What a game! What a result! I am floating on cloud nine right now and I do not think I will be coming back down to earth anytime soon! We have broken Chelsea’s 86 home win record and how sweet it was. I think what makes it feel even better is that we totally out played them in their own back yard which no one has been able to do for almost 4 years now. I know we should not be getting too carried away at this stage but I feel we have the makings of going on to win the title this season.
When I saw the starting lineups before the game, I was very happy with what Rafa had setup. He opted to go with Reina, Arbeloa, Aurelio, Agger, Carragher, Riera, Mascherano, Alonso, Gerrard, Kuyt and Keane. I felt very confident especially seeing the power we had coming off the bench as opposed to Chelsea’s bench which virtually had nothing on it.
The early deflected goal from Alonso was priceless. Taking the lead was always going to be important but I felt taking it so early in the game (after 10 minutes) was going to mean Chelsea were going to attack us for the remaining 80 minutes and with the way we have been conceding goals of late, I felt that we could have just let one in. But there is just something about us this season! It was the never say die attitude in the games which we have come back to win, but today it was something more than that. We went out to win as opposed to seasons gone by where Rafa would have been a bit more defensive. We had the better attacking opportunities through out the game and could easily have made it 2-0 and sealed the game. We looked good going forward and were compact when defending.
Stevie G stood out for me head and shoulders above everyone else as he put in the best display I have seen from him this season. Stevie just loves playing in that role behind the front man. He was sharper, hungrier and more determined today as compared to midweek against Atletico. All the other players did a solid job and praise goes to all the guys who made this win. Just look at how Sami came on with minutes to go but made some towering clearances. There is just a hunger in the guys this time round that we have not seen before. There is no clear answer to why this is but if you ask me, I think having Sami Lee in the dugout has helped the team a great deal.
Now that we are sitting on top of the league we have to make sure we continue with it. There will be no point if we now go and drop points against Portsmouth on Wednesday. We have to continue getting wins. We have sent out a message to all the doubters that we mean business this season. It maybe a bit too early to say we will be Champions but we are on the right path.
I need Sundays like that every week to make coming into work on a Monday morning that little bit easier. Another great battling performance at Chelsea to move us clear at the top. Although Chelsea had more possession, which is expected at home, Liverpool pretty much prevented them from doing anything with it. If you look back at the match their best chance was A.Coles sliced effort over the 90mins. Another point is the fact that the wee winging winger shouldn’t have even been on the pitch only for a weak decision by the ref.
I know Ron that Gerrard was good but Alonso in my opinion was fantastic he scored the goal, hit the post with a greast freekick and was looking for the ball at every possible opportunity. I hope he is not playing like this in order to secure a move in January but to show Rafa that he is needed at the club if they want to win the title.
We move on to Portsmouth at home on Wednesday night. We all remember what happended after we beat ManU. We pissed two points down the drain at home to Stoke. After Portsmouth at home we have games against Spurs,WBA,Bolton,Fulham and West Ham. I believe it will only be at the end of November when we can honestly say the title push is on as we need to take if possible max points against these sides which are in the lower half of the table.