Chelsea's January Shopping List: Defenders, Please.

So after watching an exciting (and ultimately depressing) Chelsea-Liverpool game this morning which ended 2-1 in favour of the Reds, a conclusion has been reached: Chelsea needs to buy some defenders come January. After watching the past few games, the only defender with whom I don't have any issues is Branislav Ivanovic, which just makes me love him all the more. Credit to Ashley Cole, who is usually quite consistent (with the exception of today's game, where Glen Johnson managed to outmaneuver him to get the winner); however, John Terry seems to need some conditioning (he looks quite uncomfortable in his own defense, and in the past few games he's made a few costly mistakes); José Bosingwa's marking needs improvement (he's actually been dropped from the lineup in recent weeks); and David Luiz... well. I've already voiced my concerns over David Luiz. I honestly think he should be playing in a holding midfield role. I also think he needs to learn how to control his temper. In today's game, after losing the ball and hitting the ground, he actually just lashed out with his cleat and kicked a Liverpool player in the back of the legs. He luckily received just a yellow (it could have easily been a red), but players shouldn't behave like that. Ever. He is pretty young (24 years old), and he's still adjusting to the Premier League after moving from Benfica in January of this year, but he has to know the consequences of his actions. Maybe in a year or two he'll be the complete package, but at the moment I do not think he's ready to feature in the starting lineup as a centre-back.

In a weekend where Chelsea was presented an absolute ideal opportunity to reclaim third place (after Manchester City handed Newcastle its first loss of the season), we could not manage to take advantage of the opportunity, and, as a result, Chelsea remains in 4th (likely to be 5th if Tottenham manages a win or a draw from tomorrow's match against Aston Villa).

Look! I made a cool starting 11 image! You don't even know how proud I am of this. And it was also really annoying to make because I had to make my computer think that all of the players' names were actual words so that they wouldn't get that red squiggly line underneath.

Subs: Turnbull, Romeu, Bosingwa, Anelka, Torres (Drogba 84'), Meireles (Ramires 84'), Sturridge (Mikel 45')

NOTABLE CHELSEA PLAYERS:

- Daniel Sturridge: Tipped in Malouda's pass to tie the game and get Chelsea's only goal. His introduction at half-time changed the pace of the game and definitely improved Chelsea's overall play. 

- David Luiz: I've said it all in the above paragraph. 

- John Obi Mikel: Voted Flop of the Match on Goal.com, it was his mistake that initiated the build-up for the first Liverpool goal. Needs to improve defensively if he wants to keep his place in the starting 11. 

MATCH OVERVIEW:

In a game where the balance of power seemed to be in perpetual flux, Chelsea began well, holding possession and creating good chances. After Drogba came incredibly close to scoring a free kick (he had Reina beaten, but the ball went wide and hit the back of the net), Liverpool struck first in the 33rd minute after Petr Cech passed to Mikel, who was then dispossessed by Charlie Adam. After a neat passing play between Adam, Bellamy, Suarez, and Maxi Rodriguez, Liverpool was up 1-0, courtesy of a Rodriguez shot from the far post. In the 42nd minute, Luiz was lucky to escape with just a yellow after lashing out at a Liverpool player with his cleat. At half-time, Sturridge came on for Mikel, and immediately changed the pace of attack. Just nine minutes after coming on, Sturridge slotted home Malouda's cross at the far post to equalize, 1-1.  In the 57th minute, Branislav Ivanovic pulled off an amazing header which would have been a goal, if not for Reina's incredible save. After yellow cards to Ramires and Ivanovic in the 62nd and 79th minutes, respectively, a double-substitution was made in the 84th minute: Torres for Drogba, and Meireles for Ramires. In the last 5 minutes of regulation time, both teams were going all out – they both desperately needed a win. Chelsea looked slightly stronger near the end; however, it was Glen Johnson, a former Chelsea player, who found his way around Ashley Cole and netted the winner through a brilliant solo effort. 

Final Score: Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool.

Daniel Sturridge celebrates his goal. 

He's dancing, by the way.

MATCH STATISTICS:

                                              Chelsea                     Liverpool

Ball Possession (%)                   56                               44

Shots (on target)                      17(3)                            8(2)

Corners                                      5                                 5

Crosses                                     29                               19

Fouls Committed                      13                                12

Yellow Cards                             3                                 2

Red Cards                                  0                                 0

Offsides                                     1                                 2

Okay, so for some weird reason, Blogger won't let me post Youtube videos at the moment, so I'll just post the URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfz_IqHnQfg

That one is Sturridge's goal – unfortunately there aren't any full highlight reels that I can find.

This Wednesday we have Chelsea playing Bayer Leverkusen in an important Champions League match. Let's go Blues!

Cheers,

~Matt