. I wish he’d spoken to the club instead of speaking to Guillem. But my guess is, he’s done that many times already. Look at his timing. When he joined, Carlo Ancelotti was going out. No time to integrate him into the team properly. And the Andre Villas Boas comes and difficult times again. And then Roberto di Matteo comes in and has a job to do and a point to prove. When things didn’t happen, none of these managers where in a position to be patient. All of them went back to the good old, tried and tested successful short cut that is Didier Drogba.

Truth be told, we still haven’t learnt to use Torres to his full potential. We haven’t understood how he moves, where he moves, where he wants the ball, when does he want to pass-move-collect – we haven’t yet uderstood him. I personally fully reject the notion of Torres having to adjust to our system. Because it is our system that needs to change, not Fernando Torres. Any team that has a player of his calibre and cost will try to see how it can get the best out of such a player. And the reason why we haven’t managed or bothered is that we have an escape route via Didier Drogba. The reason why Shevchenko didn’t click was also because Drogba filled in for the team’s deficiencies. I’m not saying Drogba is the problem. I’m saying Drogba has been the solution, the very easy and simple solution to not make the big leap ahead.

What has happened in Chelsea is that we have got ourselves so well synced with a very special breed of striker in Didier Drogba. Strikers in the mould of Torres is common. Strikers in the mould of Drogba is very rare. He’s a very unique gem. And we’ve got so used to playing with Drogba that it becomes difficult for us to work with the usual and common breed of strikers that include Shevchenko, Anelka, Torres and the likes. And this needs to be broken because there won’t be another Didier Drogba. There’s only one.

Hence I’d say, Drogba leaving Chelsea is not necessarily a bad thing. This is a great opportunity to change the way we play, to change what we expect from our players and to re-establish Chelsea FC to take the club into a new era.

Frank Lampard says Drogba is his hero. Drogba is a hero for all Chelsea FC fans. He is undoubtedly a legend of Chelsea FC. He is my hero too. He’s given so many incredible memories to me that I always cherish and rejoice. The reality is that, having won everything prestigious in club football, now we need to move ahead with aspirations bigger than winning trophies and probably that’s why when we thought we had completed the full circle with the champions league victory, Roman Abramovich said, “This is just the beginning”.

Chelsea FC Chief Executive Ron Gourlay said:

Didier is undoubtedly a Chelsea legend and will always be part of the Chelsea family. He is certainly leaving on a high after Saturday night but he feels the time is right for a new challenge. Of course Didier has contributed so much to all of Chelsea’s recent successes. He has been a consummate professional during his entire time here and as one of the natural leaders in our squad he has been an inspiration to a lot of our younger players.

We have known for some time that this outcome was likely but Didier and the club only made a final decision on that in the last couple of days, because for obvious reasons neither Didier nor the club wanted to distract focus away from the Champions League Final. The talks were amicable all the way through and we wish him all the best for the future. He is welcome back to Stamford Bridge at any time – either as a player or as a guest of ours.

Didier Drogba thanked Chelsea FC and the Chelsea fans

I wanted to put an end to all the speculation and confirm that I am leaving Chelsea. It has been a very difficult decision for me to make and I am very proud of what we have achieved but the time is right for a new challenge for me.

As a team we have accomplished so much and have won every single trophy possible. Saturday was a very special moment for everyone at the club and for all the fans, and I am very proud to have played my part in bringing many trophies to this club, which has been my home for the last eight years.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at the club especially Roman and my team-mates, many of whom have become very close friends and will be my friends for life. I would also like to say a very special thank you to the Chelsea fans who have shown me so much love and support over the years.

I wish the club all the best and continued success for the future – you will always be in my heart.

Let’s take some time to thank Didier Drogba, the man who was instrumental in every bit of success that Chelsea had in the last 8 years.

When Chelsea knocked out Barcelona on that historic night at Camp Nou, most people felt deja vu. Barcelona and Chelsea approached the game exactly as you would expect them to. Their respective methods have given them too much success to experiment with something else on such a big occasion like this. The plans were quite clear ahead of the game. The difference was going to be who executes and delivers their plan to perfection. So, it wasn’t really surprising that these two teams adopted their tried and tested methods. But the difference was elsewhere. The difference was on how Chelsea’s performance was viewed, accepted and even appreciated by the football community.

What used to be called as anti-football has now become defensive masterclass. What used to be called parking the bus was now called defensive organisation and discipline. What was called parking the bus is now called Barca’s inability to break through a tight defence. What was called a defeat for football is now being called success for the british bulldog spirit. This has been a subtle transformation and this is widespread cutting across all club affinities.

How did this happen? I personally think that people have learnt some lessons in football. As simple as that. Yes, Barcelona are the most fluent football team, probably ever. They are the guardians for what’s being called ‘beautiful football’. They are the gods and angels of football. And these impressions of FC Barcelona meant they can’t be beaten fairly and anyone that beats them might have used unfair means. They just cannot be deservedly beaten. And there was an expectation that the opponents play and beat Barca at their own game and anything else is going to be a lucky win or a defeat for football.

Have things changed? Hell yes! Fooball community, including the pundits, have learnt some important lessons in football. Barcelona’s playing style is not from the training ground, it’s from their roots and their culture. And theirs is one way of playing football. Some love it. Some don’t (yeah, it’s me). While they are definitely beautiful to watch, I find their approach highly one-dimensional and surely crackable. And that’s what teams take advantage of. This wasn’t a beauty pageant on the Camp Nou that night. It was a hard-fought contest whose prize was a place in the Champions League final.

Barca played like they always do. Chelsea simply stayed with organisation and discipline, soaked up all the pressure waiting to deliver the knockout blow when they get their chances. You can’t blame Chelsea’s approach. It has worked in the past not just for Chelsea but for various other teams. Why would we change that when Barcelona haven’t figured out to deal with that? And hence, you have pundits finally saying in chorus that Barca don’t have a plan B and teams like Chelsea are perfectly fine in exploiting that.

If we are planning to match Barca’s playing style, we need to do hundred other things before we try to match them on the pitch. Until then, we can be clever in our approach. Until then, we can play intelligent football instead of what’s called ‘beautiful football’. Personally, I’m not a fan of Barca’s style of football. I do like the fast and opportunistic style as against the slow and deliberate style. And it’s okay to not like Barca’s style. And it’s okay to play football with a different style and still be called good football. I’m a proud Chelsea fan as I know my team is versatile. They can play in many ways. They can play in different ways even in the 90 minutes of one game. Versatility is an identity in itself.

Barcelona are not gods of football. And hence it’s not blasphemous to beat them by not playing their game. You play in a way that helps you achieve your objective. To expect teams to play Barca with Barca’s vision and approach to football is plain silly. Who is to say which is the right method? It’s purely subjective. I think there is a great realisation of this fact in the wider football community. And hence I think there was widespread appreciation for Chelsea’s efforts against Barcelona. And for once, after Chelsea played Barca, I heard them all say, Chelsea fully deserved to go to the final at the expense of Barcelona.

Nothing changed in style and approach. All that changed was the mindset and perception. It’s about time Chelsea got credit and there’s nothing like football media showering praises on Chelsea. Music to my ears!

Bewilderingly though, not everyone seems to share this idea, including Matthias Sammer, the ex-Germany captain who said after Saturday’s game, “It’s unfair a team like Chelsea can win titles”. The stupidity of this statement lies not only within its bitterness but also in its ignorance of what Chelsea’s triumph represents. I’m pretty sure that soon Sammer and everyone else who shares his opinion are going to realise that what Chelsea have achieved this season is about 20% down to tactics and 80% down to the character and grit and determination of some the greatest players of the past 20 years. No matter how you line-up or approach a game, if you defeat a side with the pedigree of Bayern Munich in their home stadium, via a penalty shootout in front of their own fans – then you have achieved something very special and your methods are more than vindicated.

I’m pleased this is obviously a sentiment shared by Roberto Di Matteo, as pointed out by BC’s @roger_federer, “a German journalist took an interview from Robbie at the end. The last question was “Do you find Chelsea’s playing style beautiful?” Robbie just shook his head and walked away.” I love that for all his composure and level-headedness these past few months, he just refused to let Chelsea be insulted like that – well done Robbie.

On a less philosophical note, I feel this blog needs to make a big deal of the fact that the trophy cabinet at Stamford Bridge now contains one more major honour than the one at White Hart Lane. As if hilariously dumping them out of the Champions League wasn’t enough, we have finally ended any claim they have to being the bigger club, further evidence of which may be their inability to hold on to Gareth Bale and Luka Modric this summer. No doubt the travelling Spuds will still chant “Shit Club – No History” at the Bridge next season, I’m just looking forward to the rapidly approaching day when the irony of it becomes embarrassingly apparent on their part.

Anyway, crushing the dreams of Spurs fans may have been a delightful bonus on Saturday but personally, crushing Bayern’s felt far more satisfying. Clips and images of Bavarians celebrating like they’d won the cup before the match had started, along with the pre-match interviews of some Bayern players, just made their whole approach seem a bit amateur and obtuse to me. They had themselves convinced that this was their year and there was no way little Chelsea could obstruct them. Meanwhile, all Chelsea supporters seemed to have to say was how proud they were of their club for reaching the final and how much they wanted the likes of Drogba and Lampard and Cole to do it for themselves. I don’t think there is another squad in the world who can utilize the tag of being an ‘underdog’ as well as Chelsea, our mentality heading in to these big matches is rarely anything other than perfect, and that’s for going back a long time.

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Didier Drogba and Arjen Robben are two of the greatest of their generation and both had great games on Saturaday, but ultimately I’d say this weekend summed them up as players perfectly. Robben revealed how he “still loved Chelsea”, but “was going to have to disappoint them”, then proceeded to choke when it mattered, (like he did two years ago in the UCL and World Cup finals). Drogba on the other hand only spoke about the importance of this match for the team, before going on to deliver in the final yet again, winning the trophy with possibly his last kick of the ball for Chelsea. That’s what distinguishes the best players from the all time greats. For me the way he has ended this campaign distinguishes Drogba over Weah and Milla and Eto’o as the greatest African Player of all time as well as Chelsea’s greatest ever centre forward.

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Looking forward then, and trying to remain objective, I can’t imagine Roberto Di Matteo not being given the job. The work he has done tactically and motivating this group has been exemplary and given the lack of availability of anyone guaranteed to do a better job; this decision should be a no brainer for the club. Also I think the biggest thing Di Matteo has going for him is the adaptability he’s shown to work with players whom he didn’t sign, used to playing in a system he wasn’t used to coaching. This surely must give the owner and directors the confidence to stick with Di Matteo and pursue with plans and transfer targets they drew up before his promotion. That isn’t to say he shouldn’t be consulted on footballing matters, but still, the board know they won’t have to give him any more control than they feel comfortable with in order to see results.

Next season then will see Chelsea compete for the Premier League, League Cup, Community Shield, European Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, as well the defense our FA Cup and Champions League Titles. Hopefully with the instating of Di Matteo as permanent manager and the signing of some world-class young players, Chelsea can enter their first season as past champions of Europe, looking like a side finally devoid of the lingering influences of Jose Mourinho’s reign, and ready to build on this phenomenal achievement, creating a legacy that will sustain this club as a European powerhouse for a long long time to come.

It wasn’t easy. We had to win our last group league game to make it to the knockout round. And that too, we had to beat Valencia. ‘That’s it for Chelsea?’. Not yet. We had to win the last After Chelsea lost 3-1 at Naples, not many gave a chance for Chelsea to overturn that deficit against red hot Napoli which had the world-class attacking trio of Cavani, Hamsik and Lavezzi. ‘That’s it for Chelsea?’. Not yet. With one eye on the domestic scene, we made heavy weather of eliminating Benfica. At 1-1 in the home leg, it was anyone’s game. ‘That’s it for Chelsea?’. Not yet. Drawn against Barca. Second leg at Camp Nou. 2-0 down and a man down with 50 mins to go. ‘Surely that’s it for Chelsea?’. Not yet. Final at Munich against Bayern with a 1-0 down at the 84th minute. ‘Surely now, that’s it for Chelsea?’. Still not yet. We are the champions of Europe!

Bayern were the favourites. It’s incorrect to say they had an ‘edge’ because it was much more than just an ‘edge’. The whole city of Munich was waiting for this occasion. Bayern have been mentally preparing for this ever since the beginning of this season. The whole city was awash in red. It was red everywhere. This was the celebration the football-crazy city was waiting for. As per the UEFA allocation, both Bayern and Chelsea were to get 17.5k seats each but Bayern ended up filling the rest of the stadium with their fans. This was the champions league final being hosted in their pitch where, in Jupp Heynckes’ words, they knew every blade of grass. The odds were completely in their favour. If Chelsea were beaten, the football world would not have complained. European giants Bayern winning the champions league trophy at Fussball Arena Munchen is perfectly in line with the script.

A Chelsea win would ruin their party. Bayern weren’t even thinking of that possibility. They knew they could win and the opportunity to play the final in front of their home fans was a gift from the God. But probably the key factor was exactly that. As I had mentioned in my preview post, playing at home could also be very stressful and that’s what Bayern found out. The first half went by the script. Bayern to attack relentlessly, Chelsea to defend and look for counterattacks. Bayern could have taken the lead but just couldn’t calm themselves and show the composure that was required. Chelsea were living dangerously. In the second half, Chelsea settled into a defensive rhythm, like they did against Barca, and dealt with Bayern more comfortably.

When Muller scored at the 84th minute, Bayern and their fans certainly thought it was game over. Think of this, Bayern were goal up and charged up. They had their fans behind them. All along the game, they had the ball. So it should have been quite easy for them to see through the remaining few minutes. And then Chelsea got their second corner of the game for Drogba to arise and blast a header in. 1-1 at the 88th minute.

The Bayern heads and shoulders were beginning to drop. They were getting more and more frustrated and annoyed that things weren’t going their way. They knew that he had their one hand on the trophy when Muller scored and they dropped it. Chelsea meanwhile were bouncing around with no signs of tiredness. Chelsea were mentally more prepared and alert. A penalty conceded in the extra time of a champions league final had to be conclusive. And it was. The moment Cech saved Robben’s penalty, I ‘knew’ that we were surely going to win that night. It was like Messi’s penalty miss. Even in the Barca game as soon as Messi missed the penalty, I ‘knew’ that we would go through. Here too, Robben’s miss confirmed my hope that it’s our destiny to win the champions league this season.

Penalty shoot out in a champions league final. Bayern were favourites again. Given what happened to us in Moscow, we too had to start as underdogs again. Basically the Bayern’s and Chelsea’s statuses as favourites and underdogs respectively had got renewed ahead of the shoot out. German teams don’t lose penalties, that too on their soil. And this shoot out had to be taken at the Bayern end of the stadium. As a Chelsea player, as you run up to shoot, all that’s their in the background was red, red and more red. Mata missed his penalty for us to go ‘oh no! not again’. One thing I was sure was ‘we didn’t come all this far to lose in the penalties’.

What happened after that was epic! I must admit I couldn’t bear to see the last few spot kicks. The last I saw was Lampard making it 2-3 to Chelsea. I was so tense that I just couldn’t see it. Instead I had my ears to my home theatre speakers with my eyes closed, hoping to hear the words I wanted to hear. I heard that Olic missed. I was jumping around. Sat down eyes closed, ears to the speakers for Ashley Cole smashing it in. Again I was jumping around. Again sat down eyes closed, ears to the speakers for Cech’s save of Schweinsteiger. Again I was jumping around. The match-winning spot kick from Drogba – I don’t even remember if I saw it live or not. It’s almost like it’s irrelevant. All I remember was jumping around like a mad man at around 3am in the morning. Chelsea are the Champions of Europe!

I was so relieved, exhausted, excited and ecstatic – all rolled into one. I didn’t want the night to end. Spoke to the Chelsea mates, browsed all football news websites, all football forums and blogs. I just didn’t want the night to end. By that time the re-run of the whole match had begun. Started watching that. And ended up watching the whole re-run of 120 minutes plus shoot out plus the awards ceremony and celebrations. All along, I was reading the reading the reactions from the football world for our historic win. Soon it was 6:30 am in the morning. Went to bed and was still checking news updates on my iphone and didn’t even know when I slept. When I woke up (after a few hours), I checked my mobile to see if Chelsea are European champions. I’m not joking. I did exactly that. I know many of us did!

Champions of Europe! Against all the odds, against the run of play, against incredible oppositions, despite all the absences, we have won the champions league title. This campaign should serve as a great lesson for the students and the fans of the game. I’m so so proud to be a Chelsea fan. This is the Chelsea we know and love. They just never give up, they fight till the last, their commitment can never be doubted. That’s the Chelsea we saw in the last 100 days. What a turnaround!

We ain’t got no history, eh? We are creating history! 3 premier league titles, 4 FA Cups, 2 league cups, 2 community shields and 1 champions league title. All these weren’t in the times of Winston Churchill or Margaret Thatcher. All these titles were won in the last 8 seasons. This is called creating history while others are gloating over past laurels. While we are at it – we are the first London club EVER to be crowned European champions. How about that?

We have now joined the elite group of European champions. A true milestone in the progress of the club. The Chelsea fans deserve a round of applause for the unwavering support provided in the stadia, in the pubs and on the internet. We will come back for more. Chelsea’s next challenge is to defend the trophy – something that none of the champions have been able to do. Let’s leave the challenges for later. Now is the time for rejoicing and celebration. Rest everything can wait – managerial appointment, new transfers, induction of youth, contract extensions – they all can wait. Now’s the time to enjoy and celebrate! Go nuke the world, you champions of Europe!

There’s so much to write, so much to share but I’m too tired and exhausted now! For now, let’s enjoy and celebrate this historic win! I’ll be back tomorrow!

‘Moscow’ is a taboo right now among the Chelsea fans. No one wants to talk about it. No one wants those nightmarish thoughts right now. Fact is, that defeat taught us so much in football. One spot kick away from the first champions league trophy of the club. And it was at Moscow! What better way of thanking Roman than winning the champions league in his backyard. The script was there to be executed. Still there was one last twist in the tale that had to happen.

Isn’t that what happened in the premier league this season. Man Utd were two minutes away from winning their 20th premier league title. It would have been such a big statement from Fergie. By the time the final whistle was blown at the Stadium of Lights, Man Utd were winning the title. Two minutes later, they’d lost it. What Man Utd had done to Bayern in 1999 and to Chelsea in 2008 had come back to haunt them.

This champions league final is very intriguing. Some say it’s Chelsea’s destiny to win it. Some say it’s Bayern’s destiny to win it. The time has come for Chelsea because the squad would undergo massive changes next season. As the cliche goes this is the last chance for a number of Chelsea stars to leave Chelsea on the highest possible note.

Bayern lost to Man Utd in 1999 in incredible fashion. But they came back and won it in 2001. Milan lost to Liverpool in 2005 in an unbelievable turn of events. They came back and won it in 2009 and they had the opportunity to even beat Liverpool in the final. Freak things do happen in football – such as the stoppage time goals in ’99, such as the comeback in 2005 – but when given a second chance, it’s more likely that the aggrieved team will make amends for their unforgettable past. They would have grown stronger mentally and would wait for an opportunity to get it right.

This Chelsea team is certainly an old team. Or at least a team that relies heavily on its older players. This Chelsea team is not pacy by any interpretation of the word and hence it’s no match to Bayern on that front. With the senior players, what we lack in pace, we make it up with experience – what to anticipate, how to keep calm, how not to get overawed, how to calm things down, how to exploit the opponent’s weakness and what to do and what not to do in a champions league final.

Petr Cech, John Terry (though not in the playing team now), Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, John Obi Mikel, Michael Essien, Ashley Cole – have all experienced what it means to be in the champions league final. They know what to do.

While playing at home is considered to be an advantage, I’d say in this instance, it can be such a burden. This crop of talented Bayern (except a few) have not played in a stage as big as champions league final, let alone playing it at home. The expectation is immense and that drives the pressure. The thought of ‘what if we miss this great opportunity in front of our home fans’ will not let them sleep. You’ve to be blessed to get such an opportunity. Ask how the France national team felt when they won the world cup in France. And ask how Portugal felt when they lost the Euro final at home to underdogs Greece. Playing this game at home, if you have experienced players, is a massive advantage. Otherwise, it is such a tremendous burden and responsibility. So, I’d say playing Bayern at Allianz Arena might even give a slight advantage to Chelsea.

Who wants to win this more – Chelsea or Bayern? Who would play like there’s no tomorrow? More often, this is what separates champions and runner-ups. Here again, Chelsea have an advantage. Of course Bayern had lost a final to Inter a few seasons back. They may not want any less to win this final at home. But this is still a very young team. They’re hungry all right but try would know they have long careers ahead and they might get another opportunity. You can’t say that about most of the Chelsea team. It’s now or never. It’s been like that for many seasons but with contracts coming to a close and still not tied up, it surely looks like it’s now or never.

This champions league final has a lot of significance for Chelsea. Right from the champions league spot to managerial appointment to transfers in/out and even to the Samsung sponsorship. I’d like to not think or talk about any of those things at this moment. Let’s go and win this football match for what it is. We will have all the time in the world to talk about consequences and other things.

A result for either sides will confirm that the romance in football still exists. Both teams are capable of winning this final. Being a Chelsea supporter, I hope it’s another win for the blues and another defeat for the reds. But expectations aren’t really high. My hope is. But my expectation is not. Is a Chelsea defeat possible? Yes. Would Chelsea miss another chance at the final hurdle? Quite possible. But let’s keep in mind that this has been a brilliant season and this Chelsea team just showed what they are capable of when they get their act together.

If we win, I will celebrate like mad. If we don’t I will start looking forward to the next season already. For me, the fact that we kicked out the Barscum at Camp Nou with a stoppage time goal after giving them hope by going 2 goals and a man down, is more than enough. In my mind, we won a trophy there.

I’m extremely happy for us to have reached the final of the champions league again (twice in five years). Yes, not winning the final would mean Europa cup. Yes, not winning would mean the last possible chance for the Chelsea greats would be gone. It’s an achievement to reach the champions league final by eliminating the defending champions at their backyard.

I don’t mean to sound defeatist. Make no mistake – Chelsea are more than capable of beating Bayern at Allianz Arena. If just trying to put things in perspective the other possibility. I strongly feel Chelsea would be the Champions of Europe this weekend. I really really hope so. And I also know life will move on otherwise. This is football. You win some, you lose some.

Remember, there are lives and careers beyond this result! Enjoy the game! May the best team win! May that be Chelsea FC! KTBFFH!

Formation: Chelsea being Chelsea, can line-up in one of many possible formations. The versatility of Chelsea with various systems is a real hallmark of this Chelsea team. It’s for this reason, you can predict Bayern’s starting eleven and the formation much easier than that of Chelsea.

The formations possible are (a) 4-3-3 (b) 4-3-2-1 and (c) 4-3-1-2. While not in possession, 4-3-3 will be a 4-5-1 that will try to constrain Bayern’s dangerous wide men. But this would need very hardworking wide midfielders. With Ramires and Meireles not in, Essien being so out of form, we are already short of midfielders that can play in a champions league final. Knowing how dangerous Robben and Ribery are, we can’t expect our full backs to attack too much. Without their active involvement, 4-3-3 is not going to help much.

Even 4-3-2-1 is a long shot without Ramires and Meireles. I don’t really consider Meireles so important. He’s been too inconsistent and has been a hit and miss. On the contrary, Romeu has had better games for us despite the recent forgettable games. But when it comes to playing a champions league final, I’d rate Meireles’ presence over Romeu’s. I won’t pick 4-3-2-1 as we don’t have 5 midfielders that can start for us in a champions league final.

4-3-1-2 is my pick. First reason is we have the players for this system. Two world class strikers with our player of the season behind them works just fine. Remember, even Bayern is missing their first choice backline. Playing two strikers upfront, that too a Drogba and a Torres, is going to keep them on their toes or even force some mistakes from them. Moreover, this is a formation that should help us with our opportunistic instincts.

Goalkeeper: If there’s one untouchable in the Chelsea squad, that’s Petr Cech. You can’t say that about anyone else. He’s brilliant under RDM and he’s someone I wouldn’t want to swap for any keeper in the world. He’s the first name on our team sheet in Munich.

Defence: Who we choose to play in defence will determine the outcome of the game. In the absence of John Terry, Gary Cahill, David Luiz and Ivanovic – it’s an understatement to say our defence is depleted. Cahill and Luiz are still in the race to make a surprise return to the finals and we hear that both could be available for the final. They both have started training and the players, physios, managers and everyone else concerned is ready to take a risk and start both of them.

If those two are playing, the selection is fairly straightforward. Ashley Cole on the left, David Luiz and Gray Cahill in the centre and Bosingwa on the right. There’s a temptation to swap the positions of Luiz and Bosingwa but I wouldn’t. Credit to Bosingwa for his centre back performances against Barca but that was a special case. He hasn’t now become a centre back. Also I tend to think Luiz is a much better bet to deal with Gomez than Bos.

Midfield: We need a mature midfield that’s not overrun by the super-attacking Bayern midfield. Mikel should start. He is our best defensive midfielder bar none. We need Mikel in the eleven and he should have a great game for us to have one. Lampard too should start. He’s been particularly brilliant in the champions league games and we need him to unleash the Drog or slip in a clever pass for Torres.

I’d expect Malouda to start. He’s not the most popular choice due to his recent performances. But he adds a lot of strength and muscle to our midfield. If he’s on assist-mode, he’s a very useful player to have in our midfield. I hear that FloMo could be a doubt and that might mean a place for Essien. I’ve been the biggest fan and critic of Essien. He has been deteriorating since Carlo’s second season. Of course the injury has taken a toll on his body but he started losing form even before that.

I’m a bit skeptical about Essien. He’s gone and made a 180° turn. Now he’s our lightest midfielder. It’s easy to take the ball off him. It’s easy to push him off. Not able to withstand even the regulation shoulder barge and body check. If he can play at 75% of what he used to play, I’d start him happily. If RDM doesn’t want to play Essien, he can pull Mata back to midfield and play an additional attacker in Kalou. See, I don’t want to see Sturridge ok the pitch. He wants to be a hero even in a meaningless match. There’s no way we should start him.

Forward: On the attack, it’s gotta be Drogba, Torres and Mata. It’s been sometime since Drogba and Torres played together. Also they aren’t considered to be a successful partnership. I’m keen to play both primarily because Bayern will play a much depleted defence in the final.

Most probably. I think RDM will play 4-3-3 with Torres on the left and Mata on the right, with Drogba in the middle. I think this game will be decided based on which team takes advantage of the second choice defensive line-ups on both sides. The formation and the line-up we choose should test the Bayern defence. Plus this is the mother of all away games. We should approach this game like a high profile away game. We should e patient and take our chances when they present themselves, which they will.

So I see two possibilities, depending on where Mata would play. If he’s playing forward, it would be: Cech in goal, Cole, Cahill, Luiz, Bosingwa in defence, Lampard, Mikel, Essien in midfield, Mata, Torres and Drogba playing forward. If Mata is playing in midfield, it would be: Cech in goal, Cole, Cahill, Luiz, Bosingwa in defence, Lampard, Mikel, Mata in midfield, Kalou, Torres and Drogba playing forward.

Whoever RDM chooses, we need 11 warriors on the pitch, who should want to put a win in front of any damn thing.

We always say that history counts for nothing in a 90 minute match but you can’t deny that stats fRom the past is always interesting. It shows how big a task you have and after you achieve it shows how big an achievement it was.

By ChelseaVsBayernMunich.com

Nevertheless, this is the last home game of the season. No matter how much RDM says that we want to finish on a high, you can expect him to field a lot of youngsters and protect his final prospects. They do need much deserved rest and preparation for the final. Bayern Munich, on the other hand, are playing in the DFB Pokal final against newly crowned Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund. That’s a very important game where Bayern can’t afford to rest their players. RDM will take advantage of this and allow that extra bit of rest and preparation for his players ahead of the champions league final.

You can expect to see a lot of youngsters play in this game. By the way, our youth team has won the FA Cup too. In fact, our youth team has been fairly successful in the recent times. Despite that, it needs a dead, pointless match for some youngsters to play. So now even if they were to produce a good or a bad performance, you can’t really conclude on them. In a season as long as we’ve had, given how aged our players are, you’d expect to see a lot of youngsters chipping in over the period of a season. But this season has never allowed us to do that. We had turned every game into a final and just couldn’t afford take some very necessary risks.

Earlier this week, the Chelsea end of season awards were announced. Juan Mata was the Chelsea player of the season. Totally deserved. I think he’s been the single biggest influence in the Chelsea results this season. He had scored or assisted nearly half of the goals we had scored this season. I was expecting him to have a better european season than a premier league season. I think it turned out to be the opposite for him.

Ramires and Ivanovic were the other close contenders. To be fair, it had to be Mata, Ramires and Ivanovic – in that order. Ramires did get the players’ player of the year which is a big compliment for him from his colleagues in Chelsea. Also Ramires bagged the Chelsea goal of the year for the second time in succession. After winning it last season for that beautiful goal against Man City, this season, his lovely chip over Vicotr Valdes has rightfully been chosen as the goal of the year. In the context of our european adventure this season, you can say that was the most important goal of the season too.

Isn’t it strange that the top three players shortlisted for the awards of the club that won the FA Cup and are in the champions league final, are not even in the shortlist for the PFA team of the year?

Lucas Piazon won the young player of the season award. Juan Mata, in his interview later,
had mentioned that the 18-year old Brazilian will break into the first team next season. That will one exciting moment. I’ve had several false promises at Chelsea – Di Santo, Sinclair, Sahar, Kakuta, Matic, McEachran, Lukaku and the list goes on. Young players look like they have made the break through and then slowly fade and disappear – mostly not their fault.

Probably they have not faded away. Probably they are our future. Despite the fact that we are buying players in their similar positions from the transfer market, I’d continue to believe that they are our future and some time soon, we would see a Chelsea team whose attack is led by Lukaku and Piazon and supported by Kevin de Bruyne and Marko Marin with the creative engine from Mata and McEachran with midfield generals in Ramires and Mikel ably supported by the defence that contains Bertrand and Chalobah and to find Courtois in goal. I know this doesn’t add up to eleven but you get the point.

Though ours is a meaningless game, the premier league is still live and vibrant even on the last day. I really hope that Man City bottle it and Man Utd win it. I don’t like either of them to win it but I don’t want a new entrant to the elite club of premier league champions. Just as people hated to see the emergence of Chelsea as a key challenger and champion, I hate to see Man City winning the league. But if they win it, it would be thoroughly deserved anyway. Man City have been the best team in the premier league this season. There’s no tie here. They had left Man Utd behind long back. Man City are a cut above the rest and they look to get stronger and stronger. For premier league football, it’s a great thing. For a long time, we were talking about premier league being a two-horse race (it still is, some might argue) but if Chelsea get their act together and Tottenham manages to get champions league football, the next season could be the best ever in premier league.

The third relegation place could belong to Bolton or QPR. I want QPR to give a hard game to Man City (I know it’s at Etihad) and nick a point off them which will move them to safety and hand the title to Man Utd, I think.

The battle for the champions league spot is not over yet. Everyone’s vying for the third spot, thanks to Chelsea. No one’s going to celebrate or feel relieved after getting the fourth spot, thanks to Chelsea. I’m hoping that Newcastle do make it to the champions league. They’ve had a great season and it will be shame for them to miss out having come this close. If Arsenal finishing fifth will be such a remarkable end to this season. It’s a must-win game for Arsenal. I’d love to see the live tables as we watch the games tomorrow. News will be travelling to the stands, thanks to twitter and stuff. It’s going to be a great finish to the season. I only hope that all these places are decided only in the last 5 mins of the games. I’m not wishing heartattacks for the fans of those clubs but that’s what I’d ask for as a neutral.

Meanwhile, Roberto di Matteo has travelled to Germany to watch Bayern Munich take on Borussia Dortmund in their DFB Pokal final. Confirms our expectations on the final home game. Honestly, all that we need to do is to show up against a relegated side who played with no belief and passion even when they were fighting to stay up. So just show up, play youngsters, notch a good win, say thanks and good bye to the home fans, start focusing on the champions league final. That’s all there is.

Don’t forget! Exactly at the 11th minute of the Chelsea vs Blackburn game , Chelsea fans all over the world and particularly the ones there at Stamford Bridge will pay tribute to the Chelsea Didier Drogba as this could probably his last game at Stamford Bridge. How can we pay tribute? Stand up, applaud, sing a song, chant, tweet or just go mad. KTBFFH!