Hiddink gamble pays off in style
All eyes were on the Chelsea manager to see how he would handle Drogba following the infamous scenes against Barcelona in midweek and he responded by picking the striker in an impressive 4-1 victory over their London rivals.
It was all very different to a few days earlier when lurid back and front page headlines called for Drogba to be fined, dropped and ceremoniously flogged for the way he abused referee Tom Henning Ovrebo following Chelsea’s Champions League exit.
It would have been all too easy to bow to the critics and leave the Ivorian out, especially as he picked up a potentially ‘convenient’ ankle injury against Barca.
But Hiddink handled the situation in his own way and was rewarded with a clinical performance from his side – including Drogba – as strikes from Alex, Nicolas Anelka, Florent Malouda and a Kolo Toure own goal sealed a vital victory.
The result leaves Hiddink’s side nine points clear of their rivals with a place in next year’s Champions League group stage now guaranteed.
“I can be very proud of the team after what has happened,” admitted Hiddink.
“I felt the injustice, not being in the European Cup final. That felt like a huge injustice for everyone in the team. Having this reaction against Arsenal is fantastic.
“And as for picking Drogba we don’t live according to headlines – the big issue was whether his conduct and behaviour was against the team’s interest, and it wasn’t. The incident after the game was what everyone was talking about.
“He saw what he did wrong and apologised for it. We don’t know what is going to happen regarding that, but if the people at UEFA are football people rather than bureaucratic people, they’ll take that into account.
“I spoke to him before this game about how to play, not just tactically but also because everyone would be looking. We said everyone is focused on you, play the simple game. And he did. He took a perfect free-kick for Alex’s beautiful header and he worked as he should. He did not react to any challenges.”
In truth, Drogba’s performance was not the one that won it for Chelsea – players such as Anelka, Frank Lampard and Malouda played a much bigger part. But his inclusion set the tone for a defiant display, although the same cannot be said for Arsenal.
They also arrived here on the back of a hugely disappointing Champions League exit – a 3-1 home defeat against Manchester United – but responded in a very different way.
This result not only ends Arsenal’s season but means they face a difficult qualifier to get into the Champions League next year, with clubs the size of Bayern Munich, Valencia and Juventus potential opponents if the draw goes against them.
But whatever the problems at the Emirates, this was really Chelsea’s story. After all, Drogba’s wild-eyed face had appeared in almost every newspaper and on every television screen across the world following the disgraceful scenes against Barcelona and all those viewers were waiting for part two.
There was a widespread belief in England that having endured such bad PR Chelsea would diplomatically leave Drogba in the treatment room to allow the situation to fade away.
But Hiddink held a team meeting on Friday to assess the mental state of his players, including Drogba, and to underline why, with third place in the league and an FA Cup final still at stake, they could not afford to hide or sulk for the rest of the season. He backed up his words by selecting Drogba up front with Anelka supporting from midfield.
His players began shakily and had to deal with a lot of early Arsenal possession as the home team, as they did against United, started strongly with Samir Nasri, Theo Walcott and Abou Diaby all having chances to open the scoring.
But, completely against the run of play, Chelsea took the lead after 28 minutes when Drogba touched the ball almost for the first time.
In typical fashion he crumbled to the floor under a poor challenge from Fabregas and while the Spaniard was booked for accusing his opponent of diving, Drogba remained cool enough to chip over a cross for Alex to head home unmarked.
It was poor defending from the home side and Chelsea took full advantage when they went further ahead after 39 minutes with a wonderful run and 25-yard strike from Anelka that swerved past Fabianski in goal.
It was 3-0 just after the break when Ashley Cole’s low cross was deflected into his own net by Toure and although Arsenal pulled a goal back through energetic substitute Nicklas Bendtner the final word belonged to Chelsea when Anelka’s shot hit a post and Malouda slid in to complete a remarkable victory.
“I’m very proud,” said Hiddink “It shows Chelsea is a team that reacts. We had setbacks before against Liverpool and Juve but the team always reacts. They are real men who like to go and get the challenge.”
And that, rather than Drogba’s anger-distorted face on a front page , is the image Chelsea really want to show the world.
REFEREE: Phil Dowd (Staffordshire) 8: Unlike poor Tom Henning Ovrebo he made the job look easy. He was always in control, stamped down quickly on dissent and got most of the big decisions correct.
MATCH RATING: *** Arsenal played all the football early on and also staged a late spurt, but Chelsea’s clinical finishing was impressive.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
