Cup Final delight for Chelsea – report & goals

Guest post by CFC fan Lewis Taylor:

Chelsea once again proved that they are the owners of the FA Cup as they beat Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley on Saturday evening.

The FA Cup final was set up to be a thrilling encounter between two giants of English football; Kenny Dalglish’s Liverpool and Roberto Di Matteo’s Chelsea.

During the first half Chelsea showed superior dominance. Drogba and co were breaking up Liverpools resilience and got their reward inside the first 20 mins.

After awful control by Spearing, Chelsea countered. Mata released Ramires who burst through the heart of the Reds defence, skipping past Enrique before smashing the ball towards goal. Reina managed to get a touch but the pure speed of the ball ensured it got the better of the Spaniard and nestled into the back of the net.

Despite a Bellamy strike that was blocked twice by Ivanovic, Liverpool failed to create much and Chelsea went in at the break 1-0 to the good.

Chelsea began the second half where they left off, this time Lampard was the provider, a quick shimmy and turn before passing to the feet of Drogba. The Ivorian got a bit of luck as his shot went through the legs of Skirtel and across Reina’s goal into the net. Typical Drogba, he has scored 4 FA cup final goals in 4 appearances. Incredible.

Chelsea were cruising but got a scare when Suarez ran at Ashley Goal before failing to threaten Cechs goal. Dalglish called Andy Carroll from the bench and the striker made a real impact from the bench.

A bad defensive clearance left Carroll picking up the rebound before out smarting Terry and sending a thunderous strike in to the roof of the net. 2-1. Game on!

Liverpool sensed a comeback and were suddenly in control of the game. With little over 5 minutes left Suarez found Carol at the far post with a delightful chip, the former Newcastle striker send a header towards goal and it looked as though he had found the equaliser. However, Cech pulled of a great reaction save and tipped the ball onto the cross bar and Ivanovic cleared.

Carroll thought he had scored and was off celebrating, but the referee and linesman waived play on. Was it over the line? The Liverpool players seemed to think so. After countless replays the decision still isn’t clear. To me it was a great save and a great call by the officials.

The game ended to the roar and fist pumping of the Blue side of Wembley. Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool. You can watch video highlights from the game here.

Next up, Bayern! Can Roberto wave his wand again and win the holy grail that is the Champions League? Get involved in the comments section.