F.A Cup Chelsea Beat Liverpool

Ramires and Didier Drogba scored as Chelsea won the FA Cup at Wembley, where Liverpool were controversially denied a late equaliser.The irrepressible Ramires put his team in front before Drogba scored his eighth goal in nine appearances on the hallowed turf – justifying boss Roberto Di Matteo’s decision to select him rather than former Reds frontman Fernando Torres.But Liverpool rallied and substitute Andy Carroll reduced the deficit, setting up an anxious final 25 minutes for Di Matteo’s men.And the Merseysiders thought they had completed a remarkable comeback when Carroll’s late header from Luis Suarez’s cross looked like it may have crossed the line before being pushed onto the underside of the bar by keeper Petr Cech.Referee Phil Dowd was not convinced the ball did go over the line, and Chelsea were able to get their hands on the trophy for the fourth time in six years.

It was a deserved victory, although Liverpool did well to make a fight of it after Drogba had put the Blues firmly in command – and became the first man to score in four FA Cup finals.Ramires netted in recent semi-final victories against Barcelona and Tottenham and maintained his knack of scoring in important games when he put Chelsea ahead in the 11th minute.Juan Mata pounced on a mistake by Jay Spearing and threaded the ball through to the Brazilian, who got the better of Jose Enrique and then fired past Pepe Reina at the keeper’s near post.And when Chelsea doubled their lead six minutes into the second half, they looked on course for a comfortable win.

Frank Lampard skipped away from the ineffective Spearing and picked out Drogba, who shot through the legs of Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel and into the far corner.But Liverpool hit back when Carroll replaced Spearing and gave his team hope with a well taken goal on 64 minutes.Jose Bosingwa was closed down on the left flank by Stewart Downing, and when the ball came in to Carroll the striker wrong-footed Blues skipper John Terry before slamming a left-footed shot into the roof of the net.Unsurprisingly, Chelsea then had to withstand a period of pressure as Liverpool pushed for an equaliser.

Cech did well to keep out a low shot from Suarez, before Carroll headed over following a cross from ex-Chelsea man Glen Johnson.Liverpool, who benefited from a goal-line decision when Luis Garcia’s Champions League semi-final winner stood in 2005, will argue that they should also have been awarded a goal after Carroll’s effort.

Chelsea may be able to thank Lady Luck on this occasion, but they can also thank Cech who, it should not be forgotten, did brilliantly to get a hand to the ball.

Villas-Boas defends team selection after Napoli defeat

Andre Villas-Boas insisted Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole did not start Chelsea's Champions League clash at Napoli for footballing reasons after watching his side lurch to another defeat. England stars Lampard and Cole were reportedly angry at being left out of the line-up for last night's last-16 first leg, fuelling speculation of a growing rift between Blues boss Villas-Boas and members of his squad. Villas-Boas admitted Lampard and Cole disagreed with his decision and that debate over his relationship with senior players - as well as the security of his job - was inevitable. He said: "I think there's a normal creation of opinion from different parties, from the media and the fans, and from exactly the people who matter in the business - the owner and the manager. "Whatever perspective comes out, that really doesn't matter to me." He added: "I had a conversation with Ashley and Frank. "The players that they are and the players with the experience they have, they felt they could have helped the team. That's perfectly understandable. "Of course, they were disappointed but they were decisions they have to accept and move on." Villas-Boas described Lampard's omission from yet another big game as tactical and Cole's as the result of not being fully fit following a calf problem. He added: "Whatever explanation I give you, in the end it would be a fantastic explanation if we'd won the game. "Any explanation is now useless given the result of the game, so there's no point." Villas-Boas admitted "speculation" over his own future would intensify after a fifth successive match without a win. The Portuguese has repeatedly insisted he enjoys the "full" backing of Roman Abramovich but the billionaire Blues owner's confidence in his young manager would have taken yet another hit last night. Chelsea produced their latest defensive horror show to lose 3-1 in Italy and leave themselves in real danger of crashing out. Villas-Boas admitted his side once again missed injured captain John Terry, who is set to undergo a procedure on the knee injury that has plagued him in 2012 and will be out for up to six weeks. That will see him miss up to three Champions League matches, possibly two in the FA Cup and several crucial Premier League games. Informed a two-goal first-leg deficit had been overturned only three times in Champions League history, Villas-Boas was defiant. "I want us to be the fourth team," he said. Goalkeeper Petr Cech said: "It will be tough but we will fight till we die." He added of Villas-Boas: "We know he keeps working hard for us. He prepares every game with 100% commitment and we appreciate it as players. "But if you have players on the pitch making mistakes, he can't help it." Napoli boss Walter Mazzarri was taking nothing for granted. "Chelsea, on their ground, they can easily score two goals," he said. "So, we need to go there with the right mentality. "It's just a shame we didn't make it 4-1. We had opportunities with (Ezequiel) Lavezzi, (Edinson) Cavani, (Christian) Maggio, and we should've taken them."

Drogba Leads Chelsea to Victory

Chelsea reached the Champions League knockout phase as Didier Drogba inspired them to the win they required against Valencia at Stamford Bridge. Manager Andre Villas-Boas took the bold decision to drop the vastly experienced Frank Lampard for a game that could have shaped the Blues boss's future - then saw another of Stamford Bridge's old guard prove the catalyst to confirm a place in the last 16 as Group E winners. Drogba, who has been linked with a move as he holds out for a two-year contract, was in irresistible mood and terrorised Valencia throughout, scoring a goal in each half as Chelsea ran out emphatic winners, putting the Spanish side out of the competition in the process. The Ivorian also played his part in Chelsea's second with a run of trademark power and purpose midway through the first half to set up Ramires, a goal which came just as Valencia threatened to work their way back into the game.

Lampard Leads England To Victory

Frank Lampard celebrated claiming the England captain's armband by scoring the goal that secured victory against World Cup holders Spain at Wembley. Lampard - leading his country in the absence of rested Chelsea team-mate John Terry - headed in from close range in the 49th minute after Darren Bent had struck the woodwork. The world and European champions dominated possession and territory for long periods and almost equalised late on when David Villa struck a post and substitute Cesc Fabregas wasted a chance. But England held on with real resilience for a win that will inject new reserves of confidence into Fabio Capello's side. Capello was missing his son's wedding in Milan to take charge - yet his reshaped England team gave him cause for a double celebration as they overturned the odds in front of a delighted Wembley gallery.

Match Report Chelsea 3-5 Arsenal

In-form striker Robin van Persie scored a hat-trick as Arsenal edged Chelsea in a stunning derby. Chelsea's Frank Lampard opened the scoring with a stooping header but Van Persie levelled into an empty net. John Terry re-established Chelsea's lead from 16 yards before Andre Santos equalised from the egde of the box. Gunners' Theo Walcott scored after a run and Chelsea's Juan Mata fired home a stunner before Van Persie tapped into an empty net then smashed home another. Van Persie's last two goals came in the last five minutes, with the first of those two coming when Terry slipped from Florent Malouda's poor back-pass, leaving the Dutchman in miles of space to sidestep Petr Cech and slot home. And then the striker was played in by Mikel Arteta in injury-time and Cech could not keep his shot out.

England 2 - 2 Switzerland

England were held to a draw after surviving a major scare against Switzerland as they were forced to come from two goals behind to earn a point in the Euro 2012 qualifier at Wembley.
Fabio Capello's out of sorts side looked to be heading for a damaging defeat and a heavy blow to their hopes of reaching Poland and Ukraine next summer as Switzerland deservedly took command.
Tranquillo Barnetta was the grateful beneficiary of uncertain England defending and poor goalkeeping from Joe Hart as he twice saw speculative free-kicks end in the back of the net in the first half.

Wembley was noisily registering its unrest with Capello and England when Johan Djourou's foul on Jack Wilshere gave Frank Lampard the opportunity to pull a goal back from the spot before the interval and provide the foundations for a second-half recovery.Capello mystifyingly left Ashley Young out despite a match-winning display in the Euro 2012 qualifier win in Wales in March and he only underlined the folly of the decision by emerging as substitute at half-time and striking a fine equaliser six minutes after coming on.

England should have capitalised on their growing momentum to win, but Darren Bent failed to reproduce the finishing touches that have brought him goals in three successive appearances. He was blocked by Diego Benaglio when he was played in by Wilshere then blazed over the top of an open goal late on after Young's shot was saved by Switzerland's keeper.Defeat would have been harsh on the Swiss, predictably well-organised under the masterly direction of veteran coach Ottmark Hitzfeld, and in midfield man Xherdan Shaqiri they have one of Europe's rising stars.

England have now gone four games without a win at Wembley, their longest sequence without a victory in 30 years, and still have much work to do to reach Euro 2012 as they prepare for a testing trip to face Bulgaria in Sofia in September.Capello watched in frustration as England defended poorly and failed to provide any ammunition or support for Bent until after the break - but he was the architect of his own problems.
The selection of James Milner ahead of Young was the product of muddled thinking and the absence of Peter Crouch - with 22 goals in 42 England appearances - from even the substitutes' bench was also a surprise.
Milner and Theo Walcott failed to justify their selection ahead of Aston Villa's Young as they struggled ineffectually in the first half, leaving striker Bent isolated and starved of supply as Switzerland looked the more composed and ordered team.

Glen Johnson almost gave England the perfect start after only two minutes when he met Lampard's corner at the far post but Switzerland keeper Benaglio spread himself to make the block.Hart's eventful half started when he saved smartly from Eren Derdiyok then scrambled to turn away Gokhan Inler's shot after it took a deflection off the outstretched leg of the recalled Rio Ferdinand.England's keeper was by far the busier and he was in action again to save from the industrious and intelligent Shaqiri as Switzerland grew in confidence.

Ferdinand's header was narrowly off target before Switzerland stunned Wembley with two goals in three minutes just after the half-hour to take command in a fashion that visibly infuriated Capello as he stood in his technical area.Capello had just been forced to replace Ashley Cole, injured in an early tackle on Valon Behrami, with Leighton Baines and the Everton defender could only watch as his defensive colleagues handed the initiative to the Swiss.Barnetta was the goalscorer on both occasions - with England twice demonstrating a costly inability to deal with routine free-kicks into their penalty area. The first was floated in and missed by Ferdinand, wrong-footing Hart as it landed in the far corner.

The second was even more calamitous, with the wall formed by Walcott and Milner breaking hopelessly and Hart reduced to an awkward attempt to kick Barnetta's effort away from his near post, an effort that ended in embarrassing failure.England were desperate for a lifeline before the interval and Djourou provided it after 37 minutes with a lunge at Arsenal team-mate Wilshere that resulted in a penalty, converted by Lampard.
Wembley reacted with jeers at half-time - and Capello's response was to replace Lampard with Young. The switch was rewarded within six minutes as Baines cleverly chested a chipped pass into Young's path and set up a low angled finish past BenaglioEngland's shape looked more comfortable and they were now in charge. Wilshere's wonderful run and pass sent Bent clear, but Benaglio plunged bravely at his feet to save.
Bent, so reliable in front of goal for England in recent games, was then guilty of an awful miss as he threw away the opportunity to complete the comeback with 20 minutes left. The lively Young's shot was saved by Benaglio to leave Bent with what looked like a formality in front of an open goal, but he side-footed his finish over the bar with the Swiss keeper stranded.Young's second half show only highlighted Capello's errors in selection and he almost got his second when he reached Milner's pull back, but could not trouble Benaglio.

As the game entered three minutes of stoppage time, both sides almost snatched the win. Substitute Admir Mehmedi was inches away with Hart beaten and Stewart Downing, on for Walcott, shot weakly into the side-netting with the last kick of the game as England had to settle for a point.