Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Chelsea await Wigan

Chelsea and Wigan were the two very special teams of last season. And here is why this fixture is going to be really impressive this time..

First of all, lets talk about my favorite football club, Chelsea FC. Chelsea have been heroic last season. There was a decline in the rating and performance during the first few months of the season, but the Blues turned the entire world around. Sad comments from Rival fans, and frustrating results turned many Chelsea fans down. The sacking of newly appointed manager Andre Villas-Boas and rise of caretaker manager Roberto Di-Matteo, who is now the permanent manager of the team, were the two main events that impressed all of us. Chelsea did slip a lot during the Premier League campaign, but somehow maintained to be among the contenders for the Champions League position. Then came the heroics of the UCL. Roberto Di-Matteo adapted an all-defense system to beat Barcelona's, rather, unbeatable attacking system. Stopping Messi, marking Iniesta and intercepting Xavi's passes are three of the most difficult tasks a football team can do, but Chelsea kept their cool and finally scoring in additional times. The Champs League final was full of drama. Thomas Muller's goal, and then Drogba's bullet header! And the risk of hopes when Drogba commits a foul inside a box. The resulting penalty save of Robben by Petr Cech certainly proved that the tournament had Chelsea written all over it. The game went on till the penalties, and finally, Didier Drogba scores the winning spot-kick. Chelsea become the first London team to win the UEFA Champions League title. The work also gave themselves, a reserved seat in the next season's Champions League. Overall, this has been one of the best seasons for the Blues, though the start was not so impressive.
Chelsea team celebrating the Champions League victory

Wigan Athletic, the team of bottom 10 that really had an impressive last season. Now, as I was not following the entire club's campaign so well, until the way these guys survived the relegation battle, defeating Manchester United and Arsenal with a 1-goal, but still a shocking margin. Of course, a defeat from Fullham followed, but that did not make much of difference. Then came the 4-0 defeat of Newcastle United by the hands of the Lactics. Wow! This really pulled everyone's nerves on. They again defeated yet another struggling team in the relegation battle Wolverhampton Wolves. Wigan, when you see were fighting in the relegation battle, but finished a really dramatic 15th position at the end of the season.
James McCarthy of Wigan (Centre) celebrates his goal against Wolves with Mario Melchiot (Right) and Mohamed Diame(Left)


Fixture details:
Wigan Athletic vs Chelsea
18th August 2012
The DW Stadium

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