![]() Chelsea won 2–1, winning the FA Cup for the fifth time in their history. Despite the Champions League exit, the season culminated in a trip to Wembley Stadium, with Chelsea's final game of 2008–09 contested against Everton in the 2009 FA Cup Final. ![]() Eleven wins in the team's last 13 league games, marked by a 4–1 victory over Arsenal away at the Emirates Stadium, finally secured third place in the league, and Champions League football for a seventh consecutive season.Īlthough Chelsea's title challenge was already realistically over when he arrived, Hiddink led Chelsea to their fifth Champions League semi-final, knocking out Juventus and Liverpool before they were eliminated by Barcelona on away goals in the semi-final, with the performance of second leg referee Tom Henning Øvrebø proving particularly controversial. Hiddink's regenerative effect was immediate, with four-straight league wins, including a vital 1–0 victory away to Aston Villa in his first game in charge, moving Chelsea into the top three. Long-term injuries to Michael Essien and Joe Cole marked the period while Didier Drogba was not included frequently.Ĭhelsea sacked Scolari, replacing him with Russia national team manager Guus Hiddink for the remainder of the season. Chelsea suffered defeats away to Manchester United and Liverpool, which left them in fourth place during February which would mean a Champions League place would not be certain. During the winter months, they drew against West Ham United, Fulham, Hull City and League One's Southend United in the FA Cup. Chelsea lost a home league game for the first time since 2004 (and 86 matches) when they lost to Liverpool, and a second home league defeat to rivals Arsenal dropped Chelsea to second place.Ĭhelsea qualified for the knock-out stages of the Champions League with a 2–1 victory against Romanian champions CFR Cluj at Stamford Bridge in the final match of the group. In the league, they had a 0–0 draw at home to Newcastle United, (who were later to be relegated). They suffered a 3–1 defeat away to Roma in the Champions League and being eliminated from the League Cup at Stamford Bridge by Championship side Burnley on penalties. ![]() The first few months of his management went according to plan, as Scolari's narrow 4–1–4–1 formation, using Ashley Cole and new arrival José Bosingwa as wing-backs, initially took the league by storm, leaving Chelsea top ahead of Liverpool after 13 games.īy the end of November, however, Scolari's Chelsea began to lose their form due to exhaustion. After again finishing second to Manchester United in the Premier League the previous season, Chelsea sacked their manager Avram Grant, replacing him with the Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari, who had managed the Portugal national team at UEFA Euro 2008 that lost in the quarter finals to Germany.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |