Chelsea park the bus

A couple of weeks ago I was staying with a friend who’s a Liverpool fan. We watched them beat Manchester City in a pulsating game between rival giants which seemed to have decided this years’ endlessly eventful Premiership. Now enter pantomime villain, stage left, as the maestro Mourinho wrecks the party. He is, no question, a smart tactician, and Brendan Rodgers got over his immediate impulse to deride the Chelsea tactics, eventually recognising that it was an impressive defensive display. But what sickened us all was the deliberate strategy of time wasting, sustained throughout the game. All part of the plan, of course, put them off their stride, make them mad so that they’re not so precise, but it leaves a nasty taste. The one consolation is that it looks very unlikely that Chelsea will win the title as a result.