Brave Boro Bow Out To Blues

Middlesbrough    0        Chelsea    2

                                                                                                       Ramires  50  Moses  73

With a daunting trip to Old Trafford awaiting the winners of last night’s FA cup tie between Middlesbrough and European Champions Chelsea , the  realistic chances of the of the trophy ending up on Teesside were unmistakably slim. 

Nevertheless, for fans and player alike, this was a night to relish and one which certainly brought the best out of the team and supporters.

On paper the 2-0 score line fails to reflect the heart and dedication that Boro put into the game, as Chelsea’s class and elegance finally broke through the barrier formed by the Championship side.

The game had a special feel caused by just under 28,000 fans; some understandably to watch Chelsea, packing out a vibrant Riverside.

The Boro side showed three changes from the side which lost to Millwall in the previous game. Kieron Dyer was cup tied, while Josh McEachran was ineligible to play against the side he is currently on loan from. Marvin Emnes also dropped to the bench, as Scott McDonald, Faris Haroun and Mustapha Carayol all started the game.

Without overdoing things Chelsea displayed a selection of their anticipated talent Fernando Torres, John Terry and Oscar the biggest names on show. Frank Lampard and Eden Hazard were sat in reserve on the substitute bench.

The atmosphere was buzzing from the start, but it was no surprise that the visitors started the brighter. Oscar and Victor Moses caught the eye early on; first the Brazilian Oscar had a powerful shot blocked by Andre Bikey. While the ever-present Moses gave full back George Friend plenty to think about in the opening exchanges.

However Boro weathered the early storm, and with twenty five minutes played,  created a chance of their own. Haroun did well to wriggle away two blue shirts before laying the ball back to Nicky Bailey, whose inviting cross was met by the  head of McDonald but drifted wide of the post.

Neither keeper had been overly busy, but in the Chelsea goal Petr Cech looked more than a little unsteady. His kicking was poor all night and Boro nearly capitalised six minutes from half time.

A clearance from the Blues keeper dropped nicely at the feet of Grant Leadbitter who quickly found Carayol on the left. The Boro winger darted at the Chelsea defence before cutting inside to unleash a bobbling shot. Cech failed to hold the effort, spilling the ball back into penalty area, fortunately for him right it fell into the path of Terry who cleared the danger.

The half time whistle was welcomed by a round of applause from the Boro fans, who clearly acknowledged the efforts of their side despite a lack of goal mouth action.

At the other end of the ground the Chelsea fans didn’t share the same admiration, but at the start of the second half the visitors found another gear.

Five minutes after the break the ball lingered in and around the Boro penalty area, before eventually falling to Ramires, who swept a curling shot beyond Jason Steele from the edge of the box. Replays showed a slight deflection of the shoulder of Torres nevertheless Boro’s task had now significantly grown.

The hosts continued to battle hard, but Chelsea weren’t taking any chances. With half an hour to go on came Hazard adding an extra thrust to the Blues attack, and his impact was almost instant.

Less than fifteen minutes after coming on Hazard made a menacing run towards the Boro goal. A neat one-two with Oscar cut several defenders out of the game, setting Hazard through on goal where he eluded Steele, coolly squaring the ball to Moses who tucked in Chelsea’s second. In terms of a team goal this was a good as any seen at this Riverside this season.

Boro introduced Ishmael Miller and after the goal Merouane Zemmama. Both added a bit more bite to Boro’s attack. Zemmama’s free kick forcing a rare save from Cech, before Miller connected with a fabulous long range pass from Rhys Williams, but the striker’s first time volley sailed over the bar.

Despite the result the fans largely appreciated the efforts of the Boro players who gave a decent account of themselves against strong opposition, but overall Chelsea just had that cutting edge.

The game was a welcome distraction from Boro’s woeful league form, but they can definitely take heart from this performance to re-launch their promotion campaign starting with another home game against table-topping Cardiff on Saturday.

Player Ratings

Jason Steele   6- Wasn’t given a heap of saves to make, not much he could have done about either goal

George Friend   7- Looked like Moses could be a threat early on but, he then kept him quiet for long spells of the game  

Andre Bikey   6- Was having a solid game but had to be replaced after 35 minutes with due to injury

Steven McManus   6.5- Solid performance at the back    

Nicky Bailey   7- Got forward when he could from right back, sometimes had the help out in middfield

Faris Haroun   7- Gave plenty of energy on the right, where he caused most of Chelsea’s problems      

Grant Leadbitter   7- Worked incredible hard first half, began to tire after the break but never gave up 

Rhys Williams (C)   6- Still adapting to midfield role after returning from injury

Mustapha Carayol   6- Had Boro’s only shot on target in first half, but failed to test the full back as often as he would have liked

Curtis Main   6.5- Replaced after an hour worked hard but struggled to have massive impact on the game

Scott McDonald   7- Little to feed off upfront, but linked up well with midfield, honest hard working performance

Subs

Seb Hines   6- Replaced Bikey in first half, decent performance could be needed on Saturday

Ishmael Miller   6.5- Added a physical threat up front, looked Boro’s most likely player to score

Meroune Zemmama – Came on for last 15 minutes, gave fresh legs free kick tested Cech late on  

My Boro Man Of The Match: Grant Leadbitter