Frustrated Ashley Cole Left Isolated By Steven Gerrard

On a hugely disappointing night England were their own worst enemies. They were generally outmanoeuvred by a tidy but toothless Algerian side and cluttered the midfield in an anaemic display which did no credit to anyone who featured in a white shirt.

Fabio Capello once against opted for the power of Emile Heskey to complement Wayne Rooney in attack, with Steven Gerrard returning to semi left-side duties. This meant England had only one natural winger, Aaron Lennon, to penetrate the opposition defence from wide midfield. But he struggled to do that almost from the outset after England started nervously and Algeria, with Karim Ziani and Ryad Boudebouz playing off the lone striker Karim Matmour, won possession and showed early confidence. This provided the platform for their wing-backs, Foued Kadir and Hassan Yebda, to get forward and force an already stuttering and less than fluid England side to retreat further and further back.

There was a particular lack of penetration from the left-hand side, due to Gerrard repeatedly coming inside. This allowed England to match Algeria in terms of numbers in central midfield but it squeezed the space from where Frank Lampard could express himself and meant that every time Ashley Cole was in possession, he saw only the green shirt of Kadir in front of him. Cole never had a player outside him to whom he could pass the ball.

Cole can be a vibrant attacker from deep but in this match was a near non-contributor to England's possession. This was also partly down to the side's fractured passing, which gave the full-back little confidence that he could venture forward without being caught out of position on the counter-attack. In contrast Glen Johnson, the right full-back, constantly had an outlet in Aaron Lennon and, while both put in below-par performances, they were more effective than Cole and the inward-wandering Gerrard.

It is absolutely essential that against Slovenia England use the whole width of the pitch. Stretching the opposition will also be easier if Wayne Rooney does not get swamped in the midfield minefield, as he did against Algeria. We need Rooney to be nearer the goal and that means sacrificing Heskey, who was regularly and too easily forced away from goal by Algeria's three centre-backs, in particular Antar Yahia. Heskey seemed to be playing with lead in his boots. The time has surely now come for Capello to move Rooney up and play Gerrard just behind him. That is a partnership that has the potential to cause Slovenia real problems next week. With Gerrard in attack, Capello must thenplay someone on the left who can support Cole and give him a target to pass to. He was one of the very few England players who had a genuine excuse for looking and playing in such a frustrating manner.

Didier Drogba's Ivory Coast Return Divides Opinion

Ivory Coast's solid performance in their Group G opener against Portugal has increased the number of Didier Drogba dissidents among the Elephants' supporters. The Wigan midfielder, Olivier Kapo, who was born in Abidjan, spoke for them this week when he suggested that not feeling obliged to cater to the team's star striker "liberated" the other Ivorian players and lead to a more fluent display.

However, although that opinion is spreading, it is still not the dominant view and, most importantly, the team's manager, Sven-Goran Eriksson, has declared that he is a Drogba believer and confirmed that the Chelsea striker will return to the starting line-up for Sunday’s momentous clash with Brazil.

Gervinho will drop to the bench to accommodate Drogba in the only change to the team that drew with Portugal. Aruna Dindane, who will be one of the players charged with supplying Drogba from his position on the right wing, welcomes the return of the country's talisman.

"Didier remains very important to us," he said. "We have some fine young forwards who are pushing for a place in the team but we certainly can't afford the luxury of leaving out Didier. In fact, no team in the world would willingly do that."
Player in-fighting has undermined Ivorian hopes in recent years but Dindane says that Eriksson's "calming" influence has eradicated that problem and that "morale is very high".

Dindane, indeed, says it is a relief to be in such an environment following the chaotic season he endured at Portsmouth. "I don't regret my time at Portsmouth, it was great and I am very grateful for having had the opportunity but it's true that circumstances were difficult."

He said that reports he will be playing his club football in Qatar next season are false but confirmed that he has had several offers from clubs around the world. "I know which one I'm going to join but I won't reveal who until after the World Cup," he said. Asked whether it is a Premier League club, he replied: "Possibly".

Nicolas Anelka Sent Home From World Cup 2010 After Swearing At Raymond Domenech

France and Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka has been sent home from the World Cup after allegedly swearing at coach Raymond Domenech during the 2-0 defeat to Mexico on Thursday.

Rumours were rife of an alleged bust up between Domenech and Anelka with the Chelsea forward reportedly telling his coach to "go f*** yourself".

The French Football Federation (FFF) have now confirmed that Anelka is on his way home, with his position in the squad having become untenable.

"The decision (to remove Anelka) has just been taken," FFF vice president Noel Le Graet told French radio station RTL on Saturday.

Anelka was reportedly angry at Domenech for criticisms of his positional play in the first half of the Group A clash with Mexico.

The striker is said to have then sworn at the outgoing-French boss, who then immediately subbed the Chelsea forward for Andre-Pierre Gignac.

John Terry Admits Fabio Capello Fear

England defender John Terry has admitted that Fabio Capello's no-nonsense regime has left him in fear of the boss.

The 64-year old is a famous disciplinarian and this mentality has been introduced to the Three Lions' set-up.

Mobile phones being turned off, players forced to wear suits when traveling to matches and everyone leaving the dining room at the same time are just some of the measures the Italian has introduced.

Speaking to ITV, Terry stated the benefit's of Capello's managerial style.

“When you walk past him in the morning he gives you a little ‘good morning’ and that’s it," Terry said.

"It works well I think because on the field he’s brilliant, he takes all the training sessions himself and I’ve been really impressed with him actually.”

Referring to the current no-nonsense regime, he added: “We have to be in our rooms and, sort of shut away, by 11 o’clock.”

England Trio's Slow Start Continues

Three Chelsea players took part in a tense World Cup encounter between England and Algeria which ended goalless.

John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole were all selected by Fabio Capello for England's second Group C Game. The Italian also picked David James over Robert Green in goal while Gareth Barry returned to midfield.

It was a difficult first half for England as they struggled to create decent chances on goal. Cole was the first of the Chelsea trio to produce a threatening move when, with only six minutes gone, Steven Gerrard picked out his run down the left flank. Possession was snatched from the left-back before he had a chance to shoot but England had shown their intent.

It was a slow start from both sides before England had a scare when James fumbled a shot and Glen Johnson failed to clear the slip. Fortunately for England Algeria didn't take advantage of the mistake before it was cleared from danger.

Terry took a knock to the head and received treatment just before the half hour mark but was soon back in the centre of defence alongside Jamie Carragher.

England's back four managed to diffuse Algeria's chances while offensive players struggled to create, but minutes after Terry's bump Gerrard forced a quick-witted save from Rais M'Bohli when he struck from 25 yards out.

Lampard soon tested M'Bohli further after Heskey nodded down for the number 8 to control on his chest and strike towards the bottom corner.

But despite these opportunities, England lacked consistency up front and their next chance came when Gareth Barry struck from long range into M'Bohli's arms. Then Wayne Rooney shot comfortably into M'Bohli's grasp from 25 yards.

The first-half ended 0-0 without either side truly threatening their opponent's goal; although much of the play had taken place in Algeria's half, possession had been evenly shared.

There were no changes at half-time and the second period of play began much like the first had finished.

Lampard and Gerrard teamed up well to worry Algeria 10 minutes into the half when they broke into the box, but after Lampard released the England captain on the right side of the area, Gerrard's attempted pull-back for Heskey was hooked away from danger before a shot was launched.

Soon after Carragher was shown his second yellow of the tournament for blocking Hassan Yebda, it means he'll miss England's final group game against Slovenia.

Capello changed Aaron Lennon for former Blue Shaun Wright-Phillips on the hour mark in a straight swap on right wing and England threatened twice more as Rooney struck inches wide while Gerrard headed into M'Bohli's hands, before Heskey was replaced by Jermaine Defoe.

An uneventful game continued and apart from a long-range Lampard effort three minutes from time, neither side created any real threat on goal.

The fixture ended goalless with a point apiece, meaning England and USA have two points each in Group C while Slovenia lead with four.

Showing Support For Local Sport

As proud sponsors of the Kensington and Chelsea and Hammersmith and Fulham teams in the London Youth games, Chelsea Football Club would like to offer our congratulations to both boroughs who have been making a real impact on local sports.

The K&C team has made a splash, achieving some outstanding results in the regatta where they finished a creditable seventh in the rowing and fifth in the kayak sprint.

The star performer was Olivia Hithersay who won first place in the kayak slalom. Hithersay was one of over 700 entrants from across 31 boroughs to compete on the Royal Victoria Dock

The boys' basketball team and girls' volleyball teams have also made it through to the finals which will be held on 3 and 4 July at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre.

Hammersmith and Fulham have also made the last eight in the badminton and the final of the girls' hockey.

The Youth Games has been running for 33 years and some former competitors have gone to greater glory including Olympic 400m Champion Christina Ohuruogu, Olympic Gold Medallist Bradley Wiggins and our very own Ashley Cole.

We wish all the competitors the very best of luck.

Summary Of A Season: Branislav Ivanovic

If his 26 appearances in 2008/09 hinted there was an accomplished Premier League player in Branislav Ivanovic, then his 41 in 2009/10 confirmed the presence of a top-class defender in our ranks.

For a while the Serb was a frontrunner in voting for our Player of the Year award, and although he eventually lost out to Didier Drogba, he joined the Ivorian in the PFA Premier League Team of the Season.

That was in spite of beginning the campaign as a reserve, and while no professional will delight at seeing a team-mate injured, the chance presented to him when Jose Bosingwa's knee injury struck was certainly seized.

Branislav actually began the season in the side, at Wembley in the Community Shield, but after being exposed to Nani and Patrice Evra for 45 minutes, he had earned a yellow card and been beaten for a goal, and was replaced by Bosingwa.

After some uncertainty, Carlo Ancelotti looked to have made his mind up and plumped for the Portuguese, but injury to Alex and the manager's reluctance to play Ricardo Carvalho twice in a week allowed Ivanovic a midweek start at centre-back in our second league game of the season. His attempted clearance fell to Darren Bent at Sunderland and the striker scored, but we won the game.

His physical style saw him given another go in the 2-1 win at Stoke in September, but it wasn't until Bosingwa withdrew at Aston Villa in mid-October that he became a regular.

He bundled himself his solitary goal of the campaign at Bolton at the end of the month as he kept seven consecutive clean sheets in all competitions, while beginning to offer an added threat in attack.

Two assists came against Everton in December, and it was he who was fouled for the decisive penalty against Portsmouth a few days later.

At Christmas his importance was demonstrated by Ancelotti opting to rest him for the Fulham game. He had once previously been a player who would only be considered at such times, and that he was called on from the bench to reduce the deficit spoke volumes of his attacking potency. The move paid off as it was Branislav's deep cross headed home by Didier Drogba.

Away in the San Siro he was arguably at fault for Inter's first goal. Out of position, John Terry had to cover him but was beaten by Diego Milito, but he compensated by charging his way through Inter's midfield and defence to tee up Salomon Kalou for the equaliser.

Three days later he was caught out by Craig Bellamy as Manchester City tore us to pieces at Stamford Bridge, the Serb losing possession deep in opposition territory but failing to recover as the Welshman burst clear to score.

The title race was tight, and going all the way, so it was frustrating for the Serb to pick up a calf injury at Blackburn in March.

It kept him out almost a month, returning as a half-time sub at Spurs after damage had already been done, and starting in the 7-0 bashing of Stoke.

Impeccable at Liverpool, he set up Nicolas Anelka before coming off on the hour to a champion's ovation against Wigan. Back at Wembley for the FA Cup Final, he played 90 minutes this time as he completed a brilliant turnaround in fortunes from the start of the season.

Branislav will be looking for more of the same in 2010/11.