Chelsea 3 // Aston Villa 3
LONDON // It really does seem as though we are witnessing the decline and fall Chelsea’s Roman Empire before our very eyes.
It had seemed as though business had been resumed as Carlo Ancelotti’s men pulled out all the stops and produced a stoic comeback, only to see their hopes dashed at the end.
Having been trailing 2-1 they stormed into a 3-2 lead in the final stages of the game only to allow Aston Villa to rise from the ashes and secure a stoppage-time equaliser though Ciaran Clark.
It was an outcome which confirmed Chelsea’s dramatic dip in form over the past six weeks is much more serious than a blip. It is decay.
And it is a decay which Roman Abramovich, the owner, does not appear committed to addressing.
When Abramovich took over the club in 2003 the Russian oligarch changed the dynamic of the Premier League with his lavish spending on transfer fees and players’ wages.
Around £750 million (Dh 4.3bn) turned Chelsea into a super power – but all of a sudden their squad is starting to look far too thin to sustain a title challenge let alone land the Champions League – the competition that first persuaded Abramovich to channel a fraction of his fortune into football.
But after sustained success – indeed just one season after Chelsea won the double – they are falling apart largely because of a failure to refresh what had become an ageing team.
If they are to recover from a situation which has seen them surrender the lead of the title race to now lie fifth then they must bring in new players from back to front during this month’s transfer window. And at least three.
Unless Ancelotti is bluffing, however, he only intends to sign one at the most – a centre half at that.
Chelsea need one of those for sure but also a dynamic midfielder, a striker or even a new winger to boost what has become a very tired looking team.
Should that not happen then it could well suggest that Abramovich no longer wants to throw his money at the club. Or maybe he just feels that all it requires is a change of manager, as was the case two years ago when Guus Hiddink took over from Phil Scolari and revitalised the team.
It had started well for Chelsea, when Frank Lampard, who has been sorely missed for most of the campaign, smashed home what was a fortuitous penalty in the 23rd minute after James Collins had felled Florent Malouda.
But a Villa side battling to stave off relegation hit back just before the break when Ashley Young scored from the spot after an under par Michael Essien had brought down Nigel Reo Coker.
Villa then took the lead when Emile Heskey, who led their line so well, scored a close range header. With Villa’s defence blocking superbly and Brad Friedel making a string of saves it appeared Chelsea had run out of gas. Didier Drogba summoned the willpower to crash home an equaliser eight minutes from the end and in the 89th minute John Terry, the captain, stormed forward and scored after Friedel could only parry a terrific header by Drogba.
But in their celebration, Chelsea lost their focus and Clark was left unmarked to nod a simple cross into the box past Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal and restore parity.
“Hopefully this can see us climb what has become a big mountain...for us this was half a win” said Gerard Houllier, the relieved Villa boss whose job is also on the line.
A devastated Ancelotti said: “The title is not over because we are improving and I think that we can say something again this season.”
But the Chelsea coach admitted “It was not a good outcome. We played so well to come back but then gave a goal away. That was not good. After scoring we lost our focus.”
Quite. And unless he proves otherwise over the next month it would seem that Chelsea are no longer quite the focal point they once was for Abramovich.
sports@thenational.ae
