Chelsea 5-0 Genk: Thank you Adidas for the best night ever!!.
Chelsea's performance (especially in the first half) and result on Wednesday night was fantastic against (it has to be said) a disappoi...
https://www.chelseadaft.org/2011/10/chelsea-5-0-genk-thank-you-adidas-for.html
Chelsea's performance (especially in the first half) and result on Wednesday night was fantastic against (it has to be said) a disappointing Genk side at Stamford Bridge. For me, it was simply the best night of Chelsea football for many different reasons.
I have been a Chelsea fan all my life, I am from the area, my family are Chelsea fans and my Father, Uncle, Brother and Cousins all go to the game. There is nothing like the build up, getting there, meeting up with your mates and eventually taking your seat in the ground anticipating the game and being a part of it. I have been doing it for over 30 years now and still love it as much now as I did as a 6 or 7 year old standing on the Shed End with my Dad all those years ago.
However, and thanks to Adidas, I was given the opportunity to go to the game and take in Champions League night at Stamford Bridge as a guest of their Champions Club and it was an amazing experience for someone like me.
The reason I say that is because we have all walked into the ground past the Millennium Reception and seen people queuing up to go into their hospitality and wondered what it's like. We have all sat in the stand at looked up at the seats just below the boxes, and the boxes and thought to ourselves "one day!".
Well, Wednesday night my day came and it is something that will live with me for many years to come. For all those people that get to experience pre and post match hospitality on match days, it's something that probably becomes routine for you, for me however, it was a dream come true.
From the moment I entered Level 3 of the West Stand and walked into the world of Champions League hospitality I was stunned!. I probably looked like a fish out of water, staring at everyone and everything around me, talking it all in but I didn't care.
I was offered a wide range of food to choose from until I was full up washed down with endless streams of servers with Alcohol if I needed one. All with a warm and welcoming smiles.
I looked around at these people inside the massive room I was in and wondered what their stories were, why they were here and I will be honest with you, alot of them knew their football and wasn't just there to lap up all the attention.
Just as I finished my food and washed it down with another complimentary beer, I started to fill out my scorecard to predict the result. 1-0 at half time and a 3-0 end result was my guess and I was way off. But, just as I finished the scorecard, someone grabbed the microphone and stopped the jazz band playing their background music. It was John Hollins who played host for the evening! I remember being at Bridge all those years ago watching him playing and then watching him as our manager! I couldn't believe it!
Then, with five minutes till kick off it was time to move through the room out the backdoor and into our plush seats a row below the executive boxes and the view was different class! Padded comfortable seats with leg room and a perfect view.
It was here along with the others I was with, we witnessed a first half of football that simply blew Genk away and with it, anyone put in front of us at that particular moment in time.
Torres was on fire making his return to the side, Meireles after being rested for Everton was keen to make an impression and was everywhere. Malouda made more forward runs and more of an impact in that one half of football I think he has had for most of last season. Romeu was imperious and showcased the fact that we have got ourselves a real bargain. Chelsea were ruthless and impressive. 4-0 at half time and let's be honest, it could have been a hell of a lot more!.
So the whistle below for half time and back inside we moved once more to the complimentary food and drink provided while continuous memories of Chelsea in the Champions League was played on the plasma screens all round the room. This time however, there was even more of a surprise. As a I walked through the room, I bumped into Kerry Dixon and shook his hand (again grew up in absolute awe of him as a player for Chelsea) and said something along the lines of "Torres ain't bad after all is he? A bit like yourself in your day Kerry!" He gestured as if to say something along the lines of not being anywhere near the same league but I instantly remembered back when Kerry Dixon was unplayable too!.
I made my way back to the people I was with and John Hollins re-appeared, this time to do a live Q&A with Kerry Dixon AND Chopper Harris! unbelievable. Now you have to remember, this is me here, a fan of over 30 years through all the good and bad times where I would only see these people on the off chance around the ground at some stage long before kick off. With that, I took a swig from my complimentary bottle and stood in amazement and listened to what they had to say.
After that finished, and the discussion about the first half, we made our way back out to our seats and watched the remainder of the game which to be honest was done and dusted by half time. Chelsea made their changes, Torres never got his hat trick although, the GenkKalou to volley home unmarked to make it 5-0.
The game finished and once again, we walked back into the main room I had been in since 1730 that afternoon. More food and drink were available as John Hollins once again grabbed the microphone again to announce the scorecard prediction winners. A signed Adidas Chelsea shirt, an Adidas Champions League football and a couple of Kegs of larger were up for grabs but I was never in contention. Hollins announced 2230 was closing time so I had around 35-40 minutes to carrying on living the dream. The time was spent just talking about everything and anything and I would like to thank the five people I was with for the evening. They all have their projects, they all really, really know their football and enjoyed the experience.
For me, as 22:30 came it was time to leave and get back to reality. It was a truly eye opening night and one that showed me how much of another world it really is. I didn't have to queue up to get a beer or a pie and rush it down in time to get back inside the ground so I didn't miss anything after spending time queueing.
For one night, in addition to the buzz of being at the Bridge to take in a game, I had the chance to experience the Champions Club, it's something I wish everyone could do just to say you have been there once!.
Thanks to Adidas Football, it was a night I will never forget!.
KTBFFH
Check out my blog posts on the Official Chelsea Website - http://bit.ly/mRUOqw
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I have been a Chelsea fan all my life, I am from the area, my family are Chelsea fans and my Father, Uncle, Brother and Cousins all go to the game. There is nothing like the build up, getting there, meeting up with your mates and eventually taking your seat in the ground anticipating the game and being a part of it. I have been doing it for over 30 years now and still love it as much now as I did as a 6 or 7 year old standing on the Shed End with my Dad all those years ago.
However, and thanks to Adidas, I was given the opportunity to go to the game and take in Champions League night at Stamford Bridge as a guest of their Champions Club and it was an amazing experience for someone like me.
The reason I say that is because we have all walked into the ground past the Millennium Reception and seen people queuing up to go into their hospitality and wondered what it's like. We have all sat in the stand at looked up at the seats just below the boxes, and the boxes and thought to ourselves "one day!".
Well, Wednesday night my day came and it is something that will live with me for many years to come. For all those people that get to experience pre and post match hospitality on match days, it's something that probably becomes routine for you, for me however, it was a dream come true.
From the moment I entered Level 3 of the West Stand and walked into the world of Champions League hospitality I was stunned!. I probably looked like a fish out of water, staring at everyone and everything around me, talking it all in but I didn't care.
I was offered a wide range of food to choose from until I was full up washed down with endless streams of servers with Alcohol if I needed one. All with a warm and welcoming smiles.
I looked around at these people inside the massive room I was in and wondered what their stories were, why they were here and I will be honest with you, alot of them knew their football and wasn't just there to lap up all the attention.
Just as I finished my food and washed it down with another complimentary beer, I started to fill out my scorecard to predict the result. 1-0 at half time and a 3-0 end result was my guess and I was way off. But, just as I finished the scorecard, someone grabbed the microphone and stopped the jazz band playing their background music. It was John Hollins who played host for the evening! I remember being at Bridge all those years ago watching him playing and then watching him as our manager! I couldn't believe it!
Then, with five minutes till kick off it was time to move through the room out the backdoor and into our plush seats a row below the executive boxes and the view was different class! Padded comfortable seats with leg room and a perfect view.
It was here along with the others I was with, we witnessed a first half of football that simply blew Genk away and with it, anyone put in front of us at that particular moment in time.
Torres was on fire making his return to the side, Meireles after being rested for Everton was keen to make an impression and was everywhere. Malouda made more forward runs and more of an impact in that one half of football I think he has had for most of last season. Romeu was imperious and showcased the fact that we have got ourselves a real bargain. Chelsea were ruthless and impressive. 4-0 at half time and let's be honest, it could have been a hell of a lot more!.
So the whistle below for half time and back inside we moved once more to the complimentary food and drink provided while continuous memories of Chelsea in the Champions League was played on the plasma screens all round the room. This time however, there was even more of a surprise. As a I walked through the room, I bumped into Kerry Dixon and shook his hand (again grew up in absolute awe of him as a player for Chelsea) and said something along the lines of "Torres ain't bad after all is he? A bit like yourself in your day Kerry!" He gestured as if to say something along the lines of not being anywhere near the same league but I instantly remembered back when Kerry Dixon was unplayable too!.
I made my way back to the people I was with and John Hollins re-appeared, this time to do a live Q&A with Kerry Dixon AND Chopper Harris! unbelievable. Now you have to remember, this is me here, a fan of over 30 years through all the good and bad times where I would only see these people on the off chance around the ground at some stage long before kick off. With that, I took a swig from my complimentary bottle and stood in amazement and listened to what they had to say.
After that finished, and the discussion about the first half, we made our way back out to our seats and watched the remainder of the game which to be honest was done and dusted by half time. Chelsea made their changes, Torres never got his hat trick although, the GenkKalou to volley home unmarked to make it 5-0.
The game finished and once again, we walked back into the main room I had been in since 1730 that afternoon. More food and drink were available as John Hollins once again grabbed the microphone again to announce the scorecard prediction winners. A signed Adidas Chelsea shirt, an Adidas Champions League football and a couple of Kegs of larger were up for grabs but I was never in contention. Hollins announced 2230 was closing time so I had around 35-40 minutes to carrying on living the dream. The time was spent just talking about everything and anything and I would like to thank the five people I was with for the evening. They all have their projects, they all really, really know their football and enjoyed the experience.
For me, as 22:30 came it was time to leave and get back to reality. It was a truly eye opening night and one that showed me how much of another world it really is. I didn't have to queue up to get a beer or a pie and rush it down in time to get back inside the ground so I didn't miss anything after spending time queueing.
For one night, in addition to the buzz of being at the Bridge to take in a game, I had the chance to experience the Champions Club, it's something I wish everyone could do just to say you have been there once!.
Thanks to Adidas Football, it was a night I will never forget!.
KTBFFH
Check out my blog posts on the Official Chelsea Website - http://bit.ly/mRUOqw
Follow me and my blog on Twitter - http://bit.ly/gP9Dwt
Follow the blog on Facebook - http://on.fb.me/i5OTbj
Grab my RSS Feed - http://bit.ly/ijgiIT
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