Hiddink deflates Villa, Wolves & Blues stutter, and Tigers show their claws!

By Luke Wilkins on Feb 23, 09 07:13 PM

Well I hyped it up on Friday as the game that would act as a yard stick to see how far Villa had come and unfortunately for Martin O'Neill's men, while they have made great strides, the early kick off defeat to Chelsea on Sat morning shows just how far they have to go.

Anelka lifts the ball over Friedel to confirm Villa to their first lague defeat for 14 games

It's not that Villa were that bad, but up against a side trying to impress there manager, and full of world class talent; they just seemed to lack that edge. I genuinely feel Villa can take on anyone on a good day, the problem was, Chelsea were also having a good day, and it just turned out to be better than Villa's.

I don't think Villa fans should panic, but it will be interesting to see how they bounce back from two defeats that would have affected their normally free flowing confidence although I feel the UEFA cup game against CSKA Moscow will be harder than the match on Sunday against Stoke.

As for Wolves and the Blues, what they would give to go on a winning streak of about 4-5 games at their moment, as it seems as if all the teams at the top of the championship are trying to make a game of it! Wolves snatched a draw at Molyneux against an in form Cardiff, but the Blues lacklustre defeat at the hands of their rivals Coventry does not bode well, and it must be said they simply looked as if they had ran out of ideas after a while against Chris Coleman's team, and how it would have helped there season if they were actually ready to go at the whistle, instead of taking 10 minutes to wake up, as they keep conceding early goals.

Dann's early goal was enough for a Coventry win
McCarthy's side are still 4 points clear at the top, having played a game more, but their fans and players will definitely be getting the Heebie Jeebies at the moment, as no matter what you say as a player or manager, at the back of their minds will be the fact they have thrown away promotion before.
Tuilagi dives over for the game's second try at Welford Road

In the world of egg chasing, there was a great game at the Rec where Bath let London Irish off the hook and it ended 20-20 (after leading 17-0 at halftime - bad Bath!), while Quins surprised Gloucester with a nice victory at the Stoop, and the big result was the 38-5 demolition of Worcester by their arch rivals Leicester Tigers. It was great to see my beloved Tigers look on form again, but I do feel that this is not their season, and it is all about putting things in place to be ready to challenge next year, although it would have done the players a world of good to get a win after a few lacklustre performances..
The big man is out for a while now.jpg
Bad news for English cricket fans is the loss of Freddie Flintoff for the rest of the Windies series with a hip injury, and I really feel, as good as the big Talisman is (and he really is that good) England need to start planning for matches without him, and then if he is fit it should be considered a bonus. This is just down to the fact he must feel like he carries the team at times, and then we all panic without him, so surely it would be better to have a Plan B in place?? That or we could always clone him? Better new is the form shown by Ravi Bopara and Amjad Khan who are vying to replace the all rounder in the side, with Bopara destroying the Barbados XI in the friendly with 125 at a run a ball, and Khan taking some nice early wickets in the oppositions reply. Flintoff certainly has big shoes to fill, and with Ambrose in for Matt Prior who has flown home to see his newborn baby (nice work mate!), it will be interesting to see who the selectors plump for.

Okay, I am on air this week from 3-7am Mon-weds, then back to the usual of 3-5am for Thursday and Friday, and Gatecrasher should be mega this Wednesday for my DJ set, so come down! I am also getting back into my self taught guitar lessons having had a week off, and I'm going to shred it tomorrow at Tamworth Snowdome!!!

Music wise this week, its worth checking out the new album from the Prodigy as the boys are back in fine form, actually going back to their roots for Invaders Must Die, which is not a bad thing, and the result is a savage record, and they are gearing up for not only an April tour, but a summer of festival action, having confirmed for the Isle of Wight fest and Download already!

I will be back Weds with another blog, so until then Muchacho's.