It took Chelsea a replay before they managed to move past Spurs in the 6th round of the FA Cup and into the semi final. Both games were outstanding adverts for the FA Cup and as the old cliché goes, neither side deserved to lose.
Now Chelsea faces a Premiership side in consecutive rounds and this time it is at a neutral venue, Old Trafford. The opposition is a side that has won the trophy more times than the Pensioners although the last Blackburn Rovers win was back to 1928. Seventy-nine years is quite the barren stretch but the real glory days for the Rovers go back even further to the latter part of the 19th century.
In the eight seasons from 1884 to 1891 Blackburn Rovers won the FA Cup five times including three consecutive victories in the first three of these years. (Another Blackburn club the Olympic, won the Cup in 1883 and became the first team from outside of London to do so.)
The first two FA Cup wins by Blackburn Rovers were both against Scottish amateur side Queen’s Park. In 1884 the team from Glasgow came a cropper due to the application of a different offside rule. In Scotland only two attackers had to be between the attacker and the goal, while in England it was three. Queen’s Park had two goals disallowed and lost 2-1. The next season Queen’s Park lost 2-0 and a year later Rovers completed a straight hat trick of wins (the last team to do so) by beating West Bromwich Albion 2-0 in a replay after a scoreless draw.
In 1928, in only the sixth final played at Wembley, Huddersfield Town was shocked 3-1. Huddersfield Town finished as double runners-up that season as a Dixie Dean (59 goals) inspired Everton beat them to the League title. Since then the only other appearance for Blackburn Rovers in an FA Cup Final was in 1960 when Wolverhampton Wanderers won 3-0. The final was not considered memorable and when discussed it is usually the career ending injury to Rovers’ Dave Whelan that is remembered. Whelan after failing to cover finally took an insurance settlement, parlayed it into a fortune, and now owns Wigan Athletic.
A semi-final loss to Arsenal in 2005 is the furthest Blackburn had reached since 1960 and now they – along with Watford – they have a chance to upset what seems to most fans dream final of Chelsea against Manchester United. The road to what might be a first FA Cup Final in 47 years, started with an emphatic 4-1 away against Everton. In the 5th round it was another four goals scored away from home and this time Luton Town were the victims.
Round 5 brought a hard-earned scoreless draw against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium followed by an 87th minute winner that flew off the boot of substitute Benni McCarthy to take the replay. Manchester City fell in the last round this time by a score of 2-0. So after playing four rounds and five games Blackburn has still only conceded one goal – scored by Everton’s Andy Johnson. The line-up of officials for Sunday’s game at Old Trafford is as follows; Referee – Alan Wiley, Assistant Referees – Cann and Ward, Fourth Official – Mark Clattenburg.
Here is a link to the latest news from the official FA Cup website and FA Cup payments that the clubs will receive.
Past Featured Games Extra Preliminary Round Jarrow Roofing Boldon C.A. 5-2 Billingham Synthonia. Preliminary Round Jarrow Roofing Boldon C.A 5-4 Thackley F.C First Qualifying Round Fleetwood Town 3-0 Jarrow Roofing Boldon C.A. Second Qualifying Round Fleetwood Town 4-2 Goole AFC Third Qualifying Round Fleetwood Town 2-0 Warrington Town Fourth Qualifying Round Fleetwood Town 2-0 Wisbech Town First Round Salisbury City 3-0 Fleetwood Town Second Round Salisbury City 1-1 Nottingham Forest Second Round Replay Nottingham Forest 2-0 Salisbury City Third Round Nottingham Forest 2-0 Charlton Fourth Round Chelsea 3-0 Nottingham Forest Fifth Round Chelsea 4-0 Norwich City Sixth Round Chelsea 3-3 Tottenham Hotspur Sixth Round Replay Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Chelsea
After this weeks Champoins league achievements you'd expect there to be a danger of a crashing against Watford or Blackburn this weekend.
This morning, Steven Cohen had Neil Barnett phoning in to his World Soccer Daily radio program. In case you didn't know, Neil is the front man/inside man for Chelsea TV and long time writer and walking Chelsea encyclopedia. Even for non Chelsea fans some of the stuff they do on the show can be pretty hilarious. Steven asked Neil "what was the spirit on the plane on the way back from Spain, were there wild celebrations?" Neil said no. He gave the impression that the team were already starting to focus on the next game. It shows you how determined these guys are. I guess we'll see what that translates to on the pitch at the weekend. Chelsea actually get 4 days clear break. Lets hope that Blackburn and Watford play their cannon fodder roles as intended and don't get inspired enough to spoil the dream final.
Last edited by LosAngelesChelseaFan on April 12th at 1:28 AM.
Man U and Chelsea should win this weekend. By the way do they have replays in the Fa semis or does it just go to extra time and penalties?
As for the C.L. who is up for a rematch of the 05 final The Liver vs. The Mighty Milan?
I'm looking foward to the Milan Vs. Man U. Two of the best in the world right now face off in Ronaldo & Kaka. Also Rio and Nesta, And finally Pirlo and Scholes. Who do you think is better between this three? Anyone can answer. My choice all 3 milan players are better,P.s been an Arsenal fun I'm definetly biased.
The Liver Vs. Billioner Chelski will probably be a remake of the movie "GRINDHOUSE" only this time it will be so boring it will put us to sleep.
Milan will give Man U all they'll want. Surely, the way to attack the Italians' superannuated back four with more of that fast-paced one-touch football that caved in AS Roma. But as a Man U supporter, I worry that the second leg is in Milan, where English clubs usually go to die. A 3-1 win from the first leg seems like the least the Red Devils will need ... And do NOT write off the Scousers v. Chelsea. Not after the 2-0 win in the League and the Charity Shield. Benitez is a canny, canny gaffer, and Crouch et al. will score. (Chelsea hasn't kept a clean in the CL since the group stage--and they were shut out in Bremen.) I'm thinking that anything less than a 2-0 win at the Bridge will doom Mourinho to another CL exit. ... It's the possible FA Cup Final between ManU & Chelsea that will be the snoozer. United have obvious problems at the back (Rio, Wes, Johnny O), but Chelsea doesn't seem to have the width to exploit it. They aren't scoring much these days. Of course, Drogba could find his form again. Come to think of it, he probably will. So give the Special One two of the four trophies he's been playing for and put him on a plane to Madrid ...
Can I take Ronaldo, Kaka and Nesta and forget about both Pirlo and Scholes? Most of you know I can't stand for Ronaldo's diving, but he is a unique talent? I just read about a proposed Real bid of 54 million for Ronaldo. That still wouldn't be enough for me if I'm Sir Alex (gasp at the thought!!!). He is simply irreplaceable at this point.
Other points:
-G44, there are no replays for FA Cup semi-finals
-I'm really pulling for at least one upset in the FA Cup this weekend, because as Bobby has mentioned, two "big" teams in the final is usually a borefest
-I suck at predictions. I really wanted Milan to lose, because they shouldn't have gotten to play in the competition in the first place and I (for some reason) really like Bastian Schweinsteiger.
-As RINGO predicted, the Liv-PSV game was boring, but two things I took in. That was Sissoko's best performance for Liv to date; the best he has passed the ball, made a slick move on the dribble and could have scored had my favorite player not toe poked the ball away from his path. Second, kudos to the Anfield crowd for singing and making noise throughout despite the anti-climactic nature of the game. Even my sports-challenged fiancee noticed the noise level ("Doesn't the singing bother the players?")
-And I will not argue on the obvious validity of Luis Garcia's goal in the lead-up to the tie. It's easy, it crossed the line. I'm sure Chelsea fans are happy he's not available for this game, but I'm happy Essien is suspended for leg 1.
Ronaldo and Kaka are a wash, I do not know who is better, Kaka is the more elegant player. I love Scholesy but Pirlo is a much better player. Nesta is obviously much better than Rio. I will be surprised if ManU go through. I am happy of course for the living legend that is the great Maldini, but more so for my favorite Italian player the bulldog Gattuso, think if Totti had his attitude. I hear SAF is a big fan of his also.
-I too hope Arsenal don't get taken over by another american they are the last big English club. I am telling you in a couple years we gonna have budweiser commercials during injuries and free kicks; split screens for Geico commercials and breaks for corners and substitutions. What a nightmare then I'll have to start watching cricket.
I am surprised any of you are giving Milan a chance against Man Utd. They are in such great form, and even though the Roma match was a bit of a fluke, they still looked quite intimidating. Milan looked like their old selves against Bayern - not appear to do anything much out of the ordinary, yet come up with a massive result. Kaka and Pirlo were well contained, Gattuso had a quiet game, but Nesta showed he is starting to find his form and Seedorf had another very good outing. Man Utd are definately overwhelming favorites to progress given their form this season, but Milan have fond memories of their last couple of visits to Old Trafford, and would love the opportunity to set the record straight against Liverpool in the final.
Gattuso said it best after the Bayern match: "Everyone had us marked us as already dead, but here we are. We are champions of the world, us Italians. We know what it means to have heart and character (on the field!) and that is exactly what Milan demonstrated tonight."
Last edited by Venti_vidi_vici on April 12th at 3:52 PM.
I've been a bit busy these past few days-- so, unfortunately, I couldn't provide some pre-UEFA Cup thoughts! Still, it was a great night for Spanish clubs: Sevilla, Osasuna, and Espanyol.
Draw for UEFA Cup semifinal:
Espanyol v Werder Bremen
Osasuna v Sevilla
Former Man Utd defender, Paul Parker, writes a weekly blog on eurosport.com which is very insightful and objective; however not nearly as good as Bobby's. Check it out at http://paulparker.blogs.eurosport.c om/
Today he argues that the EPL is not the best league in Europe, mainly because it is relatively shallow in terms of quality teams, and is behind Spain and Italy technically, although it is nonetheless very entertaining. He also points to the fact that EPL teams are made up mainly of foreign players. The three EPL teams started with a combined 10 local players in the UCL this week, Milan alone had seven. Obviously I happen to agree.
Last edited by Venti_vidi_vici on April 12th at 4:56 PM.
The Spanish La Liga is probably the best league in Europe because there are so many quality teams who can challenge for the title. In fact six different Spanish team have featured in the latter stages of European competitions over the past twelve months alone and that doesn't even include Real Madrid. Next year it looks like there could again be a couple of new faces from La Liga. Serie A is definately having an off season overall, but it has a lot to do with the shameful scandal and the extended hangover from the World Cup. The EPL teams are undoubtedly having a great run in the UCL, and Man Utd are probably favorites even though they are yet to face a top team in the competition.
Morning,Bobby
according to Sky Sports Football Yearbook,Dundee`s nickname is The Dee(or dark blues),but looking elsewhere,I`m not sure that`s true.
I also see they once reached the European cup semi-finals, what happened?
RINGO - RINGO - You do know how to hook me don't you? The nicknames are right although over the last few years "The Bankrupts" might have been more fitting. I have written a blog about Dundee's European Cup campaign of 1962/63.
Last edited by BobbyMcMahon on April 13th at 6:59 AM.
I concur with Paul Parker's assessment of the EPL being technically and tactically of less quality than La Liga or Serie A. I have said many times on this blog that the EPL has grown in stature as a result of the influx of cash, "foreign" players and coaches. Sorry Bobby, I guess Sir Alex is a foreigner.
His tactical dismantling of Roma was superb.
It all comes down to what type of football you enjoy. For an English speaking audience the EPL is wildly entertaining and the pace of most matches is just maniacal.
However you can't take away the fact that 3 EPL sides are in the CL semis even though they are stocked with mostly foreign players, foreign owners and gaffers. It sure says a lot about how football now is truly even more of a "world" game.
Even Baseball and Basketball are not even solely American sports anymore. Witness all the fantastic non Americans in both leagues.
I was really impressed with AC M against BM.
Nesta was superb. As far as picking Pirlo or Scholes? It's a tough one as IMHO Pirlo is one of the best all around middies to grace world football in the last 3-4 years. He is hugely underrated and a magician in midfield with terrific passing, dead ball accuracy and he's a superb defender. Scholes is a proven bonafide talent but what always concerns me is his penchant for taking stupid, stupid penalties that hurt his side.
I think Manu will be heavily favored against AC M and that maybe Chelsea can sneak through against the Pool, it's a tossup.
Regardless they are potentially 2 magnificent semis and I can't wait.
I am the soccer analyst for the Fox Soccer Report and appear twice a week - every Monday and Friday at 10:00 EST. I have also been a regular contributor to the Fox Soccer Channel website since the summer of 2004. Over the last twenty years I have contributed to various radio and television programs throughout North America as well writing about the game for newspapers, magazines and websites.
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