(cropped via)

It's fair to say that unless the bomb of mandy your mate mischievously dropped in your pint is triggering some sort of nostalgia based trip, you don't usually expect to glance at the decks in a Dalston night club to see a legendary 1980s former Scottish international footballer dropping rewinds on indie classics.

It was just the other day someone forwarded me a Facebook event page for a clubnight called Scared to Dance at The Moustache Bar in East London, with the headliner quite clearly stated as DJ Pat Nevin. In an era of Chet Faker's, Com Truise's and Joy Orbison's, I was pretty sure it was an unsubtle gag by some absolute joker. I had horrible flashbacks to remembering King Krule’s brief stint as DJ JD Sports and an unnamed VICE staffer doing the rounds as DJ Lee Dixon. Gripped by terror, it only took a few clicks to discover that no, it was the real Pat Nevin - the 51 year old former Chelsea and Everton player, sometime Match of the Day pundit, and BBC correspondent - and this was by no means his first set.

I got in touch with Pat as he was prepping for a Newsnight interview and a feature on The One Show but he kindly agreed to find time for me, obliging with the level of charm and chat you'd associate with the Glaswegian uncle you only get to see on Boxing Day. 

It turns out that Pat Nevin is basically the original “hipster footballer”, and this is what he told me.

Noisey: Pat, I’ve watched you on Match of the Day, I’ve listened to you on 5 Live, and my dad used to wax lyrical about you playing for Chelsea and being an absolute wizard. Since when were you also a hyped East London indie DJ?

Pat: Oh, I’ve been DJing for years and years. Forever really. I come from Glasgow, and before I left it was a hotbed of music. The whole Postcard Records thing was blowing up, and things were really happening. I had been listening to John Peel since I was 14, every night lying on my bed with headphones on. I was just a muso, that’s all I was. Eventually I started DJing. Even when I was playing football for Chelsea I was doing it. Although, when you are playing football you can’t be spinning tunes until 3am in the morning, because you have to take care of yourself a wee bit. I’m asked loads now, and can only accept about 1 in 5 of the offers I get.

Where the hell do you find the time?

That’s the daft thing. I’m probably going to be on Newsnight tonight, and tomorrow morning I’m building a piece for The One Show, then on the weekend I’m doing a speech in London. So I need to then change my clothes, get into something that doesn’t look bad in a night club, and then DJ in Dalston until 3. Then the next day I’ll be commentating on the Capital One Cup Final, so if I sound rough, you’ll know why. It is totally and utterly mental. None of it fits together. I’m knackered.

Have you always managed to keep your indie selectah and football life separate? I can’t imagine Frank Lampard getting much peace if he was seen spinning “Blue Monday” on the 1s and 2s at The Moustache Bar on a Saturday night.

It was totally different back when I was a footballer. It was all about how you decided to live. Okay, so I was Chelsea player, but I could walk down the street. If you were doing normal things, like going to gigs and going to the movies, living a normal quiet life, then people kind of notice you but not bother you. Whereas if you are a bit flashy, you are going to get hassled. It would be much harder for the lads now to have a normal life. I feel a bit sorry for them.

Pat drops a cheeky indie rock reference during a football interview.

I’m sure I read that you became good mates with John Peel back then?

Yeah, funnily enough it was probably the only time I used my “name” to meet somebody. I had a music column in the Chelsea club newspaper, and I wrote to John and asked for an interview. I said my team Chelsea are playing your team Liverpool in a couple of weeks so I would need to meet you before then. We became great mates. I used to sit in on his show quite a bit, making production notes. 

You were a production assistant on John Peel’s show whilst playing for Chelsea?

Aye, but they never really mentioned that I was hanging about. You’d think people would comment on there being a famous footballer there but nobody knew, and that was the way I liked it.

Is it true you once asked to be taken off early during a football match so that you could go to a Joy Division gig that night?

Yes, but wasn’t Joy Division, it was Cocteau Twins. I was pre-season at Chelsea and I said, I will sign your contract if you take me off at half time next Friday night because they’re playing Festival Hall. I was quite adamant, and the manager agreed to it. “You’re off your head, but fine.” We weren’t flashy back then, but we did train near Heathrow so sometimes I would hit a gig on a weeknight - get a last minute ticket and fly off somewhere. So it might be a gig in France, Berlin, Scotland. I would stay in a crap hotel, fly back the next day for training. Nobody was any the wiser.

Our mother website VICE did a piece about hipster footballers last year. It concluded that Daniel Sturridge was the closest to being one, but essentially there aren’t many. You, on the other hand, once had a spread in the NME and were kinda considered a post-punk 80s icon for footy crowds. Do you know many others like that?

They are around, definitely. Back then, we thought we were the normal ones and that the rest of them were weird. In my day there was Barry Horne, who was captain of Wales and captained Everton. He had an absolutely flawless knowledge of indie-pop. A group of us were like that. Not many I grant you. Yeah, a lot of the players would be playing George Michael in the changing room, but I’d be playing The Fall.

How do you keep up to date with your tunes these days? Magazines? Radio? Noisey.com?

Spotify and friends mostly. I found about two dozen new tracks today actually, because I do analysis for BBC Scotland, and one of the technicians up there is a big music fan. So we sit there making these complicated looking football graphics while talking about the best Dum Dum Girls track to play out in the clubs.

Brilliant. Go on then Pat, what’s your big indie bangers to drop on a Saturday night in Dalston?

I like this band Tuff Love, who have a good track called “Slammer”. Honeyblood are great. Have you come across Ex Hex? They’ve got a great tune called “Don’t Wanna Lose”. And there are two tracks on the new Belle and Sebastian album, that are really brilliant. Most often though, I will turn up on a Saturday night and have no idea what I am going to play. But I put a lot of stuff on, and after that I will look to see what kind of angle is going down well. The best nights are when you put a load of stuff on and you look out and see, okay, they are just going for it.

Amazing! Finally, how do you deal with requests?

I always ask for requests. I usually have a bit of paper and a pen so that people can ask me. Doesn’t mean I’m going to play them! Quite often, when I get the paper back at the end of the night, I will go away and look up all the stuff I didn’t have. That’s a good trick.

You sneaky bar steward. Thanks for chatting, and keep doing everything.

You can follow Joe on Twitter.

Pat Nevin DJs Scared To Dance at The Moustache Bar in Dalston this Saturday (Feb 28th). Find them on Facebook here

Edited February 27, 201511 yr by bazzablue

Watching Black and Blue, Pat Nevin was way ahead of his time and an absolutely decent man.

As someone who loves this club, it's a matter of personal pride to have him associated with this club. Just a decent, articulate man. 

Pat Nevin: Twists, turns and tweaks

Chelsea legend Pat Nevin, fresh from describing the weekend game on radio, adds to his thoughts on the win and an important former player in this week’s column…

Sunday afternoon, nine minutes in and all was well with the world. Two-nil up and a lovely sunny spring day in Hull. Those two goals had been glorious strikes and the temptation must have been to utter the unutterable phrase, ‘Nothing can go wrong now.’

Fortunately for me working high up in the stand for the BBC, I didn’t say anything like that. In fact what I said at the time sounded fairly controversial. I said that I thought Hull were playing really well even if they were trailing and this game, the way it was being played, could still be very close indeed.

Boy was that an understatement. As half-time approached, every Chelsea-minded individual in the ground and most watching on TV were praying for the referee’s whistle. The Chelsea defence we have lauded week after week had a, how can we put it delicately, difficult 30 minutes and that wasn’t just the goals conceded. Certainly the raw pace and considerable power of Hull going forward was an ever-growing headache. Was it time to bite the bullet and call for Kurt Zouma’s pace at the back?

Jose didn’t blink, but decided on a little tweak here and there to ensure we kept a hold of the ball better after the break. It meant that there was no longer constant pressure on our back line and something like normal service was soon restored.

Cesc had a chance, Diego Costa too but Loic Remy had an immediate and crucial impact when he came on, although it had also taken an earlier triple save by Thibaut Courtois to ensure we had all three points in the bag as we left the North East.

There are so many people who have said the league is over that there is a temptation to be lulled into a false sense of security. This game underlined that it would be naïve and silly for us to fall for that sort of line.

Few Chelsea fans, it must be said, have been quite so openly bullish because we know the Premier League is so unpredictable and so difficult as I have said before. It isn’t like La Liga where even though the standard is fantastic, there are a good number of games that are little more than a stroll in the park if you are Barcelona or Real Madrid.

Barcelona alone have had an 8-1, two 6-0s, a 6-1, four 5-0s, two 5-1s and four 4-0s this season. Now part or even most of that is because they are very, very good, but their league doesn’t have the level of tension and tightness in as many games as the Premier League does. This league has few if any certainties and when you consider last season Liverpool looked to have it sewn up only to blow it in the last few games of the run-in, you know there are plenty of twists and turns to go yet.

One thing that should be certain is that Liverpool once more have begun to fade near the end of the campaign. The loss to Man United, Gerrard’s incredible sending off and the certainty that Skrtel must get a three-match ban will draw the line under their massive outside chance of posing a late title threat. Diego Costa got three games for an alleged stamp. If anything Skrtel’s was much worse so surely he must get a ban, even if the extraordinary media witch hunt against Diego, particularly on Sky, is unlikely to be repeated on the Reds’ centre-back.

Man United, on the other hand, have sneaked right up on their neighbours City and on Arsenal, who not unexpectedly continued their fine domestic run by beating Newcastle away from home. I actually popped over to Monaco (like it is the sort of thing I do every week) for Arsenal’s second-leg Champions League game. Like ourselves they went out on away goals but they were by some distance the better side, so expect them to chase us all the way home as well.

There was a huge reaction to the Paul Canoville TV documentary aired this week. I haven’t watched it yet but once again I am sure it showed just how pivotal a position my old mate Canners has at our club.

He is and was a trailblazer and remains a lover of our club. He was never broken by those who tried to besmirch our good name and did more than anyone to progress us towards the multicultural, multinational inclusive football club that we are. Clearly you can never fully take your eye off this particular ball, but it is right and proper to understand that we are a club that promotes the right virtues, no matter what a small sad number of hangers-on try to do against us.

Others may have played more games, scored more goals, made more goals and put more crosses in, but no one had a greater cross to bear. He did with elegance and dignity and to this day I am proud to call him my friend and an inspiration.

Pat Nevin and Paul Canoville

Last week in the competition I asked which player in Chelsea’s history scored the most league goals in his first full season at the club.

There were plenty of good guesses with George Hilsdon and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink getting a few votes along with Jimmy Greaves, Didier Drogba, Diego Costa and Nicolas Anelka. The correct answer was however a bit trickier, way back in 1910/11 it was Bob Whittingham who scored 30 league goals, with Kerry Dixon nearly getting there by notching 28 in his first season 1983/84 (I might just have made one or two of those myself).

Well done to the few who got that very tricky one right, but there can only be one winner and this week the randomly chosen lucky person is Felix Offei from Accra in Ghana. Well done, only 12 got it right this week.

This week, to have a chance of winning a Capital One Cup final DVD signed by one of the team, could you tell me who has scored the most goals for Chelsea against Stoke City in the Premier League era? For clarity that includes cup goals! Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

Good luck with that and keep the faith for next week’s nail-biter against Stoke, I don’t expect any games to be easy from here on in and they always provide a stiff test.

Pat Nevin: Thriving on pressure

Clever football when the heat is on is among the topics discussed by Chelsea legend Pat Nevin in this week’s column…

As I write this column, the numbers are pretty stark and very simple. Chelsea need to garner at least 16 points from the 24 we still have to play for to be absolutely sure of winning the title.

It sounds pretty straightforward when you put it like that, but it is rarely that simple and just considering we have Liverpool, Man United and Arsenal still to play shows how easy it could be to leak a few of those precious points along the road.

On Saturday against Stoke a couple of things really helped and oddly one was that Charlie Adam wonder goal. Whether or not my countryman should still have been on the park is open to question after his elbow on Cesc Fabregas. Actually it isn’t open to question for me, he should have been red carded as I believe this was no accident, just have a look at his incredibly similar action towards Andre Schurrle earlier in the season. Doing it once might be unlucky, twice and it is not coincidence.

Nonetheless it was a fabulous goal from a very talented player, which managed to get him a few headlines. So afterwards there was that strike plus Chelsea ‘struggling’ to win and the injury to Diego Costa all vying for those headlines, when the match for me revolved around one player more than any other.

Eden Hazard was at world-class level in the game almost from start to finish. On that sort of form he really does look unstoppable. Now it has to be said that for fairly obvious reasons I am slightly biased in favour of tricky, dribbling wingers who ply their trade at Stamford Bridge but if you can’t see just how pivotal, skilful, brave, intelligent and basically brilliant he was on the day then you probably just don’t get football.

There were only two players booked for challenges on Eden on Saturday (that is 36 and counting for the season) but there was little or nothing to be done by Stoke other than mass as many bodies around him and hope for the best. However there is even less can be done by the defenders when he is standing on the penalty spot and by the way, we should never take for granted the ability and nerve needed to take the type of spot kick he takes, and yet again he scored. It was a clever penalty but the intelligence involved in his setting up the second goal was supreme.

Eden could probably have scored himself; I reckon the odds were about 75 per cent that he would have beaten Begovic as he bore down on him. But even though he was travelling at speed he knew that by drawing the keeper and the defender towards him it would allow him to slip the ball to Loic Remy and the chances of scoring from that position were nearer to 99 per cent. This was not a fluke. This was calculated and done so with vision, at speed and under pressure.

The calmness was perfection too. If anyone watched the Arsenal v Liverpool game earlier in the same day it would have jumped out at them just how similar the situation was to that which confronted Liverpool’s Lazar Markovic as he tried to roll in Raheem Sterling for an early goal. He couldn’t do it because he was too hyped up at the crucial moment. The best players calm down and indeed sometimes slow down when the pressure is at its peak. The head is up (just as it is when Eden takes a penalty) and they are totally aware of their surroundings.

So while Charlie Adam had many people cooing over his moment of ‘genius’, it was the plethora of genius moments from Eden Hazard that entertained me more and got me thinking about what his importance will be over the next eight games.

With Diego Costa picking up a hamstring injury you don’t know at what point this season he will be back at peak form. Many have called for Remy to get more opportunities, well they will get their wish now, and I suspect he will not let anyone down. Even so it seems to me that it is still Eden we will be looking to more than most to create the goals. Of course we are not totally reliant on our Belgian star but we also know he could do a lot to lead us to the title. If he plays to the same level as he did against Stoke, all the way to the end of the season, then I am convinced he can deliver us those precious 16 points we are looking for as long as we give him support and more importantly, plenty of the ball in the final third of the pitch.

This might seem like I am putting a lot of pressure on one young man’s shoulders, but in actual fact he is exactly the type who will react positively to that pressure. When I played in the same position at Chelsea, aged 20, our manager, the late and wonderful John Neal would often say this at the end of the team talk just before we walked out, ‘And if you give it to Pat, we will win.’ That would be a huge amount of pressure to some people, but I absolutely thrived on it. In fact it made me a better player. I believed in myself anyway, but if others say that basically you are the man, that everyone is relying on you, then it bolsters that belief even more. Eden definitely has the same mind set. Don’t worry about the pressure, pile it on, he will be fine.

Eden Hazard

Others will do their bit of course and if we do make it over the line in first place, the team will celebrate as one along with the fans. This is however not going to be easy or straightforward with Arsenal, Man Utd and Man City on our tails, but as ever I intend to enjoy every second, even if it feels like torture for many fans. Like I said, some of us enjoy the pressure.

Last week as part of the quiz, I asked for the names of players you would like to see the club acquire in the close season, with Messi and Ronaldo removed from the voting and it was certainly an interesting study for me. The last time I set this question a few years back there was a great response and you thought we should acquire a young up-and-coming central defender called Gary Cahill. So what will happen this time? Who knows, but here is a list of the top 10, in reverse order, of the players you would like to see at the Bridge. There were a lot who mentioned our youngsters and loan players as well it must be said!

Sami Khedira, Paulo Dybala, Raheem Sterling, Nathaniel Clyne, Harry Kane, Marco Reus, Koke, Gareth Bale, Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane.

So young centre-back Varane was the favourite which is interesting when you consider Cahill was your favourite last time. We will wait and see exactly what the club will do with great interest.

The winner of the prize this time randomly drawn from all the entries was Alexander Enrico.

To win this week’s prize of a DVD of the Capital One Cup final signed by one of the players, could you tell me smallest (in height) player ever to win Chelsea player of the year? Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

Good luck with that and keep supporting the team, this is when it is really needed!

The Guardian's Barry Glendenning having a wee chat with Wee Pat

 

http://www.theguardian.com/football/video/2015/apr/16/pat-nevin-career-video-interview

 

Interesting and enlightening interview that touches on the total joy that football can be.

 

My all time favourite Chelsea player, not just a class winger that sent a buzz round Stamford Bridge when he had the ball at his feet, he is also the man that stood up for Paul Canoville.

 

I wouldn't still be a Chelsea FC supporter if it wasn't for Wee Pat - I was questioning my support of Chels back then, some of the crap going down then was making me nauseous.

 

A jinking five foot six genius stood up to the boneheads - Wee Pat, what a man. 

Pat Nevin: Jobs well done

There is only one place to start for Chelsea legend Pat Nevin as he writes this week’s column, and that is back at Stamford Bridge on Saturday when a team from Old Trafford left empty-handed…

Saturday evening and Jose Mourinho placed a conundrum in front of Louis van Gaal which no doubt the Dutchman quickly understood. The problem was that try as he might, he and his players just couldn’t find a solution. It isn’t the first time Kurt Zouma has been positioned in the deep midfield to curtail an opposition threat. Every Chelsea fan will remember the job he did on Christian Eriksen in the Capital One Cup final back at the start of March. Stop him playing and stop him supplying Harry Kane and you stop Spurs. Hey presto, the silverware is back at Stamford Bridge.

Another big game and another big call for Kurt, could he do a very different job in roughly the same area, this time against Marouane Fellaini? The Belgian is magnificent at bullying other players, out-jumping, out-chesting and basically out-muscling opponents. Recently he has been pivotal to Man United’s progress but on this occasion he more than met his match. Few can match Fellaini in the air. It may be the case that no one in world football can out-leap Kurt Zouma. In the end he dominated Fellaini who remained at best peripheral throughout.

He wasn’t the only important player that had to be neutralised. Few know better than Chelsea folk just how dangerous Juan Mata can be when given half-a-yard of space, so a job had to be done there with our former favourite. I doubt if anyone has ever given Juan such close harassment during a game of football than his countryman Cesar Azpilicueta did. Of course we know that Dave gets tight, but this was invading Juan’s personal body space to an almost impolite level. Juan left to warm, affectionate applause but his effect on the game was almost negligible.

Of course the rest of the team had to do their jobs and stick to their tactics fairly rigidly and of course they did. United did have lots of possession but I must say I didn’t feel particularly stressed about it, it was rarely dangerous ball they had in front of our defensive lines. After we scored I didn’t think they had a snowball’s chance in the Sahara of getting the two goals they needed. It was again another strategic masterclass and we don’t care a jot whether or not the only respect given from outside is grudging. These are the games that are to be won, with the attacking skilful creativity used when needed.

Which of course brings us to Eden. The other week on this page I said with good team defending, it was likely that Eden Hazard will be the man who wins the league for us if we make it to the top of the pile at the end of the season. His influence has become so pronounced it is basically accepted wisdom now that he is the one opponents have to stop above all others. Remember other managers know this and they still can’t seem to do anything about him. Fouling, doubling up, sometimes trebling up on him, trying to stop service getting to him or trying to get his marker to push him up the other end of the pitch making him defend. They quite simply have tried every trick in the book and none are having the desired effect so far.

22766441

You have to sit back and sometimes just enjoy watching a brilliant player performing at the very top of his ability. Sure there will be ups and downs as his career continues and I still think he will improve, but right now it is a special time. He seems to be carrying no injuries and is playing with such a youthful, joyful lack of inhibition that I would say there are only two other players in world football clearly entertaining on that sort of level.

Messi is fabulous but even Ronaldo for all his greatness seems less joyful, more professionally honed than our star. Maybe it makes the Portuguese a better all-round player, but this professionalism and drive has taken away some of the off-the-cuff genius moments, replacing them with the tried and tested. The Portuguese is a wonderful player, but I love the totally instinctive brilliance that only youth and its joyous naiveté can bring. Long may Eden stay injury-free, young at heart and also playing for a team that allows him to do exactly what he wants as soon as he has the ball at his feet!

Before the Man United game, I felt a draw against both them and Arsenal would be perfectly acceptable considering the league table but we already have three points in the bag instead of two. Now like the rest of us I am getting a little greedy. The management and the players will hold the party line saying they do not care how and where the points come, as long as we get over the line in the end. I agree but wouldn’t it be rather fine to go to the Emirates and all but kill off Arsenal’s title hopes at their place.

The celebrations after the QPR game were exceptional on the field by the players. On Saturday the celebrations were fabulous around Stamford Bridge from the fans as the game drew to its inevitable winning close. I suspect any result, be it a win or a draw against Arsenal will usher utter delirium up the blue end in their stadium. Now that is one game I suspect every Chelsea fan around the planet would love to be at and I am no different. Even on the TV or radio I suspect it will still be a great occasion, I simply can’t wait.

Last week the quiz question was, ‘Who was the tallest player ever to win the Chelsea Player of the Year award?’ The ‘possibles’ included Micky Droy, Peter Osgood, JT, Ken Monkou, Ruud Gullit and Didier Drogba but most correctly suggested that Peter Cech at 6ft 5in was and is the tallest man to win the award. There can of course only be one randomly chosen winner and this week it is Madeniet Erkegul from Mongolia.

This time to have a chance of winning a DVD of the Capital One Cup win, signed by Cech, could you tell me which player in the Premier League era has scored most goals for Chelsea against our old rivals Arsenal? Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

So I emailed Pat Nevin yesterday with the answer to the question and I also said

"Love your article! Been a Chelsea fan since the mid 90s so unfortunately have only seen you play in highlights and such on Chelsea TV. I would also like to ask, do you no longer work on Match of the Day and such? I know I've seen you on there a few times but not for a long while. Anyway... "

He only replied to me a mere day later

"I don't think I am considered to be of the requisite standard for MOTD, try as I might I will never reach the heights of Robbie etc"

What a bloody legend!

A hero amongst men

So I emailed Pat Nevin yesterday with the answer to the question and I also said

"Love your article! Been a Chelsea fan since the mid 90s so unfortunately have only seen you play in highlights and such on Chelsea TV. I would also like to ask, do you no longer work on Match of the Day and such? I know I've seen you on there a few times but not for a long while. Anyway... "

He only replied to me a mere day later

"I don't think I am considered to be of the requisite standard for MOTD, try as I might I will never reach the heights of Robbie etc"

What a bloody legend!

 

Wee Pat's on Radio 5 Live quite a bit. He was co-commentating on the Bayern v Porto game the other night and he was out in Brazil for the World Cup last year - there was one programme near the start of the World Cup where he and Tim Vickery were involved and it was a real pleasure to hear their knowledge, insight and wit.

 

Mind you, Robbie Savage is on  Radio 5 Live quite a bit too. Alan Green and Robbie Savage commentating on a game are the real Dream Team, if you enjoy humourless blowhards blethering sh*te for the best part of two hours - cliches, ignorance and bad tempered bitching are what those two bilious clowns specialise in.

 

Nevin ran rings round many a player (including Lawrenson and Hansen) in his playing days, he would run verbal rings round some of the MOTD crowd now. Class is permanent.

http://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2015/04/pat-nevin--rightly-rewarded.html

Pat Nevin: Rightly rewarded

COLUMN 2 hours

There are plenty of reasons for Pat Nevin to be positive in this week's column, and he starts by looking back on a night which saw a number of our players recognised for their impressive displays this season...

Yet another memorable week in the history of Chelsea Football Club, and for a whole raft of reasons. As a former chairman of the Professional Footballers Association I would argue that the awards from the union are the most important individual gongs in the domestic game. To be recognised by your peers in any area is the highest acclaim, and boy were our lads recognised this time around.

If it is true that Chelsea are not the most popular club with some, it is then even more remarkable that six of the 11 players voted into the Team of the Season play for us. Actually, I think most footballers just vote for who they think are the best players no matter who they play for, and it would be bordering on laughable if the likes of JT, Nemanja Matic and Diego Costa were not chosen.

With Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic also getting the nod as the best in their positions it was left for the biggest certainty of the year to take centre stage. Eden Hazard was rightly named as the best footballer in England this season, anything else would have felt ridiculous, and he becomes only the second Chelsea player in history to receive this prestigious honour. I have talked so often about our star this season, I think we will just leave it at…yes, I think he is quite good too!

That was Sunday night but on Sunday afternoon he was once more upstaged by the Chelsea defence who had their customary shut-out against Arsenal at the Emirates. After the final whistle there was the usual defenders’ union celebration, headed by the captain leader legend. During the game I was collating the plays for my Chelsea TV analysis and I do not think I have ever written the two same letters so many times throughout a game. Every other minute it was JT did this or JT did that. He was omnipresent, so much so that I wondered if I was just focusing on him too much and missing everything else. It was of course JT who was the only other player to have previously won the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award, 10 years ago!

It was with a sense of relief I listened to Jose’s comments about John after the game, ‘One of his best, if not his best ever, game in a Chelsea shirt in my experience!’ It is extraordinary praise and certainly a good argument. I do wonder what JT thinks is his best ever game in blue? A few come to mind and they usually involve a clean sheet but also maybe the odd important goal scored as well. Having said that, give JT the choice between scoring a goal or orchestrating a clean sheet and I really think he would go for the latter. When he is on the pitch it is all about the team, the unit, the greater good and less about the self, and that is how it should be.

PA-22839230_terry

It was in the end another giant step towards the title, especially as it meant four points out of six against our challengers over the past couple of weeks, more than I dared hope for before the Man United game if I am truly honest. The most notable change in the media has been slightly more acceptance of the true ‘art’ in the defending that Chelsea have been serving up.

As a creative type myself, I always admired those who were top notch at stopping me, and that is what I look for when I look at defenders. These are men who love doing it and who know the business; our entire defence does with no exceptions, when usually most teams are lucky to have one or two of the very best back there. Three of the four defenders in the PFA Team of the Year were ours, Cesar Azpilicueta didn’t get in, but that was not because of his defensive capabilities but because Ryan Bertrand’s attacking qualities caught a few eyes. To me Dave is the better defender, so he can count himself unlucky not to get the nod, but well done Ryan nonetheless.

Even Thibaut Courtois missed out by default in my eyes. De Gea was superb for Manchester United but he had so many more opportunities to impress. While he was diving about saving his defenders' skins, poor old Thibaut had to make do with plucking a plethora of high crosses effortlessly out of the air most of the time. He made great saves when needed, but it just wasn’t nearly as often as the United man. So he can blame his team-mates for not making the PFA team, they were too good in front of him!

So while the first team progressed serenely towards the title and their peers acknowledged it, the kids have been making their own bid for glory. A first leg 3-1 win against Man City in the FA Youth Cup was followed in the second leg at the Bridge with a 2-1 win. There can be no doubt that theirs has been a season to remember as well. Every lad has made a fine contribution to a memorable campaign and well done to the large number of fans that turned up to celebrate.

There is a confidence coursing through the club at the moment, in the first team it was most noticeable in the control of the games against United and particularly Arsenal. Remember they were the form sides when we faced them but the organisation and spirit coupled with an increasing belief in the ability to stop all comers has been a joy to behold.

And so we look forward to tomorrow, having gone over land and sea, it is now Leicester, once again a team on the crest of an impressive wave of good form. The squad is depleted up front and it is an away fixture but you feel that somehow with the right strategy we can do it again. What might help is if the referee sees fit to give Chelsea a penalty if it is deserved. The three shouts against Arsenal were all penalties for me, but the ‘Toni Schumacher’ tackle by Ospina on Oscar was the most blatant and indeed ridiculous missed by the whistler and his team.

It is beyond my understanding why it wasn’t given as the keeper wiped out our makeshift striker without getting a touch on the ball. We have been denied a few important ones this season but that one beat the lot. There have been plenty of obstacles in the way, but time and again the team has cleared them gracefully. Oddly enough, I do not see that as boring.

Last week’s quiz asked which Chelsea player of the Premier league era had scored the most goals against Arsenal. In a huge response almost every single entry was correct, mainly due to the fact that before Sunday it was hard to remember a game against the Gunners that Didier Drogba didn’t score in. As ever, there can only be one winner from the pile and this week the randomly chosen lucky chap is Andrew Foday from Indianapolis, USA.

To have a chance of winning a Capital One Cup final DVD signed by Willian this time, could you tell me when was the last time Chelsea actually got a penalty against Arsenal? Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

Good luck with that and to the lads wrapping it all up as soon as possible, starting with three points against battling Leicester. Anyone fancy a 1-0?

- Subject to Fan Club Plus registration, you can watch Pat Nevin analyse Sunday's game against Arsenal below in Chelsea TV's The Weekend Review.

Pat Nevin: Silver service

Chelsea legend Pat Nevin was at the Bridge on Sunday, describing on the radio the team’s smooth passage to becoming champions, and he is far from ready to stop discussing it yet…

Another day, another game, another clean sheet, another win, another Hazard goal, another three points and another title.

For Jose, another country and another success in management using another set of tactics from one part of the season to the next. Before the game another Player of the Year award for Eden Hazard following another game-winning moment.

For Chelsea as a club it is another piece of silverware, to add to the Capital One Cup and of course the UEFA Youth League trophy and the FA Youth Cup. What is most important is that it might be the start of another dynasty, and this time it could well be a lengthy one with the same man at the helm.

The old guard haven’t all gone and there will be an evolution rather than a revolution over the summertime I suspect. Why would you change everything when you have just won the league? It strikes me we are in a good place right now, not the finished article but not a huge distance away from it nonetheless. Liverpool, Man United and Man City will feel they are some considerable distance behind in their respective rebuilds. Right now, I suspect Jose Mourinho will already be considering the idea of starting next season fast, to develop a lead early on as others finish their transition periods.

That is what it is like to run a football club, while we think blithely of guards of honour at the weekend, of trophy lifts and parades in the park to celebrate the title of English Champions, the club are planning well ahead. The moment of triumph for some is only a moment. It was however a great moment and so fitting as Chelsea strangled the life out of Crystal Palace and with it, the title race on Sunday.

Wasn’t it great to see Didier Drogba lasting the entire 93 minutes as a lone striker and celebrating like a 17-year-old at the end. Wasn’t it a pleasure to watch Cesc Fabregas sink to the ground at the final whistle, and lie there eyes-closed in the middle of a bouncing stadium, contemplating the moment for which he has waited so long.

fabregas_palace_h-22902558

Of course it was no shock to see the defence come together as a unit at the end. For them the perfect denouement, a clean sheet, one goal conceded in many hours giving us a fantastic run-in at the end of the season. The title served on a plate and I hesitate to write this, but served with what looked like some ease at the end.

What I would like more than anything else right now is a good break for the likes of Fabregas, Diego Costa and Oscar. For all that they each had super seasons, I think there is even more to come from each of them, when they have had an entire summer off, when the niggles, injuries and weariness finally have a chance to be banished after years of solid playing through seasons and international tournaments.

I also suspect Jose and his team will be doing everything in their power to be a real threat in the Champions League in the coming seasons. This will not be an easy task with the current semi-finalists in that tournament looking as strong as they have for years. Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Barcelona will be the targets to aim at, just as they have been for a few years now. It would be great to see Chelsea flying the flag for British football once more in the latter stages of the continent’s premier club tournament.

Today I am actually in Turin to cover the Juventus v Real Madrid first leg and there is a small twinge of jealousy there. To be fair we didn’t have a big enough squad to do it on all fronts this season at this level, that takes time to build. There is however one man I think is capable of building that over the next few years.

While we wait for that, we must enjoy the feeling of being champions of the Premier League, it still is one of the toughest competitions to win in the game. Importantly, players like Oscar, Eden Hazard, Thibaut Courtois and Cesar Azpilicueta know they are now the real deal - winners at the top level who can push on to even dizzier heights. They coped with the pressure brilliantly and so did we. All those tight, single-goal wins after Christmas have given us a bit of relief, the last few games can now be enjoyed instead of worried about. Thanks for that and thanks for a great season. The lads did a great job, let’s hope we can do it again next season, I for one wouldn’t bet against it.

Last week’s quiz question was meant to be a trick, but very few of you fell for it. Do I get the feeling some of you are beginning to read me? I wanted to know when was the last time Chelsea actually won a penalty v Arsenal after the three that we were denied last week. It was of course very recently, back in October 2014! Well done all who spotted that, but there can only be one winner and this week it is Vadim Gutul from Chisinau, in Moldova.

This week to have a chance of being the lucky winner of a Premier League goals DVD, signed by Eden Hazard, could you tell me which player for any Chelsea football club team was last to score a winning goal against Manchester City? Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

http://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2015/05/pat-nevin--silver-service.html

Pat Nevin: The leading men

A couple of experienced and influential performers and someone a whole lot newer are the main subjects written about by Pat Nevin in this week’s column…

Liverpool turned up at the Bridge on Sunday with something specific to play for while the Blues had pride, honesty and a fantastic home record to protect.

To be brutally honest, the team played below their best but it was enough to get a point and keep intact that hugely impressive unbeaten run at the Bridge in the league this season. Against the top teams Chelsea have been like a machine, giving precious little away to our closest rivals, and at a push that includes Liverpool.

It was an odd encounter and to be honest the Reds are a long way off right now from being considered serious challengers, but Steven Gerrard is without a doubt a class act. We have enjoyed winding him up but there was a really special moment at the Bridge at the weekend. After giving him stick, after funny songs at his expense, when he walked off the field as he was substituted, Chelsea fans stood to a man and a woman to applaud the Liverpool legend. It was one of my favourite moments of the entire season.

The only word I can use about the Chelsea fans reaction was ‘classy’. Yes, we will have a go at a great player playing for our opponents but in the end the respect shown in that moment was absolutely brilliant. I was proud of every Chelsea fan at Stamford Bridge right there. He could have been one of us and I suspect he would have made us even better. His less-than-fulsome praise of Chelsea fans after the game might have had a lot to do with some stick on social media from Liverpool fans as he applauded our fans for their reaction to his departure. In the USA he will get that respect.

Commentating on the BBC for the game I was, as I say, proud of our fans, the game in England and the understanding that despite all, for a moment sportsmanship can transcend tribalism. It is a rare thing for an opponent who has never played for your team to be so lauded. The last time I was at a game when a similar thing happened was Athletic Bilbao v Manchester United. The home side were winning but the fans still all stood to give Ryan Giggs an ovation as he left the pitch, in honour of his time in the game and his ability. I’ll be honest I never expected to see it again in our game.

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Sunday’s match itself was different in comparison with recent Chelsea outings. Much more open and a little less pressured, it was a loose sort of occasion compared to the strict, ultra-technical games against the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Crystal Palace. In the midst of it all there were some outstanding moments with JT once more leading the way with his goal and with another flawless display. In actual fact I am beginning to suspect he is cheating nature and actually getting younger by the month, with no moment missed in the league this season and scarcely a tackle missed in that time either. There is the record for top-scoring defender in Premier League history to be added, which does not include the penalties most of his rivals have on their stats.

Cesc also played some of his best passes of the season on the day, which considering he was up against Gerrard who was a man on a mission, that was not bad at all. Willian again looked very sharp going forward but most Chelsea fans were looking most intently at Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

His 60 minutes were bordering on flawless. He didn’t give ball away once, he was strong, tackled exceptionally and basically stopped Coutinho, Liverpool’s most dangerous player this season, creating. Most importantly he looked comfortable and unfazed by the pressure of the situation.

Looking at next season he is very likely to be a player who will be used pretty regularly which is a great addition following the breakthrough of Kurt Zouma earlier this term. It also gives a great lift to the others in the youth set up, it means that the final giant leap is possible. For all the trophies garnered over the last few years by our youngsters, these first team appearances are the most important moments for all the lads striving to make it at Chelsea.

Having said that, the Under-21 League finish is so exciting this season that I for one am completely addicted to the coverage on Chelsea TV. Last night’s game at Sunderland however was a set back with a narrow defeat. Let’s hope they, like the first team, can still get over the line to make it a fabulous season for the entire club.

Last week there were a huge number of entries for my quiz and of course it wasn’t as easy as it first looked. Who was the last Chelsea player at ANY LEVEL to score the winner against Man City? Many said Branislav and some even plumped for Fernando Torres, but a few smelt a rat and realised that Tammy Abrahams had scored the winner in the FA Youth Cup game the week before against Man City’s kids.

There was however a further twist spotted by about 20 per cent of the entrants. Last Monday Ji So-Yun (the PFA Woman’s Player of the Year) scored the winner in a 1-0 win against Man City Women, sending her team through to the FA Women’s Cup final which will be played against Notts County at Wembley.

As ever there can only be one winner and this week my glamorous assistant has chosen Rish*tkumar R. Gupta from Mumbai in India.

This week to have a chance of being the winner of a Capital One Cup DVD signed by Petr Cech, could you tell me which season was John Terry’s best scoring season for Chelsea in all competitions? Answers as ever to me at [email protected]

Pat's analysis of the Liverpool game in Chelsea TV's Weekend Review show can be watched below, subject to Fan Club Plus membership.

http://www.chelseafc.com/news/latest-news/2015/05/pat-nevin--the-leading-men.html

Another day, another game, another clean sheet, another win, another Hazard goal, another three points and another title.

 

I only got as far as the first line before thinking "brilliant stuff"

I've entered the comp again this month, surely one day I'm gonna win it?

I got an honourable mention once when I was one of about four people to get the right answer.  No prize though.

I got an honourable mention once when I was one of about four people to get the right answer. No prize though.

Good to get a mention though

Good to get a mention though

 

Yes, I did brag!

Yes, I did brag!

I would have to

I'm still buzzing that he replied to me yet again and it's not like he takes ages to get back to you either. He got back to me today within an hour, what a great guy he is.

What was that about then?  I missed that?

Pat's a great guy.

Always love it when he's part of the coverage for a live game up here.

What was that about then? I missed that?

Well last time a I emailed him I asked him why he wasn't on MOTD2 anymore and he had a little dig at not been as good as Robbie Savage haha and today I emailed him about me been a lad from Leeds supporting Chelsea and I put his role in the latest thread I made about been a non local fan.

Pat Nevin: View from the top

COLUMN 6 hours

With the last ball kicked, Blues legend Pat Nevin reflects on the season, the last few weeks and the trophy parade which he helped present for Chelsea TV…

It is not very often you get to really relax as a top footballer. Even during the close season there is always a nagging voice in the back of your head telling you that pre-season is not that far off. It is telling you that you can’t let your body or indeed your mind go too much, as you will have to work incredibly hard to get back up to those elite levels again.

There is also the thought that next season you will probably have to be at least as good again, if not better, as other youngsters will be pressuring for your place or other players will be signed with the view to improving the squad, again eyeing up your position.

This all might seem a bit gloomy days after we have celebrated winning the title, but it struck me as I watched the players cavorting on the pitch after taking care of Sunderland that these moments are rare and they are precious, worth enjoying to the full. The group let themselves go en masse, led by Didier Drogba, with what looked like total abandon. Even Jose looked ultra-laid-back during the day and particularly after the 90 minutes were up and the season was officially over.

It has been an unusually long and welcome period of celebration, few get this opportunity and fans rarely get to see it written across the players faces. Consider even the likes of Man City, Man United, Arsenal and even Liverpool, do you think they were as carefree as the Blues as the season drew to a close? Absolutely not, they had to play it out to the end, always with the thought that next season Chelsea have to be caught, maybe even an improved Chelsea from this term. They have to concentrate right away in finding some way to overcome our lads.

There was a long period after New Year when every game was immensely tense. A whole load of single-goal victories and hard-earned draws against the likes of Arsenal. At the end of these games there were celebrations but only after the feeling of huge relief that the team had taken yet another step along that gruelling road to the title.

In retrospect, this last little period has had lots of fun times too. The final whistle after the Palace game when the eruption of blue celebrations started. Then there was the guard of honour by Liverpool players which was a moment to really savour in that it showed how far both teams had travelled, in very different directions, over the previous 12 months. Even the defeat up at West Brom became a monumental bonding session between the fans, the players and the manager.

The Sunderland game was of course the moment when JT actually got to lift the trophy at last, and everyone got the chance to say goodbye to Didier Drogba in the most inimitable style. A super display and enjoyable game in which Didier couldn’t completely upstage the other two centre forwards who were intent on bagging their goals. In a season when the defence has rightly been lauded, it was a timely reminder that Loic Remy and particularly Diego Costa have been pivotal to our success as well.

We are already all talking about who will be the third striker next season and to be honest I am fairly relaxed about it. There are quite a few strikers capable of playing up front for Chelsea who could finish some of the moves exquisitely put together by Oscar, Willian, Fabregas and Hazard. The squad looks very well balanced at the moment, but Jose Mourinho knows that the best time to add to a squad is from a position of strength and that is exactly where Chelsea are just now.

The parade yesterday was just the icing on the cake, another chance for many thousands to bask in the glory and the sunshine. Eel Brook Common was a great place to be and the players milked the moment for every second they could among the fans.

nevin_parade

Petr Cech talked, Didier became the MC as expected and those who hadn’t been on a Chelsea victory parade got to terms with the adulation mixed with copious amounts of celery. Still surely one of the best and most surreal celebratory customs in world football.

It was my first time at a victory parade, I suspect it will not be my last, I fancy another one next season and indeed every season. It will never ever get boring! Hopefully I’ll be back before the new season starts to chat Chelsea and in the meantime I hope you all enjoy the summer. It’s funny how it always seems easier to do that when Chelsea are the champions.

Last week’s quiz asked how many times Jose Mourinho has lost a home league game in his entire managerial career. There have been only seven over the past 15 years and each one has a story. Chelsea lost to Sunderland, there was one at Porto, three at Real Madrid and two in his earlier career with Uniao de Leiria. An astonishing record and hopefully it will continue. There were a few correct answers and the one chosen at random to win the last prize of the campaign was Brian Matthew Widjaja. Well done you and well done Chelsea for yet another historic season.

- The Victory Parade can be relived below with Chelsea TV's coverage of the day.

http://www.theguardian.com/football/audio/2015/jul/27/football-weekly-meets-podcast-pat-nevin

An hour of Sir Pat

"With the new season just days away, you'll have to content yourself with Barry Glendenning continuing his conversations with current and former players, managers and cult figures from the wide world of football.

In this latest episode, Barry spends an hour in the sunshine with Pat Nevin. The former Scotland winger details his journey from Clyde to Chelsea in the early 80s, his time on Merseyside with Everton and Tranmere, and his burgeoning career as a DJ.

Everyone loves Pat Nevin, and here's an hour of him. Enjoy.

You'll have seen snippets of these interviews as short videos earlier in the year. The full audio versions were originally hosted on Acast - we're now making them available on iTunes and the Guardian website."

Edited July 27, 201510 yr by Zola

Just spoke to Pat for 40 minutes on a flight from London to Edinburgh!!! The man is an absolute legend