Chelsea v Manchester United – Sunday Premier League

Stamford Bridge
Sunday, 8 November 2009
Kick-off: 4pm

The Premier League’s top two go head to head on Sunday at Stamford Bridge, when Manchester United hit the capital. This is the biggest match of the season so far, with Chelsea enjoying a two point advantage over their northern rivals at the top of the league. Both teams go into the important clash on the back of drawn games midweek in the Champions League. Chelsea were denied a late away victory by Atlético Madrid, while Manchester United had to fight their way back from 3-1 down against CSKA Moscow at Old Trafford. Both sides will be looking to pick themselves back up from that, and press home an advantage in the race for the Premier League.

A win for the home side will send them five points clear, the best advantage they will have had all season. Manchester United need a win to keep them in touch with the top, as Arsenal are breathing down their neck. The Gunners are just three points behind United with a game in hand. This could be a huge weekend at the top of the league, with Arsenal in clinical form and travelling to Wolves for their game on Saturday. Chelsea recently had some good news that their transfer ban has been suspended, pending a final decision on the whole case. Chelsea were cited for wrong-doing in the signing of Gael Kakuta from Lens, which led to FIFA slapping their wrist, by not being able to sign any new players until 2011. But with the suspension of the sentence, it leaves the January transfer window open for Ancelotti. Despite rumours, The Italian, who Alex Ferguson has shown some admiration and respect for ahead of Sunday’s game, has stated that they are not going to rush into the market.

Chelsea’s title ambitions in both Europe and the Premier League could all rely on what happens there. Ancelotti has stated that the transfer ban would not affect them too much, as he was happy with his squad, but there are considerations to take into effect. Chelsea will be without Drogba, Essien, Kalou and Mikel for the best part of January, because of the African Nations cup. That is the price to pay for having Africa’s elite playing for you, and the club will be wary of that, and the consequences of the fact that the ban could still stand as punishment when a final decision is made. This could still be their last chance to sign players for some time, and the Chelsea team is not exactly a young one.

It is a little surprising that Alex Ferguson never really cashed in on the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid. He has gone the Arsenal route of trying younger players such as Anderson and Nani in his place, as well as picking up Valencia and Michael Owen. But with all the wealth and status that the club has, they could attract some of the biggest names across Europe to bolster their squad. Another world class striker to partner Rooney, a world class creative midfielder, and a steadying influence at the back would make all the world of difference to the Old Trafford side, who haven’t not looked to be firing on all cylinders this season. They are trailing both Arsenal and Chelsea in the number of goals for an against, which is an unusual sight. It is hard to argue that the spend-thrift Scot Ferguson doesn’t know what he is doing, but they seem content to take on Chelsea’s stars by making the best of what they have. Not that is too shabby or anything, but perhaps they lack an edge that they had, which is why Chelsea are favourites to take the Premier League – 6/5 at Totesport.

TALE OF THE TAPE:
Managers. Well, there’s hardly anyone who can come close the amount of achievement that Alex Ferguson has under his belt. Eleven Premier League titles, five FA Cups and the Champions League twice, to name but a few. Twenty three years at the helm of the Old Trafford team, has seen the great man earn respect all across the world for his style of management. His opponent Carlo Ancelotti is no slouch either though, having won the Champions League twice with AC Milan, as well as the Serie A title. His first English silverware came at the 2009 Charity Shield. Both good men, but Ferguson wins out every time.
Manchester United win Managerial 1-0

Goalkeepers:
Chelsea keeper Petr Cech is widely regarded as being one of the best keepers in the world. Watching him keep net over the years for Chelsea, it is easy to see why. The big man makes a huge difference when he is playing, and he is the pivotal linking contributor to the amount of Chelsea’s clean sheets over the seasons he has been at the club. In the opposite net, Edwin Van der Saar still keeps on performing, but he had a bit of a howler in the midweek match against CSKA Moscow. The veteran perhaps is being more exposed this season, with United’s defence not being what it was.
Chelsea win goalkeeping 1-0

Defence:
This is where the big difference could be on the day. Chelsea clearly have the edge in this department, especially at home. The Blues defence have only conceded one home goal, where in contrast, United have let in seven. That’s a big difference in terms of easy pressure from your forwards. With England Internationals John Terry and Ashley Cole at the heart of it, the Chelsea defence has the steadying influence of Ricardo Carvalho. The poor form of Rio Ferdinand has been much publicised throughout the entire season so far. He has been suffering from a niggling injury, but he has not looked anywhere near his best. The calf injury has kept him out of recent games, and he will be missing again from the line-up at Stamford Bridge, as well as from the England team which take on Brazil in a friendly on November 14th.  United fielded John O’Shea, Evra, Johnny Evans and Wes Brown as their back four in their 2-0 win over Blackburn last weekend. The gaping holes that Moscow exposed in midweek will be cause for concern for Ferguson, especially trying to work out how to stop Didier Drogba from dominating things. Drogba is in some sparkling form and will be hard to stop, and Ferguson will no doubt still be reeling from the run-around which a half fit Fernando Torres gave his defence in the 2-0 loss to Liverpool. Torres and Drogba are probably the best two strikers in the Premier League at the moment, and United have to find a way to deal with Drogba, better than they did against Torres.
Chelsea win defence 2-0

Midfield:
Chelsea’s midfield reads like a dream shopping list of world class footballing names from across the world. Michael Essien has to be considered as one of the most accomplished midfielders in the world. His name often goes understated amongst the likes of Frank Lampard, Deco and Michael Ballack, but he is just as, if not more important than the rest of them. He has the complete game in his locker, the defensive duties, poise and time on the ball to pick off passes, as well as possessing a lethal shot. Reminiscent of Chelsea favourite Claude Makalele, the type of player who is always there, goes about his business quietly and yet is missed immensely when they aren’t there. He is the fulcrum of the midfield, which allows Lampard, Deco and Ballack to go about their creative business. With Florent Malouda and the return of Joe Cole to the ranks, Chelsea have a very strong, and world class midfield. Manchester United have always been built around a strong midfield, but it is fair to say that it is not quite as strong as it has been in past years. Ryan Giggs is still missing through injury, as is Owen Hargreaves, which may not be a bad thing. They did get the industrious Darren Fletcher back from injury recently, but in the last league fixture, Ferguson went with Anderson, Valencia, Carrick and Nani, who’s play needs a lot of work if he’s ever going to really fill fellow countryman Cristiano Ronaldo’s boots. On paper, Chelsea have all the strength in the midfield, because of the fine balance they have there.
Chelsea win midfield 2-1

Forwards:
Wayne Rooney is Wayne Rooney, and the presence of the England international was perfectly highlighted in midweek, where he came off the bench and gave one of his irrepressible performances to spark some forward life into his team. He is the edge that Manchester United need fully fit all of the time. Their back up forwards are Michael Owen and Dimitar Berbatov, which, when you look around Europe at the best teams from the leagues, probably fall along way short of class and quality. Then there is Didier Drogba, Chelsea’s Wayne Rooney. Drogba makes such a phenomenal difference to Chelsea, with his size and brute force, combined with surprising moments of footwork brilliance. He has netted on each of his last six appearances for Chelsea, and since the desperate of big Phil Scolari, Drogba has found a new lease of life. He is on a current streak of having scored 36 times in 42 games since a two month goal drought under the failed Scolari experiment at the Bridge. He backed up by Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou, neither of which are as good as Drogba, but Anelka looks sharp and creates a lot of problems of his own.
Chelsea win Forwads 2-1

Injuries:
Chelsea are only missing one name, and that is full back Jose Bosingwa, while Manchester United’s absentee list is a little longer. They will be without Rio Ferdinand, with still doubts hanging over defensive partner Nemanja Vidic, Ryan Giggs and Dimitar Berbatov. Gary Neville is also out because he is serving a suspension.

History:
United have not won at Stamford Bridge since 2002, which spans a run of eight games at Stamford Bridge which have ended in four wins for the Blues. In overall Premier League meetings, both teams have won 10 games each, with fourteen ending in drawn games. Drogba is top scorer for Chelsea with 9 league goals, while Wayne Rooney has netted himself 7 in the league.

Chelsea to win: 11/10 at Ladbrokes
Draw: 23/10  at Coral
Manchester United to win: 3/1 at Bet365

Betting Advice. Chelsea on paper should be stronger, especially being at the fortress that is Stamford Bridge. A struggling-for-form Liverpool exposed some of Manchester United’s frailties, as did CSKA Moscow in the week. With Drogba on fire, and Lampard getting back into the scoring groove, Chelsea should be able to open up a five point gap at the top of the Premier League.
Chelsea to win 2-1: 17/2 at SkyBet
Didier Drogba anytime scorer: 9/5 at Paddy Power