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Manchester City rely on Frank Lampard’s late strike to deny Chelsea Manchester City rely on Frank Lampard’s late strike to deny Chelsea
(about 4 hours later)
For a few seconds, Frank Lampard looked slightly overcome with awkwardness. He had been on the pitch only seven minutes, in his first home match for Manchester City, when the ball came to him in that position that used to be his trademark for Chelsea, back in the days when he was establishing himself as the most prolific scorer to pass through Stamford Bridge. For a few seconds Frank Lampard looked almost overcome with awkwardness. He had been on the pitch seven minutes, making his first home appearance for Manchester City, when the ball came to him in the position that used to be his trademark for Chelsea, back in the days when he was establishing himself as the most prolific scorer there has ever been at Stamford Bridge.
Lampard struck his shot cleanly, to the right of Thibaut Courtois, and what a way to introduce himself to his new crowd. Until that moment, it had been the away end serenading him. Now it was the City supporters and, incredibly, he might have gone on to win the match. This time, his shot struck his old mate, John Terry, prostrate on the turf, and Lampard was spared any more of the post-match apologies. Lampard struck his shot with the power and precision that has formed the stamp of his career, picking his spot to the right of Thibaut Courtois, and what a dramatic way to introduce himself to his new crowd, just as the match had been threatening to turn into an ordeal for the champions and Chelsea were close to extending their immaculate start to the season.
Yet City, a man down after Pablo Zabaleta’s red card, had been spared at a point when it looked like, once again, they were going to suffered at the hands of José Mourinho’s tactical expertise and come out with the same result from when these sides met here last season. Until that moment it had been the away end serenading the former England international. Now it was the City supporters loudly proclaiming his name and, remarkably, Lampard might actually have gone on to win the match. With the clock ticking down, the next chance that came his way enticed more memories of all those times when he had scored vital goals from the edge of the penalty area. This time his shot came back off his old mate, John Terry, prostrate on the turf, and Lampard was spared any more of the post-match apologies that began with his slightly contrite wave to the away fans after the final whistle.
Courtois had been even more redundant than Petr Cech was in February and Chelsea, displaying all their powers of structure and resilience, had taken the lead five minutes after Zabaleta’s second yellow card when Eden Hazard crossed for André Schürrle to slide in from the position that would usually have been occupied by City’s right-back. It was a dramatic finale out of keeping with the rest of the match and City, a man down after Pablo Zabaleta’s red card, ought to feel immense relief bearing in mind the eight-point gap that was threatening to open up between the sides. They did show great resilience but from José Mourinho’s perspective he will regard it as unusual carelessness not to have held on against 10 men.
Zabaleta is a hero in these parts, afforded a standing ovation as he went, but the cries of “one-nil to the referee” felt like a crowd looking for an excuse that was not really there. Mike Dean had an erratic and sometimes bewildering game but a player of Zabaleta’s experience, already booked for bringing down Hazard, really ought to have known better than to have a couple of nibbles from behind at Diego Costa. His first was risky enough but the second connected with the back of Costa’s calves and Chelsea’s new signing is not the kind of man who accepts those indignations easily. Costa’s reaction inflamed the situation but the bottom line is Zabaleta put his team at risk. At 1-0 it had looked for all the world as if City were going to suffer again at the hands of Mourinho’s tactical nous, with more than a sprinkling of deja vu from when the two sides met here last season. Again, it was a match of few chances, with Chelsea defending in numbers, displaying all their qualities of structure and organisation. Courtois had been just as redundant as Petr Cech in the corresponding fixture in February and it was only five minutes after Zabaleta’s sending-off that Eden Hazard put the ball across the six-yard area for the substitute André Schürrle to slide in and open the scoring at the far post.
In that respect, Mourinho will be aggrieved by the result particularly when he could also reflect on Costa striking the post just a few minutes before Lampard slashed in the equaliser. That would usually have been the position for Zabaleta to guard and he, more than anyone, owes Lampard a debt of gratitude. Zabaleta is a hero in these parts, afforded a standing ovation as he left the pitch, but the cries of “one-nil to the referee” felt like a crowd looking for an excuse that was not really there.
Mike Dean had an erratic afternoon but a player of Zabaleta’s experience, already booked for bringing down Hazard, really ought to have known better than to go in from behind on Diego Costa twice in succession. His first was risky enough but the second connected with Costa’s calf and Chelsea’s new signing is not the kind of man who accepts those indignations easily. His reaction inflamed the situation and quite possibly that was deliberate on his part. The bottom line, however, is Zabaleta put his team at risk.
As tends to happen when Mourinho comes up against Manuel Pellegrini, the game was followed by a lack of pleasantries, with Chelsea’s manager resorting to his old trick of getting an opponent’s name wrong, in this case “Mr Pellegrino”. Mourinho’s real beef, however, was almost certainly about the way his team surrendered a winning position. Costa struck the post when he had a chance to make it 2-0 after 81 minutes and by that point City had been restricted to only a couple of opportunities.
The game had been largely devoid of penalty-box drama yet it was still a captivating spectacle seeing these two heavyweights of the modern game slugging it out. It was an epic tussle, epitomised by that little cameo in the first half when Vincent Kompany and Costa went for the same ball, holding their ground like two warring old stags.
They did not give an inch before Kompany finally emerged with the ball and it was that kind of brute strength and raw determination that marked out the contest rather than the occasional moments of skill.
By half-time there had been six bookings and two of the players on yellow cards, Fernandinho and David Silva, could conceivably have been sent off. It was a contest for midfield supremacy and that might not have made it gripping in an orthodox sense but the various duels – Yaya Touré versus Nemanja Matic, Fernandinho against Willian, James Milner versus César Azpilicueta – still held the crowd’s attention. At one end John Terry and Gary Cahill created a formidable barrier for Edin Dzeko and the strangely subdued Sergio Agüero to pass. At the other end Kompany was immense and Eliaquim Mangala can be encouraged by his debut.
City had been on the verge of their first back-to-back home matches without a league goal since November 2010 when Milner turned the ball into Lampard’s path and nobody really should have been too surprised by his absence of celebration.
Man of the match Fernandinho (Manchester City)