In an upset described simply as "a disgrace" from Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, league one side Bradford City have knocked out Premier League leaders Chelsea from the FA Cup with a 4-2 victory at Stamford Bridge. With the quadruple now impossible, Chelsea must still face the stern test of the second leg of the Capital One Cup against Liverpool on Tuesday night, along with next weekend's visit from second placed Manchester City. After the disappointing result against Bradford City, Chelsea will now be forced to recover and step it up in their remaining domestic competitions, while still keeping an eye ready to face Paris Saint Germain in the Champions League round of sixteen.Despite the lower league opposition, Jose Mourinho still fielded a respectable side with experience. With Cahill and Azpilicueta in defence, along with Oscar, Ramires, and Drogba all starting, the Premier league leaders seemed to be coasting as they grabbed the lead with Cahill popping in a sneaky flick from a corner. The second came with a smooth counterattack after Ramires stole the ball in midfield, with a quick-moving give and go between the Salah and the Brazilian who neatly finished. Yet Bradford City were able to pull one back before halftime, with the unmarked Stead receiving the ball from a set play before blasting it into the top corner past Cech.
As the second half wore on, Mourinho brought on Fabregas and Willian for Salah and John Obi Mikel in the 70th minute, however five minutes later Bradford City found the equalizer with Morias finishing off a scramble in Chelsea's box. At this point Mourinho brought on his final substitute, replacing Loic Remy with Eden Hazard, yet Bradford were still uncontainable going forward. It was Halliday who gave the visitors the 3-2 lead, his first time shot from the top of the box unreachable for Cech. Despite being up, Bradford City continued to charge at the champions rather than defend their lead, and were rewarded when the substitute Yeates tucked in their final goal in stoppage time to complete the 4-2 comeback.
Although Mourinho can still look at Liverpool's unimpressive 0-0 draw against Bolton and Manchester City's 2-0 loss to Middlesborough, their defeat was still the most comprehensive collapse of any Premier League side in the FA Cup round this weekend. Stamford Bridge will be looking for a positive result against the Reds (still without the injured Daniel Sturridge, who should be back in time to face West Ham) on Tuesday night in order to continue on in the Capital One Cup. Following that, the true test to consolidate their Premier League dominance awaits when Manchester City visit London next weekend. Be sure to check out the current Premier League odds, as both sides will be looking for victory at all costs on Saturday night.
What remains for sure is that Jose Mourinho cannot allow his Chelsea side to put in another similar performance in their upcoming matches, or else their treble could be at stake. Share your thoughts about the match along with predictions for the upcoming fixtures below.
