Chelsea vs Reading (Premier League)

Chelsea (4-3-3) Cech; Ferreira, Alex, Carvalho, Bridge; Wright-Phillips (Sidwell 85), Makelele (c), Ballack; J Cole, Anelka, Malouda (Pizarro 75).Goal Ballack 31

Reading (4-4-2) Hahnemann; Murty, Cisse. Ingimarsson, Shorey, Oster (Matejovsky 80), Hunt, Harper, Convey ( Rosenior 85); Doyle, Lita.

Chelsea 1 - 0 Reading
Michael Ballack 32'/

10 Shots On Target 2
6 Shots Off Target 5
13 Fouls (Conceded) 9
10 Corners 9
1 Off-sides 0
2 Saves 7
74% Possession 26%
球場: Stamford Bridge, England
觀眾: 41,171
開賽: 19:45 UK
主裁: Mike Dean
Thu, 31st Jan 2008

Chelsea outplayed a travelling Reading side tonight, despite a modest one goal lead at the end of the game.Proving once again that we are genuine challengers in a first half that saw bursts of Blues activity all over the Reading box, the second half was more even but the advantage was preserved with relative comfort.

The Chelsea side that walked out onto the field today saw two changes from that which faced Wigan at the weekend. Paulo Ferreira came in to replace Juliano Belletti at right-back while Michael Ballack returned to midfield after missing last week's two fixtures due to a calf injury.
Reading were without Brynjar Gunnarson as the midfielder was forced to sit the game out due to a groin strain, as was Michael Duberry after the defender received an injury to his knee. Stephen Hunt started his first game for the Royals at Stamford Bridge but banned Shane Long depleted the Reading attack while Jimmy Kebe also missed the game due to a hamstring injury.

Reading were hoping for a change to their luck as they have failed to win a single away game this season, drawing only three points from a possible 33 outside of the Madejski Stadium, and have conceded more away goals than any of the 91 clubs in all four divisions, subsequently finding themselves only two points from the relegation zone.

Chelsea began the game on a cold, crisp evening with a flurry of passing, inching towards Reading's danger zone with Ballack twice worrying Hahnemann inside the ten minute mark.
Despite several glimpses of hope for Reading, including a Stephen Hunt attempt on goal while serenaded by booing, Chelsea continued to dance around the Reading back line.

Shaun Wright-Phillips burst into the box in the 23rd minute, only to be foiled by a looming Hahnemann, who gathered up the ball as the number 24 flew skyward over the Reading keeper's body.

By the half-hour mark, Chelsea's fluid passing had forced 10 Reading men behind the ball, five of those seeming to be cemented in the box. Hunt managed to deflect a Malouda shot from its target after Hahnemann failed to stop the shot.

The tension was electric enough to fuel the floodlights as every True Blue in their seat awaited the goal. It was Michael Ballack who delivered in the 32nd minute. The German midfielder had already attempted to break the deadlock on several occasions but this time there was no hope of stopping his header from a Ferreira cross, 1-0.

Five minutes later Chelsea were applying the pressure again with two corners, one almost forcing a Leroy Lita own goal. Steve Coppell's face spoke a thousand words, none, one presumes, publishable as he looked on while Chelsea launched yet another attack towards Hahnemann's goal. This time with Nicolas Anelka as the playmaker as the first-half drew to a close.

Chelsea's start to the second-half saw Joe Cole close down Hunt, stealing the ball and shooting down the right wing before releasing a shot which span across the face of goal, only inches out of the reach of a sliding Anelka.

Despite the promising start to the half, Chelsea's tightness seemed to slip slightly as the Reading defence collected loose balls and blocked several chances while Wright-Phillips and Cole both sent shots wide.

Fifteen minutes in and the Blues were on the back foot as Reading began to play some dangerous balls. Refusing to lose composure, Chelsea continuously broke up their attacks, crushing any chances of an equaliser.

The ferocity of the first-half was gone and the game was now 50/50 as both sides fell short of troubling either keeper.

As the 75th minute arrived, Malouda made way for Pizarro to take up his role in the centre while Cole moved out onto the left and Wright-Phillips moved up onto the right-wing, with Anelka leading the attack.

The change had an immediate effect as Chelsea once again began to control the game with Anelka and Pizarro teaming up well, but it was Ballack who came closest to making it two when another Ferreira cross left the German in enough space to fire a shot towards the goal, only for the ball to fly inches too high.

As 90 minutes passed, it was another three points for the Blues, our 76th unbeaten league game at the Bridge and our 57th in all competitions, which now leaves us only one game away from our all time record of 58.

A resilient Reading side managed to deprive Chelsea of the goals that seemed likely at the end of the first-half, but, the Blues will be happy to keep the gap to the top to only four points.



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United v Portsmouth

Manchester United: Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand (c), Vidic, Evra; Park, Carrick, Scholes (Anderson 63), Nani; Ronaldo (Tevez 74), Rooney (Hargreaves 74).Subs not used: Kuszczak, O’Shea.

Portsmouth: James; Johnson, Distin (Hreidarrsson 46), Campbell (c), Pamarot; Lauren (Mvuemba 46), Diarra, Davis, Kranjcar; Baros (Hughes 79), Benjani.Subs not used: Pedro Mendes, Begovic (GK).Booked: Pamarot

Final
Man Utd 2 - 0 Portsmouth

Ronaldo 10' 13'/

Match Stats
Man Utd /Portsmouth

Shots (on Goal) 27(14) /4(3)

Fouls 9 /11

Corner Kicks 5 /3

Offsides 3 /0

Time of Possession 60% /40%

Yellow Cards 0 /1

Red Cards 0 /0

Saves 2 /11

Match Information
Stadium: Old Trafford, England

Attendance: 75,415

Match Time: 20:00 UK

Referee: M Atkinson

Substitutions
O Anderson for P Scholes (62) A Mvuemba for Lauren (46)

C Tevez for W Rooney (73) H Hreidarsson for S Distin (46)

O Hargreaves for C Ronaldo (73) R Hughes for M Baros (78)

Yellow Cards Noe Pamarot (36)

Video:

Manchester united 1-0 portsmouth

Manchester united 2-0 portsmouth 2008-01-30