Chelsea have today been held to a disappointing 0-0 draw against Fulham at Stamford Bridge. This was Chelsea boss, Avram Grant's second game in the league so far and he has only managed one point from a possible six on offer. There was further bad news for Grant in the game because club captain, John Terry is likely to miss the next couple of weeks after been taken off at half-time with a suspected depressed fracture of the cheekbone.Chelsea almost went into the lead straight after the break when Saloman Kalou's header was expertly saved by Kasey Keller onto his post and wide. Fulham maybe could of nicked it near the end when Diomansy Kamara somewhat selfishly shot when Clint Dempsey was in a far better position to shot.
Throughout the game, Ukranian striker Andriy Shevchenko was booed by the home crowd. They clearly felt he had a part to play in the departure of Mourinho from the Londoners. He was substituted after 54 minutes after a woeful display from what once was one of the best strikers in Europe. Throughout the game and even after the game, Chelsea fans chanted the name of former boss Jose Mourinho, almost in protest to the Chelsea board.
Chelsea didn't play bad against Man United last week in defeat, but under Mourinho they were much more ruthless in their finishing. Under Grant, so far in the Premier League they have failed to score and have only picked up a point. Now, that is most certainly not the kind of form realistic contenders for this seasons title. I mean, Arsenal have got off to a flyer and have shown people that they are most definitely capable of winning the title, United are starting to find form and Liverpool haven't looked half bad either.
I was even thinking to myself today that although, unlikely, Chelsea may struggle to qualify for next seasons Champions League at the rate their going. With the way Sven Goran Eriksson has got his City side going, they may yet turn out to be contenders for the elusive 4th spot. I feel if they want to be serious contenders this season, Grant has to go. I'm sorry but he has to go. He was appointed only hours after the departure of Mourinho and I think the desicion was far to hasty.
Mr. Abramovich should of taken a week or two, leave Steve Clarke in temporary charge and then appoint a top class mangager like Hiddink or Van Basten. If Grant finishes the season in charge of Chelsea, I'll eat my hat. Chelsea face a daunting trip to Valencia during the week, likely to be without captain John Terry, and with a squad desperately low on confidence. Now, if they don't win that game that leaves them with one point out of six in the group and I'm not even sure they can get out of the group.
