FA Cup Final Preview: Chelsea vs. Portsmouth

Two clubs with very different agendas meet for the FA Cup final on Saturday, as the curtain comes down on the English football season.

For Chelsea it's a chance to make club history and secure the league and cup double for the first time. For a team that dominated English football during the middle of the 00's, it seems hard to imagine they haven't done this already, but they could not be more prepared to make history.

Carlo Ancelotti's men smashed eight goals past Wigan on the last day of the season, completing a 103 goal haul over the whole campaign, a Premier League record. That will have been helped by some high-scoring wins, including a 5-0 victory at Fratton Park in March, but the Italian isn't assuming history will be repeated on Saturday.

“I learnt from the semi-final between Spurs and Portsmouth that if you don’t prepare well, you can have difficulty playing against them,” Ancelotti said before the game.

“Also, we have a lot of respect for the opposing team, who did a fantastic job to get to the final. Avram Grant is a very good coach. He was at Chelsea for one year, played the League Cup and Champions League final and did a very good job.

“Portsmouth have had a difficult year, but he did well to take them to the final of the FA Cup."

Pompey, by contrast, have the chance to put some much needed shine on an otherwise depressing season. The club's debt spiralled to nearly £140 million, plunging the team into administration and earning them a nine point deduction which effectively relegated the side.

Despite this, Avram Grant has managed to steer his charges to the cup final, which itself is nothing short of miraculous. The fact they were helped by a slippery Wembley pitch in the semi-final against Tottenham, is more of a sidenote.

After the furore around the state of the turf, Pompey won't be expecting any further help, but could be confident of causing an upset. Anything can happen on cup final day, just ask Sir Alex Ferguson who lost to unfancied Everton in 1994.

"I spoke with a few of the lads and they know that in one game anything can happen," Pompey defender Tal Ben Haim warned the Blues.

It has been a bizarre season for the south coast club, with four different owners, untold financial problems, and goalkeeper David James offering to pay the wages of sacked club staff.

It will be the first time ever that the newly crowned champions have met the side bottom of the league in the final - could it be the first time a relegated side has won a final? In the bizarre world of Portsmouth, it could just be the finale their crazy saga warrants.

FORM

Chelsea
Apr 13: Chelsea 1-0 Bolton (Premier League)
Apr 17: Tottenham 2-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Apr 25: Chelsea 7-0 Stoke (Premier League)
May 2: Liverpool 0-2 Chelsea (Premier League)
May 9: Chelsea 8-0 Wigan (Premier League)

Portsmouth
Apr 14: Wigan 0-0 Portsmouth (Premier League)
Apr 18: Portsmouth 1-2 Aston Villa (Premier League)
Apr 24: Bolton 2-2 Portsmouth (Premier League)
May 1: Portsmouth 3-1 Wolves (Premier League)
May 9: Everton 1-0 Portsmouth (Premier League)

TEAM NEWS

Portsmouth
Portsmouth have not been the luckiest with injuries this season, and it was against Chelsea that one of their nastiest occurred - Daniel Sturridge's flailing elbow gave Tommy Smith one of the most graphic broken noses seen for a while.

Smith misses out, along with long-term absentees Hermann Hreidarsson (Achilles) and Danny Webber (knee).

Pompey's main injury worry, though, is all-action midfielder Jamie O'Hara, who has a back problem. The Spurs loanee has been in brilliant form this season and Grant's side have missed his combating midfielder displays of late. He is hoping a pain-killing injection will allow him to play some part.

Centre-half Tal Ben-Haim has recovered from a groin problem, Nadir Belhadj and Richard Hughes (both hamstring) should be available, but Aruna Dindane (groin), Marc Wilson (hamstring), Hassan Yebda (thigh) and youngster Lenny Sowah (knee) are all concerns.
Kevin-Prince Boateng, scorer in the semi-final, is almost certain to miss out with an ankle injury and has not even travelled to London with the squad.

Possible line-up: James, Finnan, Rocha, Ben-Haim, Vanden Borre, Mokoena, Belhadj, Hughes, Mullins, Piquionne, Utaka.

Chelsea
Unsung hero of the season Branislav Ivanovic is a doubt with a knee problem but the big worry this week was captain John Terry. Thankfully for Blues fans his foot injury looks to be nowhere near as bad as first feared and the centre-back even declared himself "100 per cent" fit to play.

John Obi Mikel has undergone minor surgery on a knee injury and is out for the remainder of the season, while long-term absentees Michael Essien, Jose Bosingwa (both knee) and Ricardo Carvalho (ankle) remain sidelined.

Possibly line-up: Cech, Terry, Alex, A Cole, Ivanovic, Ballack, Lampard, Malouda, Kalou, Anelka, Drogba.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Chelsea - Didier Drogba

The Ivorian has 36 goals in all competitions already this season and will be keen to add more on Saturday. He claims he isn't "crazy for goals" but the public strop after not being allowed to take a penalty against Stoke says otherwise.

Childish displays aside, it's difficult to argue with Drogba's form - 11 goals in his last 11 games - and when he's on song it's almost impossible to stop him.

Portsmouth - Ricardo Rocha

The former Spurs man put in a Man of the Match performance against his old club in the semi-final, despite playing out of position at centre-half. Pompey were so ravaged with injuries the defender, usually used to playing at right-back, slotted in and was immense.

Another sterling display - albeit against a better forward (no offence Spurs fans) in Didier Drogba could be the catalyst for a famous Pompey victory.

Carlo Ancelotti: We Must Not Take Portsmouth Lightly In The FA Cup Final

Carlo Ancelotti has warned Chelsea repeat the mistake that Tottenham Hotspur made and underestimate Portsmouth in the FA Cup final on Saturday.

After they clinched the Premier League title last weekend, a victory at Wembley would give Chelsea the first Double in club history.

Pompey was able to shock Spurs in the semi-finals with a 2-0 extra-time to earn a chance to win their second FA Cup title in three seasons.

Ancelotti has given credit to Pompey manager Avram Grant for the job that he has done with under extraordinary circumstances and believes that Chelsea must respect the Championship-bound club.

“I learnt from the semi-final between Spurs and Portsmouth that if you don’t prepare well, you can have difficulty playing against them,” Ancelotti told the Daily Star.

“Also, we have a lot of respect for the opposing team, who did a fantastic job to get to the final.

“Avram Grant is a very good coach. He was at Chelsea for one year, played the League Cup and Champions League final and did a very good job.

“Portsmouth have had a difficult year, but he did well to take them to the final of the FA Cup.

“We have to play against players with strong, strong motivation.”

The Italian admitted that he did not understand how special the FA Cup was until experiencing it for himself.

“I didn’t know before this season how special the FA Cup was and how important it is for every club.

“It’s the oldest competition in this country. I know now there were a lot of surprises, a lot of little teams played important games; Leeds beat Manchester United, Liverpool lost to Reading.

“For us, it’s a great opportunity to win the Double for the first time for this club and we can do this.”

Real Madrid Struggling To Agree New Contract With Chelsea Target Gonzalo Higuain

Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain's displeasure at the club's latest contract bid continues to leave the door open for a Premier League switch.

Spanish newspaper El Confidencial has reported that the Primera Liga title chasers have offered the Argentine €4 million-a-year to stay. However, this falls €2 million short of what the player himself and his father and agent Jorge are demanding.

Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City are all rumoured to have been offered the centre-forward for €34 million. With 27 goals in 34 La Liga matches this campaign, he has been in deadly form.

Higuain is currently contracted to Real until 2013 on €1.6 million-a-year. This would be significantly improved if he moved to England.

Carlo Ancelotti Admits Interest In Liverpool Striker Fernando Torres

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has agreed with Didier Drogba that he "would like to play" with red-hot Liverpool striker Fernando Torres.

Drogba admitted this week that he would like to form a deadly partnership with the Spanish international. Torres has been linked with a £70 million switch to either the Blues or Manchester City during the upcoming transfer window

Speaking to reporters, Ancelotti confirmed he agreed with the opinion of his current star centre-forward: "Me too, I would like to play with Torres, he's a very good player. But this is not an issue for today, he's a Liverpool player, a very good striker and we don't need another striker today."

Meanwhile, Ancelotti dispelled any rumours he would miss the World Cup, and Terry will also line-up against Portsmouth in Saturday's FA Cup final:

"John Terry had the problem with his foot, but trained on Friday with no problems so there will be no problem on Saturday."

The Premier League champions are red-hot favourites to complete their first ever double but Ancelotti warned they cannot underestimate the south-coast outfit.

Ancelotti said: "It could be the first time for Chelsea to win the Double, it's a great opportunity. But we have the final, we have to have respect for Portsmouth.

"Portsmouth played a very good semi final, they beat Tottenham and it will be a very tough game for us. If you don't prepare well it can be difficult."

Anelka: Make It A Double

One of two men on the verge of making history, Nicolas Anelka admits achieving a 'double Double' will make him a very proud man.

The Frenchman, along with Ashley Cole, has already achieved the feat of winning both the FA Cup and the Premier League in the same season with Arsenal, in 1998, while Cole did it four years later in 2002.

Nobody has ever done it with two clubs, and Anelka appreciates the standing it would give him in the game.

'I heard from Chelsea TV that nobody else has won the Double with two teams, it would be good if we can make history, even more because I like this club and I want to win everything I can,' he told the official Chelsea website.

'I will be proud to have achieved something in football, and very happy to say in the future I was able to win things with Chelsea at this time - this is even better because it is something special.'

Having spent so long in his career without major honours, last season's FA Cup success was his first trophy in England since 1998, and it has been a relief that he is again obtaining silverware.

'It was unexpected with Arsenal, we were a long way behind Manchester United in the league, but in football you never know and you have to fight and believe until the end, that's what we did and we had a lot of wins at the end of the season which gave us confidence to win the title, and then the Double,' he explained.

'Here at Chelsea we have always had belief and it is good to be in a squad when you know you can win titles, so I look forward to playing this game at Wembley and hoping we can win again.'

Fabio Capello Explains He Had 'No Option' But To Strip John Terry Of England Captaincy

Stripping John Terry of the England captaincy after revelations about his private life was the only thing Fabio Capello could do, the Three Lions boss has revealed.

The Italian axed the 29-year-old after revelations appeared he had an affair with the ex-girlfriend of England team-mate Wayne Bridge.

Capello told Italian newspaper La Stampa: "I had no other alternative - he knows that for me values come before everything.

"I was in Italy and I had a telephone call where I was told everything that had happened.

"I thought about it and then I called John and we spoke. He is an adult and a serious person."

On his return to England, Capello summoned Terry to his Wembley office where he told him of his decision to hand Rio Ferdinand the armband.

He said: "We looked each other in the eyes. I told him that the captain has to be an example for everyone. I cannot let you keep the armband."

Capello also added he never feared Terry quitting the team during the scandal.

"No," he said when quizzed. "It's one of those things that can happen in life."

"Terry is one of those that makes a difference, he is a true leader."

Branislav Ivanovic Admits That Working Under Avram Grant Was Most Frustrating Time Of His Career

Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic has admitted that working under former manager Avram Grant was "the most difficult time in my career".

The Serbian international joined the club for £9 million in January 2008, just over a month after Grant replaced Jose Mourinho as manager at the west London club. And Ivanovic — who will come up against Grant on Saturday in the FA Cup final against Portsmouth — admits that his inability to get into the Israeli's first-team for the remainder of that season, when they were targetting Premier League and Champions League success, was a source of great frustration.

"I have no ill feeling towards Avram but at that moment I was really angry," Ivanovic told the Evening Standard.

"I understand him now because I couldn't change a lot of things in that moment.

"When I arrived it was difficult for a lot of reasons. I had come from the Russian League when there was a break between seasons.

"I was not ready to play. I needed time to be able to get used to the training, the play and everything about the club. But after that I picked up an injury and when I returned it was near the end of the season and every game for Chelsea at that stage was important.

"The squad was very strong and they were trying to get to the Champions League Final. They were also involved in a very tough title race with Manchester United, like it was this year.

"However, it was the most difficult time in my career."

Ivanovic only made his debut for the Blues eight months after signing, and long after Luiz Felipe Scolari had replaced Grant in the dugout. Now a first-team fixture at Stamford Bridge, Ivanovic paid tribute to Andriy Shevchenko — another who had his problems during his stay at the club — for giving him the advice and guidance that enabled him to survive the dark days.

"I can't forget what Andriy did. He really helped me. He tried to give me confidence," Ivanovic said.

"He told me about the style of play in England, what I had to do as a defender and where I could improve.

"It was a difficult period for him, too. He had been outside the team, he was also injured, but he wasn't just thinking about himself, he was thinking of me too.

"I can only say a big thank you to him for everything he did because he helped me become prepared for when I would play."

Chelsea Net Hat-trick Of Awards After Free-scoring Premier League Season

While Chelsea have the chance to make history and complete a first ever league and cup double on Saturday, they managed to get their hands on more silverware before the FA Cup final with Portsmouth has kicked off.

Dider Drogba's last-day hat-trick against Wigan Athletic meant he was the top flight's Golden Boot winner with 29, and he was presented with his trophy on Thursday.

The accolades for Blues players did not stop there as goalkeeper Petr Cech was awarded the Barclays Golden Glove for keeping the most clean sheets - 17. Liverpool's Pepe Reina also managed 17 clean sheets, but Cech's sheets-to-game ratio means the Spaniard misses out.

And the club also received a special prize, the Barclays Merit Award, for their goalscoring exploits - their 103 league goals was the first time a team had broken a tonne since records began in 1992. The Blues are also the first team to break a century in the English top flight since Tottenham in 1962-63.

The newly-crowned Champions' attacking exploits have been simply breathtaking this season, finishing the season with an 8-0 victory over Wigan at Stamford Bridge.

But their monumental victory last time out was not their only goal-fest of the season. Carlo Ancelotti's side managed to score seven goals in home victories against Aston Villa, Stoke City and Sunderland, in a season in which they have proven their attacking pedigree.