vs   

Fulham hosts Chelsea at the Craven Cottage

A 11Blues Preview

23rd August 2009, 1600 BST

There have been a few words spoken before this game, but none more, shall I say, impactful thanAncelotti’s line calling a derby a derby and asking the players to focus and play like it is a derby. Alas, all derby’s can not be compared to the Milan one. The manager would learn over time, of course.

So, Fulham hosts us today, and we finally get a game after a gap of three days. Two games on, the season still doesn’t seem to be quite underway yet. We have come from behind in both the games to steal a win. In both the instances, the defence lacked the charisma of ‘07 and the forwards lacked efficient conversion. Thank the Russian money and Lamps loyalty that we have a great midfield, which is clicking well with the 4-4-2 Diamond formation.

Squads

FULHAM (from): Schwarzer, Zuberbuhler, Paintsil, Stoor, Kelly, Hangeland, Konchesky, Murphy, Etuhu, Gera, Riise, Nevland, Kamara, Zamora, Dempsey, Greening.

CHELSEA (from): Cech, Turnball, Hilario, Terry, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Carvalho, A Cole, Deco, Lampard, Ballack, Essien, Mikel, Malouda, Drogba, Sturridge, Anelka, Kalou.

Fan Predictions

69% of the fans here at Footbo are rooting for a Chelsea win.  I would not be that confident though, as Fulham this season is a very tough nut to crack. They usually are. Manager Roy Hodgson has put together a fighting unit reinforced by new acquisitions Damien Duff and Jonathan Greening. My prediction is 1:2 with Chelsea not dropping any points.