Page 8 - Chelsea
- November 10, 2015
The Chelsea football club continued their baffling 2015 2016 downfall on Saturday, losing their third Premier League fixture in a row and tumbled to 16th place on the division standings table. The Blues have been broken all season, losing seven of their 12 league matches so far and only winning three of them. However, this is the first time that Chelsea suffer three Premier League losses in a row since the start of the 2015 2016 campaign-suggesting that things are only getting worse for the reigning EPL champions.
The State of Things
Chelsea have taken 11 points from the first 12 matches of the 2015 2016 season. In comparison, Manchester City and Arsenal, the two teams currently sitting in the first and second place positions, have earned 26 points apiece from their - November 08, 2015
At only 29 years old, it seems like Radamel Falcao should still have a few more good years of football left in his senior career. But the Colombian striker has been in major decline for the past few years, culminating this season in a near-disastrous loan stint with an imploding Chelsea FC. Briefly, there were rumors swirling that Zenit St. Petersburg would seek to sign Falcao and save him from his ongoing nightmare in the English Premier League. Now, though, with Zenit officially removing Radamel from their target list, what might be next for this underutilized and underperforming soccer star?
The Zenit St. Petersburg Confusion
On October 26th, soccer news outlets started reporting that Zenit boss Andres Villas-Boas was interested in signing Falcao. Villa-Boas briefly - November 06, 2015
Guest Post By Karl Matchett
A late Willian goal gave Chelsea a much-needed 2-1 victory in the Champions League in midweek, leading some to label the goal a "Mark Robins" moment-the goal which saved the manager's job, in other words, after the infamous goal scored by the former Manchester United striker which urban legend claims saved Alex Ferguson's job, back before he became a multiple title-winner.
Jose Mourinho doesn't need such interventions to send him on to unprecedented success at his current club; the Portuguese boss won the Premier League title just six months ago yet has seen his largely unchanged squad fall short domestically and abroad this term, with Chelsea struggling for consistency at either end of the pitch and enduring disciplinary problems off it too.
- November 04, 2015
On October 24th, in a Premier League fixture against West Ham United, Chelsea FC picked up half a dozen yellow cards, while one player and two coaches-including manager Jose Mourinho-were sent off for misconduct. After the Wear-Tyne Derby between Newcastle United and Sunderland, soccer pundits roundly panned the game's referee for making a bad call that virtually decided the outcome of the match. And after a loss against Lazio in the Europa League, St. Etienne manager Bernard Caiazzo criticized the referee as a "disgrace to football," citing his "malevolence and incompetence."
Stories like this aren't particularly rare. Soccer fans have been taking out their frustrations on referees for generations now. But disrespect toward referees seems to have hit a fever pitch this season, with Chelsea's Jose Mourinho especially coming under fire for his behavior in interactions with match officials.
The question is, why is referee disrespect such a big problem? Are - November 04, 2015
There was an interesting narrative to explore on Saturday, as the further implosion of Jose Mourinho's Chelsea side corresponded with the moment where Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool squad finally seemed to come into their own. Klopp hadn't won any Premier League matches since he took over at Anfield early in October, securing draws against Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton. The German manager won his first game in charge last week, though, coaching the Reds to a 1-0 League Cup win against AFC Bournemouth. By beating Chelsea 3-1 at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, Klopp has officially notched his first Premier League win; many others are sure to follow. But Chelsea's loss to Liverpool is perhaps slightly more significant for the Blues.
Following the loss it's unclear how many matches Jose Mourinho has left at Chelsea. The Portuguese manager has had monumental success in his two stints with the Blues, coaching the football club to three Premier League titles, three League Cups, one FA Cup, and - November 02, 2015
Up until now, the 2015 2016 Football League Cup has been largely predictable. Sure, Tottenham Hotspur, last season's tournament runner-up, bowed out in the round of 32. So did West Ham United, who have been surprisingly solid in the Premier League this fall. For the most part, though, the big teams made it to the League Cup's fourth round-including heavyweights like Chelsea, Arsenal, the two Manchester Clubs, and Liverpool.
As if sensing that the League Cup was getting a bit stagnant, fate stirred up some real drama in the League Cup 2015 round of 16. A few major upsets in the round, which took place on October 27th and 28th, could drastically shift the landscape for the tournament. But who were the major winners and losers, and which football clubs should you expect to see contending for the title, come the tail end of February? Read on to find out! - October 30, 2015
What in the world happened to Eden Hazard? The downfall of the Belgian attacking midfielder has been one of the most puzzling narratives of the 2015 2016 Premier League. That's saying a lot, considering the fact that Hazard's club, Chelsea FC, have experienced a puzzling narrative of their own. With Eden Hazard out of favor at Chelsea, could a move out of the Premier League help Eden find his footing once again?
From Player of the Year to Dead Weight
Six months ago, no one in the soccer world would have been speculating about Chelsea wanting to get rid of Hazard. The Belgian star was the playmaker for the Blues during their dynamite 2014 2015 season. He played in all 38 matches of Chelsea's Premier League-winning campaign, scored 14 goals, and provided 10 assists. Diego Costa ended the season as Chelsea's leading goalscorer, but Hazard was the MVP. Unsurprisingly, he was voted the PFA Player of the Year recipient - October 26, 2015
Are West Ham United the best football club in London? In past years, the Irons have run a distant third, behind Chelsea FC and Arsenal. This fall, though, West Ham are hovering near the top of the 2015 2016 Premier League and have enjoyed victories against both of their London-based league rivals, meaning West Ham United take London bragging rights. Could we feasibly see the Irons contending for their first-ever top-flight soccer title come spring 2016?
The London Wins
West Ham's strong 2015 2016 season got started off on the perfect foot, with a 2-0 away win at Arsenal on August 8th. The Gunners had been strongly favored to win the match, given their recent successes. Indeed, in the 2014 2015 Premier League, Arsenal ran a slow and steady race to finish third-ahead of a - October 21, 2015
Slowly but surely, Chelsea FC look like they are making a comeback. After a dreadful start to the 2015 2016 season, the Blues nabbed their first Premier League win in a month on Saturday, October 17th. Chelsea near Premier League top 10 by beating Aston Villa 2-0, they jumped into 11th place on the EPL standings table-the highest ranking they've seen since week three.
It's probably still too early to make speculations about Chelsea returning to the league's top five, though. For one thing, the Blues got a big win a month ago, too, scoring a 2-0 victory against Arsenal on September 19th. The game should have heralded a return to form for Jose Mourinho's squad, but was instead just a fluke that the team followed up with a draw (2-2 with Newcastle United) and an at-home loss (1-3 against Southampton). - October 11, 2015
So far in the 2015 2016 Capital One Cup (also known as the Football League Cup), we haven't seen a ton of big surprises. The first two rounds of the tournament went more or less as expected, with all of the biggest soccer clubs (Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, etc.) making it to round three intact. However, the Capital One Cup third round matches, played on September 22nd and 23rd, brought arguably the first big development of the tournament so far the elimination of Tottenham Hotspur.
Tottenham Make an Early Exit
Tottenham Hotspur, of course, were one of the most successful soccer clubs in the Capital One Cup last year. Spurs went all the way to the finals, beating teams like Nottingham Forest, Brighton & Hove Albion, Newcastle United,
