Tuesday 30 October
Plymouth Argyle 0:5 Chelsea U21
This was really men against boys and the boys romped to a convincing victory and progress to the round of 32.
There appears to be no coverage of this match anywhere Sky didn’t even have a reporter at the ground but Charlie Brown opened the scoring, an own goal from Yann Songo’o followed and by the time Martell Taylor-Crossdale added the third the Pilgrim’s night was done.
Their defence stood off and watched as Tino Anjorin and finally, Daishawn Redan added gloss to the score.
Earlier today and Marco Ianni was slapped with a £6,000 fine and everyone was reminded of their obligations after the touchline spat between Mourinho and the Chelsea bench earlier this month.
Wednesday 31 October
Chelsea 3:2 Derby County
There was almost as much excitement watching Derby and the fantastic job Frank Lampard and Jody Morris are doing as there was satisfaction that we sneaked through.
Mason Mount really looked the finished article as he drove Derby forward relentlessly. Fikayo Tomori recovered from the early concession of an own goal to put in a commanding defensive display. Whispers about Chelsea’s next management team coming from Pride Park are perhaps a little premature but the feeling that this Derby team will be very good, if only they could stop battering own-goals past their ’keeper.
Chelsea lined up the B-side familiar from the Uefa Cup teams and took a fifth-minute lead when Tomori missed an extravagant clearance and the ball bobbled in off his standing leg. They levelled quickly as a rusty Cahill slipped and it took another Davide Zappacosta cross and another defender lashing the ball home for us to retake the lead. Mason Mount flashed a brilliant cross for their second equaliser and after Cesc Fabregas handed us the lead again before the break the signs were that the second period would be more of the same… That it wasn’t was a testimony to whatever the softly spoken Italian is for rollocking and more self-assurance from our back line.
Derby were the better side but took to long to get back into gear, even then their late chances should have earned them a draw.
As it was we drew Bournemouth at home in the next round.
Fiorentina 0:6 Chelsea
Drew Spence and Fran Kirby gave us a half-time lead and the goals were good for confidence as we also hit the woodwork three times. With goals hard to come by all season someone was to catch a pasting and it was the Artemio Franchi crowd who had to watch their lasses put to the sword.
Fran Kirby completed her hat-trick in the second period and Ramona Bachmann and Erin Cuthbert scored the other two. We ever sailed through the period after Millie Bright was dismissed (a straight red as the last defender) without incident.
Ken Shellito has died at the age of 78. Ken had a lasting impact at the club after he signed on the same day as Jimmy Greaves in 1957. He made his biggest impact on the team as an attacking full-back in the 1962/3 season when we won promotion back to the first division.
His playing career was shortened by knee injuries that kept him out of the England team in 1966. Apparently, George Cohen thanked him every time they met.
Ken turned his hand to youth team coaching and brought through Ray Wilkins and Clive Walker for Eddie McCredie’s promotion-winning side in 1977. Ken took over from Eddie that summer after the club famously snubbed their manager over a company car.
His time in charge was hampered by the complete absence of finance and he left in 1978 for Cambridge and then a life in Malaysia where he continued to coach.
His greatest memory was winning promotion in 1963 but our lasting memory of his time has to be the FA Cup match against European Champions Liverpool a game played on a rutted muddy pitch in front of a raucous Shed with goals from Clive Walker(two), Steve Finnieston, Tommy Langley. Cold and in semi-darkness (they seemed to use 60w bulbs in the floodlights back then) it was a great occasion in our most difficult period.
Friday 2 November
The league cup tie with Bournemouth will be at the Bridge on Wednesday 19 December.
Saturday 3 November
Arsenal U23 4:5 Chelsea U23
A breathtaking match littered with errors but also some smart finishes as Chelsea recovered form a goal down to go 1-3 up, only they got to halftime at 3-3 after more mistakes.
We led again a 3-4 but nearly had to settle for a draw at 4-4 before Billy Gilmour cracked in the winner for 4-5. Daishawn Redan, Tino Anjorin and Josh Grant got us to the break. Conor Gallagher and the aforementioned Gilmour scored in the second half.
Chelsea U18 2:1 Norwich City
Andy Myers’s birthday and the seventh win in a row. Jon Russell gave us the lead from the penalty spot but we let in a sloppy equaliser almost immediately. The winner was a special 35-yard screamer from Jack Wakely, his first for the U18s.
Liverpool contrived to draw at Arsenal meaning we can leapfrog them on goal difference if we win tomorrow.
Sunday 4 November
Chelsea 3:1 Crystal Palace
It was a relief to get over the line after their equaliser but this was a routine outing for Sarri’s men.
Palace has an excellent record against us in the last few years and played high and fast at the start only to concede when Alvaro Morata controlled and shot in one fluid movement from Pedro’s persistence.
They equalised with their first real attack and we had to wait for the disruptive genius from the bench that is Eden Hazard. He won the free-kick that led to Morata lashing in his second and set up the move that Pedro finished for the third.
West Ham United 0:2 Chelsea
A tough task but two Ramona Bachmann goals sealed a third win this week for the women. Earlier, Reece James scored with a curling free-kick to give Wigan the lead against Leeds but the Yorkshire men came back for a 2-1. Wigan were saying goodbye to Dave Whelan as he sold to a Hong Kong casino company. Good luck with that.
