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Comment: Essien's Injury Another Unwanted Blow For Chelsea
Ancelotti could be without driving force in midfield for two months.
Dec 9, 2009 7:51:15 AM
Don’t tell Carlo Ancelotti that Tuesday night’s Champions League game between his Chelsea side and a determined APOEL Nicosia was entirely meaningless.
Despite having already secured qualification for the knockout stages as group winners — something that has eluded the likes of Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Juventus and AC Milan — the Italian was enraged by what he perceived as a careless attitude after the Blues ended up with a 2-2 draw.
“It was not a good evening and I spoke with my players,” Ancelotti said after the game.
“We did well in the first half, reacting well after going behind after six minutes, but the second half was totally different. We lost intensity, we lost concentration, we played too slowly and too soft.
“The second half was not good and I’m unhappy. This is the poorest we have played. It’s not important about the result. It’s important to play our best every game. Tonight was not like you want.”
Gael Kakuta’s lively performance was the exception for the Italian, who praised the young prodigy's display as the ‘one good thing’ to come from the night.
But balancing out such crumbs of comfort, undoubtedly the worst thing to come from the night was the injury sustained by Michael Essien.
The Ghanaian had already shown his importance to the team in the early part of the match by dragging the home side back onto level terms with a blistering long-range effort that beat APOEL keeper Dionisis Chiotis all ends up.
Hard fought | APOEL stuck to their task
But soon after that he pulled up with a hamstring injury, and almost immediately after Didier Drogba had arrived in the box to put the Blues ahead, the Chelsea No.5 was replaced by Frank Lampard.
Was it any coincidence that Chelsea seemed to lack real drive after Essien’s departure, particularly in the second half?
Yes, they were 2-1 ahead in a game of no real significance, but Essien is a player who never lets up and so far this season has seemed to set the tempo for those around him.
After overcoming Ancelotti's initial skepticism about his tactical fit in a diamond midfield, Essien has been a pivotal figure for the Blues all season. When he has played well, so have the rest of the team.
Even before last night, Chelsea fans were already worried about losing such an important figure to the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
The 27-year-old, who celebrated his birthday last week, revealed ahead of the game against APOEL that he did not know when his country were likely to request his services for the tournament, which begins on January 10.
"At the moment I haven't heard anything from Ghana yet,'' Essien said.
"Once I get that call, we'll have to talk to them. If I have to leave, there's nothing I can do. It's always difficult when it comes to this situation."
Best estimates suggest the Black Stars will want their squad to be assembled from the start of January, giving them maximum time to prepare for a competition they desperately want to win.
Driving force | Essien has been pivotal this season
Ancelotti knew immediately after last night that his talisman would also not be available for the visit of Everton this weekend.
“He has a problem with his leg, we have to look the next days and we will do a check tomorrow I think," the manager said.
“We hope that it is not a big problem, but he is not available for Saturday.”
After the Toffees' visit the Blues only have four more games in 2009. One can only wonder if Essien will play a part in any of them.
The midfielder has previously proven himself to be a quick healer — only last year he defied doctors’ assessments that he would miss the entire 2008-09 season after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury on international duty in September, as he made his way back to the first team by March —and such a hardy nature will have Ancelotti hopeful that he might yet be able to select Essien again this year.
But with just over three weeks until Essien is likely to head off to Angola, Blues fans must be wondering whether they will see him play for them again before February — and what that might do to the club’s suddenly worrying run of form.
Alex Dimond, Goal.com
Discuss all the latest news in the Goal.com Forums.
Despite having already secured qualification for the knockout stages as group winners — something that has eluded the likes of Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Juventus and AC Milan — the Italian was enraged by what he perceived as a careless attitude after the Blues ended up with a 2-2 draw.
“It was not a good evening and I spoke with my players,” Ancelotti said after the game.
“We did well in the first half, reacting well after going behind after six minutes, but the second half was totally different. We lost intensity, we lost concentration, we played too slowly and too soft.
“The second half was not good and I’m unhappy. This is the poorest we have played. It’s not important about the result. It’s important to play our best every game. Tonight was not like you want.”
Gael Kakuta’s lively performance was the exception for the Italian, who praised the young prodigy's display as the ‘one good thing’ to come from the night.
But balancing out such crumbs of comfort, undoubtedly the worst thing to come from the night was the injury sustained by Michael Essien.
The Ghanaian had already shown his importance to the team in the early part of the match by dragging the home side back onto level terms with a blistering long-range effort that beat APOEL keeper Dionisis Chiotis all ends up.
Hard fought | APOEL stuck to their task
But soon after that he pulled up with a hamstring injury, and almost immediately after Didier Drogba had arrived in the box to put the Blues ahead, the Chelsea No.5 was replaced by Frank Lampard.
Was it any coincidence that Chelsea seemed to lack real drive after Essien’s departure, particularly in the second half?
Yes, they were 2-1 ahead in a game of no real significance, but Essien is a player who never lets up and so far this season has seemed to set the tempo for those around him.
After overcoming Ancelotti's initial skepticism about his tactical fit in a diamond midfield, Essien has been a pivotal figure for the Blues all season. When he has played well, so have the rest of the team.
Even before last night, Chelsea fans were already worried about losing such an important figure to the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
The 27-year-old, who celebrated his birthday last week, revealed ahead of the game against APOEL that he did not know when his country were likely to request his services for the tournament, which begins on January 10.
"At the moment I haven't heard anything from Ghana yet,'' Essien said.
"Once I get that call, we'll have to talk to them. If I have to leave, there's nothing I can do. It's always difficult when it comes to this situation."
Best estimates suggest the Black Stars will want their squad to be assembled from the start of January, giving them maximum time to prepare for a competition they desperately want to win.
Driving force | Essien has been pivotal this season
Ancelotti knew immediately after last night that his talisman would also not be available for the visit of Everton this weekend.
“He has a problem with his leg, we have to look the next days and we will do a check tomorrow I think," the manager said.
“We hope that it is not a big problem, but he is not available for Saturday.”
After the Toffees' visit the Blues only have four more games in 2009. One can only wonder if Essien will play a part in any of them.
The midfielder has previously proven himself to be a quick healer — only last year he defied doctors’ assessments that he would miss the entire 2008-09 season after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury on international duty in September, as he made his way back to the first team by March —and such a hardy nature will have Ancelotti hopeful that he might yet be able to select Essien again this year.
But with just over three weeks until Essien is likely to head off to Angola, Blues fans must be wondering whether they will see him play for them again before February — and what that might do to the club’s suddenly worrying run of form.
Alex Dimond, Goal.com
Discuss all the latest news in the Goal.com Forums.
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