Terrace Talk Chelsea: Big game a letdown but Diego Costa ban leaves sour taste

So the game didn’t live up to the hype — but then it never really was going to, writes Trizia Fiorellino.

Too much at stake, or rather too much to lose. Add to that some influential players missing from both sides and an energy-sapping midweek 120-minute cup game, and most Chelsea fans would probably have taken a draw before the game.

All that said, I do feel aggrieved that we only lost out on all three points by a bit of a howler from Courtois, which itself followed a throw-in which should never have been. But then City fans probably feel pretty aggrieved that given their superiority, they really should have won.

So we find ourselves once again at war with the media — and I back Mourinho all the way on this one.

It is neither here nor there whether Costa trod on Can (it was hardly a stamp). Once again, it was trial and verdict by the papers and one-eyed pundits and then the spineless FA followed through with the expected punishment courtesy of their kangaroo court, perfectly demonstrating the sham that is this league’s disciplinary system.

Only Costa knows whether he deliberately meant to tread on Can but would it even have become a disciplinary issue had the media not made it THE one talking point of the entire match?

The Liverpool game was a scintillating tie — great atmosphere, end-to-end stuff, a Wembley final at stake, yet virtually every paper led with the “stamp”.

Not just the papers — you had ex-Liverpool pundits suggesting the likes of Pellegrini should be ringing the FA to demand that Costa be banned.

As much as this kind of thing panders to the very lowest common denominators of the game, one could possibly accept if we saw some sort of consistency. But we don’t.

Many journalists, pundits, commentators all now seem to openly peddle bias without any sort of recrimination from anyone.

And Mourinho was right about the disproportionate number of these people whose allegiances lie with Liverpool. This leads to them getting a disproportionately sympathetic press and if a player transgresses in the slightest way against them, he will be targeted en masse as we saw with the Costa “tread”.

I can accept that we bring some of this negative reaction upon ourselves.

But we cannot have the press deciding who is to be punished and who isn’t. It undermines the game as a whole. And based on what? Who gives them a better lunch? How many press nights out the club fund?

They’ll be those reading this thinking that Costa is guilty and that if it took the press to push his punishment through, so be it.

But where does this then stop? If we are going to retrospectively right wrongs, then what about Henderson and Lucas? Every pundit and reporter agreed that both should have been sent off. Yet they totally escape punishment.

But we are where we are and we’ll just have to get on with it. Hopefully we won’t miss Costa too much in the next couple of games.

I obviously love seeing him score but I derive as much pleasure watching him stalk the penalty area and the chaos he causes in opposition defences. The fear is palpable and his nuisance value gives time and space to the likes of Hazard and Oscar.

All that said, I thought Fabregas was the bigger miss on Saturday. The conductor next to Matic the enforcer. It is amazing how quickly we have become so reliant on him. Our attacking play is slower and more stilted without him, our passing less accurate.

Five points, although advantageous, is not nearly enough of a cushion against City, especially when they get their players back from the Africa Cup of Nations.

Both sides will drop points at some stage but it’s still the strength in depth that worries me — especially when the Champions League campaigns start up again.

Until then, Jose will continue his war with the world’s press and that’s more than okay with me. Why should he pander to those that foster such malevolence against the team and the players? Hopefully the failure of any of our coaching staff to appear before the cameras demonstrates that the club backs him on this one.

Of course there will be fines and he’ll eventually have to face the vultures again, but the point will have been made. And if I were him, I would never provide the box office quotes that make their jobs so easy. He should revert to the standard inane, dull press conferences so many Premier League managers churn out — make them work for a living.

Anyway, bring it on — we’re ready.