|
AS WEEKS go, this is one Zat Knight will struggle to forget.
Signing for his boyhood heroes, Aston Villa, was memorable enough. So, for the wrong reasons, was being detained by the police in a drugs raid.
But it had a happier conclusion for the giant defender, who capped his Villa debut by heading them to a 2-0 victory against Chelsea that was completed by Gabriel Agbonlahor in the 88th minute.
Practically, Knight's final contribution as a Fulham player before his £3.5 million (S$10.8 million) move had been to score an own goal at Villa Park.
This made it two goals in successive games for Villa and, at least, Knight could celebrate the second.
In the process, he inflicted a first Premier League defeat since January on Chelsea, ending an 18-match unbeaten run that stretched back to their visit to Liverpool.
That came in the absence of John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho.
Yesterday, the Portuguese was injured again, and Frank Lampard similarly sidelined. Even with all their wealth, Chelsea still struggle to replace their best players.
With Knight shackling Didier Drogba, Chelsea were unusually toothless.
Lacking the spark Villa's wingers offered, they also missed the sort of finishing Lampard tends to provide. The match-winner in Chelsea's last two games, and a goal-scorer in their last three, his importance was all too obvious.
For all the pace of Shaun Wright-Phillips and Florent Malouda, Chelsea required ruthlessness.
After a quiet final week of the transfer window at Stamford Bridge, the man they missed was not a transfer target, but a man they already own.
Villa, in contrast, took three points courtesy of a late acquisition - Knight.
Martin O'Neill's half-time team talk might have helped, too. Immediately afterwards, the excellent Ashley Young turned infield and curled a terrific 25-metre shot that Petr Cech did well to tip over.
Danger averted? Hardly.
Gareth Barry swung in the resulting corner, Knight - all 2m of him - climbed highest and headed in, despite Ashley Cole's attempt to swipe the ball off his own line.
Any Villa nerves were eased when Young accelerated away, and drilled a shot that Agbonlahor was alert enough to turn past Petr Cech.
But Chelsea had been muted since Knight struck.
Only the substitute Joe Cole, who provided an injection of invention, offered the potential of an equaliser. But John Terry headed his corner some way over.
In their defence, they could plead exhaustion. This was a match where the cliche of Premier League football being played at 100 miles per hour was not too far off the mark.
Dropping three points yesterday stopped Chelsea from setting the pace in the title race.
But, when Villa find top gear, they are seriously rapid. Their front four - Agbonlahor, Luke Moore, John Carew and Young - can transform defence into attack in an instant, and frequently did.
So it followed that the match started at a frenetic pace. Chances ensued, with perhaps Villa's quickest player having three within 10 minutes.
For Agbonlahor, the first was the clearest, when he accepted Young's low cross to swivel and shoot. Cech produced an acrobatic parry and denied the young winger for a second time shortly afterwards.
When Agbonlahor then headed a Barry cross just wide, it was clear Villa's major threat came from the flanks.
Agbonlahor's Chelsea counterpart had begun in a similarly lively mood, and Wright-Phillips claimed an early penalty when Olof Mellberg wrestled him to the ground.
Then, after evading the Villa right-back, his lame effort nestled in the side-netting.
But, when Wright-Phillips faded, so did Chelsea.
Jose Mourinho had explained his decision to give Alex his full debut by saying he required the central defender to combat Villa's height.
The Brazilian proved an attacking weapon for Chelsea, heading Malouda's corner onto the roof of the net, just as Terry had done earlier.
But, Villa's defence, like their attack, were more prolific.
stsports@sph.com.sg
|
