Upsetter

Chelsea v Hull 11/09/1905 League Division 2 This thread wouldn't be complete without mention of the first ever league fixture at Stamford Bridge, the first home win played on September 11th 2015 agains Hull. So here is a look back at the day league football arrived on the Fulham Road: ‘Played at Chelsea in fine weather. Both teams were at full strength.’ So began one matter-of-fact report of the first league match ever held at Stamford Bridge. After the furrowed turf of Stockport and the floods of Blackpool, it was at last time for competitive action at the place Chelsea could call home and this time the conditions for football and finding the net were good. Consecutive away games had heralded the new club’s emergence, the first lost by a single goal and the second won by the same margin. Now London’s newest sporting attraction welcomed Hull City to what another newspaper described as a ‘magnificent ground’. There are certainly no gripes in the writing about a poor quality of pitch, as there had been nine days earlier at Stockport County. Two days after that opening away fixture, Chelsea had hosted Liverpool in a friendly to test our new stadium, the result for the record a 4-0 win. For the real deal against a so-far unbeaten Hull, 6,000 spectators came through the freshly installed turnstiles. The 11 Chelsea players they saw run out for kick-off that Monday 11 September 1905 were the same line-up that had won at Blackpool the Saturday just before. 'They're off!' were the words on the front of the Chelsea FC Chronicle, the matchday programme of the era, although the Pensioners, wearing lighter blue shirts than the present day, were slow starters in the game. However Jacky Robertson and his team didn’t allow the visitors the upper hand for long, and the first competitive goal in front of the single grandstand and huge sweeping terrace was scored by Davie Copeland, a Scot who along with fellow forward Johnny Kirwan had been signed from Spurs where they had won the FA Cup at the turn of the century. The Humbersiders could have drawn level but Fatty Foulke was a daunting sight for any penalty-taker and their player-manager Ambrose Langley planted his spot-kick straight into our goalie’s hands, the second one Foulke had saved in three games. From that point on, Hull deteriorated in craft and spirit with one reporter highlighting their lax marking of Chelsea’s front players. The moustache-sporting Copeland made it 2-0 by half-time with a clever shot. 1905_Jimmy_Windridge Hull did become the first opposition team to score at the Bridge, the honour going to Peter Howe, but any fears of a further comeback were banished by the maiden Chelsea hat-trick. Jimmy Windridge (pictured right) would go on to score 58 goals in 152 appearances and become an England international, and the first of those three goals came in quick succession in that second-half. The final score was 5-1. ‘Now they have apparently got over their Stockport disaster, the new Southern organisation, with its galaxy of talent, will probably make rapid headway,’ noted the Manchester Courier. London football fans must have liked what they watched or read. The attendance more than trebled for the next home game, played on a Saturday and pictured below, and in the final month of the season 67,000 were inside when Manchester United came to west London. Chelsea XI William Foulke, Robert McEwan, Robert Mackie, Robert McRoberts, George Key, John Tait Robertson Jack Kirwan, Martin Moran, David Copeland, James Windridge, James Watson Goals: David Copeland (2), James Windridge (3) Attendance: 6,000 Chelsea went on to finish the season in third place, nine points behind runners up Man U, who in turn finished four points behind Division 2 champions Bristol Rovers. We were that season't joint highest goalscorers, along with Man U, who also scored ninety goals, but conceded nine fewer than ourselves. Biggest win of the season was the 7-0 against Port Vale, eclipsing that season's 6-0 victories over Barnsley and Blackpool. The rest as they say is history, a 110 years roller coaster ride veering wildly from glorious triumph to abject disaster and back again. Here's to the next 110 years.

Blackpool v Chelsea 09/09/1905 League Division 2 A week had passed between an unfortunate defeat at Stockport on the team’s debut (the days filled partly by a friendly against Liverpool to test out the new stadium at Stamford Bridge) before there was a second chance for the brand new Chelsea to claim our first two points in Division Two. The Pensioners had been handed consecutive away fixtures to start the season by the Football League and so it was back to the north-west of England the recently assembled group of players went, and whereas a shockingly bumpy pitch had been the sub-plot to the first outing, an incessant Lancashire downpour greeted the team from London for their second Saturday fixture, hosted at the seaside resort of Blackpool. historypage The team line-up that lost a week earlier had two changes made to it but it retained a strong Scotland presence. Player-manager JT Robertson (pictured right) had recruited several of his compatriots in the summer and the very first of them signed, Bob McRoberts, came in for his debut against Blackpool. A centre-forward or a centre-half, he would be an important player in the initial seasons. Again it was the behemoth William 'Fatty' Foulke in the Chelsea goal who drew much of the attention. ‘There was quite an ovation for him when he turned out,’ reported the Lancashire Daily Post in its match report, speculating that Foulke would have been an even bigger crowd-puller had the weather been fine. Instead the game at Bloomfield Road had been in some doubt but the standing water on the pitch subsided sufficiently before kick-off for the whistle to blow, although the attendance was undoubted affected with most of the 4,000 crowd sheltering under the roofed parts of the ground. Blackpool had the early attacks but were kept comfortably at bay by a defence containing two more called Bob from north of the border - Mackie and McEwan. It was Chelsea’s Jimmy Windridge who had a shot saved. Then the heaviest rain of the day began. ‘Foulke in his loneliness was a picture to remember,’ it was reported, the rain gushing off his body. Quarter-of-an-hour after the start, a single, large pool of water was across the turf. George Key, signed from Hearts and in the Chelsea midfield, was proving the player most troublesome to Blackpool as the visitors had the better of the first half, although we had cause to be grateful when three chasing Seasiders could not reach the rolling ball in time in front of goal after Foulke had dropped it. The second-half continued on in near-impossible conditions for football and for scoring goals, until 10 minutes from the end it was the Chelsea player-manager himself who won the day and made history. Robertson struck the deciding free-kick through Blackpool goalkeeper Arthur Hull’s legs. It was the new club's first goal and first winner. The home side’s one mistake had been ‘not resorting to long shooting as Chelsea did,’ lamented the local reporter at the game, with the weather and the waterlogging continuing to dominate his thoughts. Chelsea XI William Foulke, Robert Mackie, Robert McEwan, Robert McRoberts, George Key, John Tait Robertson Jack Kirwan, Martin Moran, David Copeland, James Watson. James Windridge Goalscorer: John Tait Robertson Attendance: 4,000 The people in the team photo above are: (back row, non-players left-to-right) player-manager JT Robertson, founder and director HA Mears, honorary secretary Fred Parker, trainer James Miller, trainer Harry Ransom, secretary W Lewis. (second row, l-r) Micky Byrne, Bob McRoberts, William 'Fatty' Foulke, David Copeland, Bob Mackie, Bob McEwan, James Craigie, assistant trainer Jack White. (third row, l-r) Martin Moran, Charles Donaghy, Tommy Miller, James Robertson, Francis O'Hara, Jimmy Windridge, George Key, Jack Kirwan. (front row, l-r) M Dowland, Seaton, Frank Wolfe, Dougal Watson.

Chelsea v Liverpool 04/09/1905 (Friendly) For the first match at Stamford Bridge, Liverpool were the visitors. Information on this game being somewhat difficult to come by, the following is taken from lfchistory.net: Chelsea's first home game Liverpool hold a prominent place in Chelsea's history, being the first team to play them in a match at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea's origins can be traced back to a small West London hotel in late 1904 where H. R. Mears, who had acquired the Stamford Bridge Athletic Grounds, ad the idea of forming a first-class football club to go with the athletics meetings that took place there. When Mears made his feelings public he found very little support. The ground, close to the city centre, was an already established sporting venue. The terraces were constructed using soil from the Underground Railway and covered accommodation for 5,000 was constructed. The stadium was there, but what was missing was a team. To overcome this problem John Tait Robinson was employed, and he spent £500 in producing the team to go with the ground. Robinson's most famous signing was Billy 'Fatty' Foulke who cost £50 from Sheffield United in May 1905. Billy Foulke holds a unique place in football folklore, being successful in winning two FA Cup winners medals in 1899 and 1902, a runners up medal in 1901 and he played once for England. He remained at Chelsea for just one season before moving to Bradford City in April 1907. He retired in November 1907 and passed away on 1st May 1916 after contracting pneumonia on Blackpool Sands where he was earning a living by inviting members of the public to score goals against him. He also represented Derbyshire at cricket (Information from, Chelsea: A Complete Record 1905-1991. By Scott Cheshire). Chelsea first applied to join the Southern League, yet were turned down. Next, entry to Division Two of the football League was sought where, to everyone's surprise, they got in. Their first ever match was away to Stockport County on 2nd September 1905, where they lost 1-0. Their first ever match at Stamford Bridge was in a friendly played on Monday 4th September when Liverpool were the visitors. Chelsea produced a four page programme to commemorate this event. The front cover obviously focuses on the birth of Chelsea Football Club. The style of writing used remained in Chelsea's programmes right up to the Second World War, with the use of plays on words and snappy short paragraphs. The second page contains a pen picture of that days referee, a Mr John Lewis whom Chelsea claimed, "In the whole history of Football there has been no more efficient, popular or respected referee." John Lewis was one of the founders of Blackburn Rovers for whom he played for 25 years previously. He refereed three Cup Finals and retired from officiating in March 1905, but was persuaded to return and officiate Chelsea's opening home game. The second page also contains season ticket price details, the best seats being £1's. Also listed were forthcoming fixtures at Stamford Bridge, both football and athletics, as well as an appeal for advertisers to use Chelsea's programme. The linesmen were also prominent members of the Football League being the president and future president respectively. Page three contains a photograph and profile of William Foulke, Chelsea's new captain. It tells that he stood at 6ft 3in tall and weighed 22 stone, and in their words he, as fine a specimen of manhood as ever stepped onto the field. In spite of his bulk he possesses all the agility of a cat, combined with the playfulness of a kitten. The line-ups appeared on the back page. Chelsea ran out 4-0 winners. Liverpool had played in the capital two days previously against Arsenal, losing 3-1. Their next game was at home to Blackburn, which they lost 3-1. This was followed by a 5-0 away defeat by Aston Villa. Not a great start to the season. Yet Liverpool finished the campaign as Football League Champions and were close to the double, losing in the FA Cup semi-finals to Everton. This programme sold earlier this year at auction for £3,300. A good price for such a historic issue. Chelsea XI Foulke (cap), Mackie, McKewan, Key, McRoberts, Miller, Moran, Copeland, Robertson, Windridge, Kirwan Goalscorers: McRoberts 2, Moran, Windridge Attendance: 6,000 Half time score: 0-0 Final score: Chelsea 4-0 Liverpool

Chelsea v Stoke 1918

Stockport v Chelsea 02/09/1905 League Division 2 It was 110 years ago today that Chelsea Football Club played their first fixture. Having been formed in March 1905 to grace a purpose-built Stamford Bridge which was then London’s biggest stadium, the new club was elected straight into Division Two of the Football League which at that time was predominantly northern and midlands clubs, and so it was that a squad recruited hastily and expensively during the summer by player-manager John Tait 'Jackie' Robertson boarded Friday night’s 6.05pm train from Euston Station to Manchester. On Saturday 2 September 1905, having made the short journey from their Manchester hotel to the nearby town of Stockport, the new team from the capital, including the eye-catching and well-known figure of goalkeeper William ‘Fatty’ Foulke, walked from the bus to Stockport County’s Edgeley Park. Legend has it that one young local fan warned Foulke, ‘You’ll get licked today mister.’ ‘It’ll be the first time this year then me’lad,’ was the reply from a player who had won the FA Cup twice at Sheffield United and owned an England cap. Edgeley Park was widely regarded as the worst ground in the League and was hardly an auspicious setting for the start of Chelsea’s competitive history. The pitch at the time was described as ‘an almost unbroken expanse of ripe plantation grass in full seed’. The following week’s Chelsea Chronicle, the match programme sold at the first home game, refers to an even and goalless first half. In the second half, the 6ft 4in, 22-stone Foulke was the first Chelsea goalkeeper to save a penalty. ‘His nimbleness was indeed astonishing,’ wrote the Manchester Guardian of the player’s overall performance, but the aftermath of the save was unfortunate for Foulke and his new team-mates. He threw the ball out and according to another match report: ‘It pitched on to one of the numerous lumps and deviated sharply to the right. Foulke took the only course open to him and charged from his goal, but Stockport inside-forward George Dodd reached the ball first, banging it straight at Marshall McEwan, who would have cleared it easily but for the fact that Tommy Miller was knocked into him by a County forward at the same time, and as a result the ball glanced off McEwan’s chest into the net.’ The first goal conceded by the Pensioners is recorded as Dodd’s rather than an own-goal and from that point on Chelsea had the better of the match. Jimmy Windridge hit the post twice and we were denied two penalties, the first when Martin Moran was barged over, the second when a Stockport defender handled on the line, so a Stockport club-record attendance of 7,000 watched the new club lose 1-0 away on their debut. Chelsea XI William Foulke, Robert McEwan, Robert Mackie, Thomas Miller, George Key, John Tait Robertson, Jack Kirwan Martin Moran, David Copeland, James Windridge, Charles Harris League Division 2 Attendance: 7,000

I think it's clear that we're not to be feared because for one reason and another, we're simply not playing very well. We didn't look ready for the Charity Shield, and four games into the season we look if anything, even less prepared. Hazard isn't currently having the impact he once was, What was once the meanest defence in the league now looks anything but solid. With rare exceptions, we've been unable to perform our trademark quick breakaways.In short we look to be a team in disarray. Having said that, I have no doubt (ok make that not a lot of doubt) that we'll improve as the season progresses. Having already had two players sent off hasn't helped. This isn't an excuse, but the often fine margin between success and failure means that playing two out of four matches with a man short will have an effect. Would we have gone on to beat Swansea with eleven players on the pitch? Would Courtois have done better than Begovic? Maybe, maybe not. Either way it's pure conjencture. What's true is that those two sendings off have disrupted our early season plans. Before yesterday's match, Mourinho hmself has hinted that this slow start has been deliberate. Last season we got off to a flyer but looked burnt out towards the end of the season. Maybe the club are looking at the long haul, aiming to peak later in the season, possibly with the Champions League in mind. Could it be that this season the club have made the Champions League their overwhelming priority, I wonder. If this is the case, and if the delayed preparation is in any way deliberate, then I have to say I have my doubts. While it's true that the league is a marathon not a sprint, surely it's far better to get off to a flyer, with the points already in the bag, as we did last season, as Man City are doing this season, than to start off slowly and play catch up. Slow and steady doesn't always win the race.

Yes I'm sure you could do a lot better.... In your football management game of choice.

For all those defending Marinez, this si what he has to say today: "It is no good just to think that because you have a Champions League budget you're going to click your fingers and get anything you want," said Martinez. "Clearly we don't work like that." No of course they don't. They don't have a Champions League budget, and more importantly they don't have a Champions League place. How Everton work is to metaphoricallt click their fingers at lower league clubs. Martinez is heavily critical of the transfer window encroaching beyond the start of the season, which is when Everton CHOOSE to do their business. Not forced but choose. Even with the saga effectively over, he can't resist having a go. Since we first made our interest known, Martinez has been having little digs. And no he doesn't mention us by name, but "a Champions League budget" could hardly be clearer. It's actually truer to day that Martinez can't click his fingers to prevent one of his players putting in a transfer request. What he can do, and has done, is to turn down that transfer request. Not once have we implied that we can "get anything we want". But throughout Martinez has played the victim card, ludicrously casting himself and Everton as the hero and ourselves as the villains of the piece.

You - that is Everton - haven't been attacked and condemned for holding on to your player. Martinez has been attacked and quite rightly villified for being an overbearingly sanctimonious hypocritical gobsh*te.

So what's your definition of "sound" I wonder? Mine would incude not calling a player who's just handed in a transfer request a f**king rat. Contrast this with Chelsea fans treatment of the likes of Frank Lampard, Petr Cech, Juan Mata. Unlike your neighbours across Stanley Park, we as a fanbase don't go in for shirtburning either. Makes me laiugh when scousers talk about "class" and "respect". Like the famous scouse sense of humour it's very much a one way thing. Scousers as a breed demand respect while showing very little. They love a laugh as long as it's not directed their way. Oh look, here I am generalsiing. Nasty habit that. Let's go back to hurling abuse at Martinez shall we? Martinez has taken any number of opportunities to have a sly dig, whether it be about "the way other clubs do busines" or that the "authorities" have somehow failed to take action against nasty old Chelsea for having the temerity to submit a bid during the transfer window. Martinez doesn't even "respect" our right to bid for one of his players. Similarly with this crap about "protecting" young players.. because the authorities won't. Say what? Where was the protection for Stones when Everton bought him from Barnsley? Or for Rooney when Man U came calling. These examples don't count though do, they. Because in neither case were nasty old Chelsea involved. The window is open. We make a bid. Everton tiurn it down. So we make another, higher bid. Everton turn it down. We have just as much right to submit a bid as Everton do to turn it down. That's how it works. All this garbage about "the authorities" hinting at tapping up and malpractice is delflection at best, rabble rousing at worst. And the tragedy is that Everton fans en f**king mass are apparently dense enough to fall for this crap

Wait a f**king minute. "discussed in the media on the radio on Sky at every opportunity". That's not tapping up blatant or otherwise. That's just the media endlessly speculating as the media is prone to do. Nothing to do with Chelsea FC. Tapping up means that an illegal approach was made to the player by the club. Or are you going to tell me that Chelsea and Chelsea alone are responsible not only for what Sky and TalkSport choose to discuss, but the way in which they choose to discuss it? If you're going to have a go at the media, that's fine by me. But at least get your terminology right. The media can bullsh*t till the cows come home, it still doesn't equate to tapping up, which implies that the club have acted wrongly, and that is exactly what Martinez has been implying.. There has been no illegal approach. Chelsea haven't broken any rules. The media continue to speculate and to offer opinions. Some say he should go to Chelsea, others reckon he'd be better off staying with Everton. Stil others would have you beleive that his best bet is a move to Man U. See what I'm saying? It's the media you should be annoyed at. I don't expect you to admit to being pissed off with your own manager, but if you take a step or two backwards and think about the situation, think about what he's been doing to stir things up, then you might just realise that Martinez himself is as much to blame for what he refers to as the "circus" as anyone else, maybe even more so.

All well and good, but you're missing the point. I can well understand Everton or any other club fighting tooth and nail to hang on to their prized assets. Refusing to sell, or at least making it as difficult as possible for any potential buyer, and selling for the highest possible amount, even if that amount is well over the odds, all perfectly understandable, perfectly acceptable. What I'm objecting to, purely and simply is Martinez repeatedly implying that action needs to be taken against Chelsea for daring to put in a bid on your prized asset. Really that's all we've done. And yet Martinez is outraged. Maybe it's a diversion, maybe Everton have intended to sell Stones all along, but Martinez and the Everton board are attempting to cast Chelsea as the villain of the piece (along with Stones if he does eventually leave). This is conjecture. All I know is what I hear Martinez say. If he'd restricted himself to saying that Stones is not for sale at any price, then fair enough, But when he insists on slippng in some snide remark about "the way some clubs do their business", "the authorities need to take action" and all the rest of it, then whichever way you look at it, Martinez is bang out of order. That's my point,.

Martinez tonight; "I think that the authorities need to look at what has gone on because it has become a bit of a circus." And who made it the circus that it is? The media, John Stones agent, and last but not least by any means: Roberto f**king Martinez. Throughout this entire saga he's been moaning and bitching, acting as if Chelsea as a club have no right to bid for an Everton player. He whines and he moans about the transfer window encroaching into the start of the season, while Everton continue to put their own bids on during the same period. The sanctimonious hypocrisy beggars belief. All along he's been stirring things up, acting the victim casting aspersion on the behaviour of ourselves as a club, doing his worst to imply that charges need to be brought against the club for the sheer temerity of what? Bidding for an Everton player during the transfer window. To all the Eveton fans on this site, if you want to know why some of us here are ever so slightly annoyed at Everton, then look no further than your sanctimonious f**king twat of a manager.

August 21st Sky Sports reporter asks Martinez if John Stones has handed in a transfer request. Not at all, replies Martinez. August 26th Sky Sports reporter asks Martinez if John Stones is for sale. Not at all, replies Martinez. August 27th Sky Sports reporter aks Martinez if he knows his arse from his elbow. Not at all, replies Martinez. One ouf of three ain't bad.

Mourinho on Kelvin De Bruyne "With De Bruyne, if you have a player knocking on your door and crying every day he wants to leave, you have to make a decision. At that time, Chelsea did well," Mourinho told reporters. "If De Bruyne stayed here, not happy and not motivated, and we'd sold him after a year, we'd have got less - 50 per cent less than we sold him for. So we sold him. At that moment, it was very good business. "If somebody comes and pays for him what somebody would pay for Messi or Cristiano, it looks from the eyes of the world that it's bad business from us. "But, if he was at Chelsea and not at Wolfsburg, he wouldn't have reached this level. It was like a wall, a block. He was not ready to compete. He was an upset kid, training very bad. "He always said he had trained well in his life, but he needs motivation to train well by playing every game. Andre Schurrle a bit the same." Mourinho also believes that the decision to oust De Bruyne has been vindicated by the rise of Eden Hazard, who has flourished during his three years with the Blues. "If you think it [De Bruyne's sale] is my mistake, then it's my mistake that Eden Hazard is worth more than £100 million," he added. And so far from being the one that got away, Kevin De Bruyne - during his time at Chelsea - was a whiny little bitch bleating about not getting everything all his own way, who was not putting the effort in, not willing to compete. The decision to sell was therefore clearly the right thing to do for the club and for De Bruyne. On the subject title. Do I wish him luck? As a Man City player. No of course i don't.

You keep telling yourself that. Tell you what, I've even got an avatar for you: Meanwhile, for the non-delusional rest of us:

Or maybe he's worried about his father, who had an operation for a brain haemorrhage back in May, The following was written after the Palace game, the one that clinched the title for us: The Portuguese manager has been splitting his time between England and Portugal, where his father has been in hospital. Local press reported that Jose Snr had suffered a stroke, but that was not the case. He had in fact been in hospital for surgery relating to a brain haemorrhage. Chelsea boss Mourinho flew out earlier in the week to be present for his father's operation and admitted he was glad the ordeal was over. "When the game finished at Leicester [on Wednesday] I got immediately a private plane to go to Portugal," said Mourinho. "I was there with him for the most difficult moment, which was the moment of the surgery. "Apart from that, everything is under control. He's strong. He's getting better, better, better, better. I'm much more relaxed." Mourinho's Chelsea finally secured their Premier League crown on Saturday after beating Crystal Palace. And this is from today's Telegraph: One important factor that may well be having an effect is that Mourinho’s father, Jose Snr, has been seriously ill for some time. It is not something he wants to talk about or broadcast but we do forget that people in the public eye have private lives and personal issues just like everyone else, and that they can influence behaviour, distract and affect decisions. So no excuses here, but it may just be the case that ongoing concern over his father's health may go some way to explaining why Mourinho is a little more irritable than usual, maybe even a little preoccupied with matters other than football.

Can I be the first to say:f**k the press. fuqquemall.

I wouldn't put any more faith in the Independent's football "journalists" than the hacks writing for the Sun, Star, Metro or any other rag. The video in question, described by Metro as Shock Footage, shows a narrow angle clip of Eva running onto the pitch, followed shortly by Jose displaying his anger, in the same manner we've seen him do any number of times, usually provoked by a refereeing decision with which he strongly disagrees. In the absense (as yet) of any wider angle footage, my guess is that this is exactly what happened. Eden gets hacked and the referee fails to take sufficient action for Mourinho's liking. If I'm mistaken, then so be it, but in the meantime I'm certainly not going to jump to any "Mourinho's losing it" type conclusions based on what is a clearly inconclusive bit of footage.

September 5th 1959. Nice view of the old East Stand as Chelsea keeper Reg Matthews saves at close range from Ray Pointer of Burnley. The match finished Chelsea 4-1 Burnley.

When Ancelotti signed Ramires, he reffered to him as "The future of Chelsea" At the time I thought he was taking the piss. I was never Ancelotti's greatest fan.

The biggest problem with your argument is that the round of sixteen/last sixteen stage of the Champions League is a knockout stage, and as with any cup competition, is subject to the whims of chance to a far greater extent than a league competition. On the day (or days in the case of a two legged tie) it's eleven against eleven, a poor refereering decision, a rush of blood to the head, an unlucky deflection, a cruel injury - any of these factors can have a far greater effect than in the league. I've seen similar arguments to yours so many times. "A club of our size/status/standing should be doing at least as good as [insert minimum achievement of choice] and not have to settle for [insert unacceptable level of achievement of choice]". Unfortiunately football doesn't, never has and never will work like that. Hence the romance of the FA Cup. We were on the end of one ourselves only last season, if you recall There is no disgrace to going out to lower league opposition, it's not the end of the world. These things happen, always have done, and hopefully always will. If we progress to the last eight and beyond, of this season's Champions League, then all well and good. If we don't we don't Assuming we don't win it again, if and when we go out of the competition, we'll either have been beaten by a better team on the day (or days) or we'll have been unlucky. Such is life, such is football. One question. What do you actually do about a result or a performance that you find "unacceptable"? Do you throw in the towel, do you storm off in a huff, turn your back on the team, in favour of one who's achievements consistently meet what you deem to be a level of acceptability? No of course you don't. You might well be pissed off, you could adopt a football avoidance tactic for a while, or you could come on to this site and vent your frustration. Nothing wrong with any of that. But please don't tell me that going out of any cup competition at any stage is "unacceptable".Because "unacceptable" implies that you've had enough, that you're not going to take any more, and that you're going to turn your back on the team you say you support. Truth is that failure to reach the last eight (or beyond) of the Champions League isn't "unacceptable" at all. Not even for those of you who profess it to be. Disappointing perhaps, but the reality is that failing to get beyond the last sixteen fails to meet YOUR expectations, that's all. And those of many others, no doubt. But all this "unacceptable" malarky is frankly just a bit daft.

It'll always be the same with the Charity/Community Shieild. When you win, it;s the first major trophy of the season. Lose and it's nothing more than a glorified friendly. The real business begins next week. Forgetaboutit.

The 1955 Charity Shield special from the official Chelsea site. Chelsea 3-0 Newcastle To mark our first Charity Shield appearance 60 years ago, the official Chelsea website caught up with Frank Blunstone and Peter Brabrook, two members of Ted Drake’s victorious 1955 vintage. The match between the league winners and FA Cup holders, now known as the Community Shield, dates back to 1908, but it was not until we lifted the first major trophy in our history, the First Division, that a Chelsea team would compete for the shield. In those days a coin was tossed to decide which team would have home advantage. Back in 1955, whoever did the duty for Chelsea, possibly manager Ted Drake, called it right. The one-off game against FA Cup winners Newcastle would be played at Stamford Bridge. Frank Blunstone (pictured top in 1955) was an outside left and a regular in our 1954/55 championship-winning team. He played for Chelsea for 11 years, making almost 350 appearances, and here he takes up the story of our game against the team from the North-East, who included in their ranks the great Jackie Milburn. ‘It was on a Wednesday afternoon,’ remembers Blunstone. ‘There were no floodlights in those days and the weekends were full because it was played after the season started. ‘That is why there weren’t many people there. We normally had big crowds back then, we got 74,000 against Wolves the season before. We were disappointed it was not at Wembley because you didn’t get many chances to play there in those days.’ Frank Blunstone and Peter Brabrook pictured centre talking to manager Ted Drake in 1959. On their left is Jimmy Greaves. There were 12,800 people at Stamford Bridge that afternoon and they saw 17-year-old Peter Brabrook play inside-right with Eric Parsons wider. It was not to be Brabrook’s permanent position, as he explains. ‘I started off as a midfield player, inside right, and then I got moved to the wing when Eric Parsons got injured,’ he says. ‘I was very quick and Ted Drake thought I would do well out there. It helped that I was young because it was a tough old game and being on the wing kept me away from some of the tough lads. That’s why I went out there because of my pace and trickery and that’s where I ended up playing.’ The match itself proved fairly one-sided with Chelsea impressively running out 3-0 winners, Blunstone among the scorers. An own goal and one from captain Roy Bentley completed the scoring. ‘We had a full team out,’ says Blunstone. ‘We were pleased to win it. We were on 10 to 12 quid a week so any win bonus was good. We relied on those, we would have been out to win all right, and so would have Newcastle! ‘We always did well against Newcastle in them days. And it was Roy’s former team so a bit more for him to play for. They had Jackie Milburn who was also very famous at the time. He was a cult figure at Newcastle, a good out-and-out goalscorer, good in the air and took chances. But we didn’t see him a lot because games weren’t on telly. You knew more from what you read.’ And even though the match was 60 years ago, Brabrook retains one memento from the day. ‘I have still got my shield - it’s a small version of the big one the team gets given. All the winning players got one.’ Chelsea XI Match Report Newcastle were our opponents in the 1955 FA Charity Shield following their 3-1 victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup final a few months earlier. Unlike the present day's version of the fixture, this particular game was played at Stamford Bridge as opposed to Wembley, somewhat strangely on a Wednesday afternoon, and was scheduled eight games into the season, transpiring to attract a paltry crowd of only 12,802. The game itself was billed as a battle of the two star centre-forwards on show: for the Blues, Roy Bentley, and for the Magpies, Jackie Milburn. Milburn was seen as a legend by the Newcastle supporters, and still is to this day, but by his own standards he endured a quiet afternoon, largely down to the performance of the Chelsea defence who were marshalled impressively by Ken Armstrong. Unfortunately for the visitors, however, they were unable to keep Bentley at bay and the Chelsea striker, who had previously played for Newcastle, was a constant threat throughout. Chelsea took the lead in the second half when Alf McMichael misjudged the bounce on a Frank Blunstone cross, diverting the ball past John Thompson in the Newcastle goal to put us in the ascendancy. We soon doubled our advantage following a quick counter attack, and when the ball was played out to Eric Parsons wide on the right, he crossed for Bentley to fire home. Blunstone put the seal on a memorable afternoon when he scored the goal his performance deserved in the 80th minute, ensuring we had won the FA Charity Shield for the first time. Match day programme:

Well ok, everyone's entitled to their opinion, but with respect - what a stinker. Five years? Frank Lampard was at the club for thirteen years, during which time we won three Premiership titles, the Champions League and the Europa League, along with a hatful of FA Cups, League Cups, Super Cups. And then there was the little matter of breaking Bobby Tambling's record to become the club's highest ever goalscorer. That's 211 goals from midfield. How on earth you can say we don't miss Lampard - not Frank Lampard coming towards the twilight of his career, but the Frank Lampard who played such a vital part in the club's success for over a decade - is beyond me. Frank Lampard is irreplaceable.