Source: Daily_Mail
Didier Drogba settles it at the double as dignified Avram Grant leaves fans with good memories
Chelsea 1 Portsmouth 0As the curtain descended on an endlessly curious Cup Final, two wearyfootball teams wandered across Wembley and struggled to make sense of the occasion. Chelsea had delivered a famous double with a flawed performance. [LNB]They now took their cue from their captain John Terry, prancing and capering and striking those poses that players adopt when the silver potis secured. [LNB]But their celebrations fell far short of ecstasy, and when eventuallythey shuffled away, they seemed thankful for the anonymity of the dressing room. [LNB] Downer: Avram Grant (right) consoles Jamie O'Hara[LNB]Portsmouth were bleakly frustrated. They knew they had ridden their luck quite outrageously. They also knew that, had they stayed in the saddle for just a few more lengths, they might have achieved something astonishing. [LNB]So they too hurried away, anxious to be alone with their might-have-beens in the wake of this strange, yet endlessly eventful football match. The stadium had preserved its ocean of blue for the presentations. [LNB]Most years, the losing fans abscond to Wembley Park station while the final whistle is still sounding. [LNB]This time the Pompey supporters lingered; aware that this afternoon had been an extraordinary bonus in a season of pain and penury, cherishing their final few moments as one of the important clubs of England. [LNB] Leading the celebrations: Ashley Cole (left) celebrates with John Terry [LNB]Even the Hampshire loyalists might concede that Chelsea were far superior in touch and movement. Their finishing, however, was wastefully wayward, so that Portsmouth -poor, miserably reduced Portsmouth - retained a relevant interest until the dying moments. [LNB]Essentially, Chelsea's first League and Cup double was decided within three second-half minutes. In the 55th minute, Steve Finnan's infiltration was taken up by Aruna Dindane. [LNB]As the forward stretched his legs, he was brusquely toppled by the Chelsea substitute Juliano Belletti. The subsequent penalty was a test of the nerve of Kevin-Prince Boateng. Sadly, limply, the test was failed. His short run lacked all conviction and his kick was struck with tepid indifference. As it perished on the legs of Petr Cech, we knew that the miracle was not to be. [LNB]In such a match, teams like Portsmouth are allowed just one crack at immortality. And Boateng had bungled it. [LNB] Going missing: Frank Lampard fails to score his penalty against Portsmouth[LNB]Three minutes later, Didier Drogba won himself a free-kick at the other end. We knew, with equal certainty, precisely what would follow. Drogba hit the ball with savage power, and it flew through the Portsmouth line to bury itself inside the far post. [LNB]Chelsea nerves were settled, doubts removed. They should have obtained some added insurance two minutes from time, when Michael Brown lunged at Frank Lampard in the area. Lampard took the kick himself, and rounded off an indifferent day by dragging it listlessly past a post. [LNB]Some saw in this a dark foretaste of possible penalty shoot-outs in South Africa. Heaven forfend. But then, this quirky final bore scant resemblance to anything which might ensue at the World Cup.[LNB] Despite the multinational cast, it was quintessentially English. The mistakes were frequent, the running earnest, the tackles bone-shaking and vindictive.[LNB] And the whole affair took place on a pitch which is an ongoing embarrassment; treacherous, threadbare, shabby incongruity in a wondrous stadium. [LNB] Top Drog: Chelsea's Didier Drogba celebrates his cup final goal[LNB]Yet, still it managed to stage something akin to rib-tickling comedy; more Carry On than Woody Allen, perhaps, but endlessly diverting.[LNB] For a club brought low by rascals and chancers, Portsmouth had attacked their task with zeal and zest. They knew this was their collective swansong, and they seemed resolved to belt out every chorus. [LNB]Under the lugubrious gaze of Avram Grant, a manager who has become improbably popular in a relegation season, they gave it their utmost. Indeed, the purblind optimists among them might ruefully cite the 22nd-minute incident, when a Boateng volley was nudged by Frederic Piquionne, and Cech produced a stunning parry.[LNB] True, those same optimists might not make mention of the five times Chelsea hit either bar or post in the course of the first half. Five times! [LNB]It was almost certainly a Wembley record, just as Salomon Kalou's foppish side-footed fumble on to the bar from four yards may well have been the most maladroit miss that the FA Cup Final has ever known. And if it wasn't the wood, it was David James. [LNB] Big guns: Chelsea captain John Terry, Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Frank Lampard have all featured for the Blues throughout the competition[LNB]There are days when the keeper appears almost invulnerable, and for a long stretch it seemed this would be such a day. He enjoyed his fortune and backed his judgment, [LNB]When all else failed, he opted for the extravagant; never more than in the 38th minute, when Drogba fired a tracer bullet of a free-kick and the keeper somehow persuaded it on to the crossbar. At this stage, Chelsea were almost effortlessly superior. [LNB]But, just as they are not quite the side that their most uncritical admirers would have us believe, so Portsmouth possess players like Dindane and Piquionne who are good enough to keep the best teams honest. They also possess that wonderful following.[LNB] Every successful tackle was greeted like a small victory, every run was bawlingly encouraged, every chance - few as there were -provoked tormented gusts of expectation. [LNB]Amid the tears and tribulations of Portsmouth's miserable season, the fans, with their spirit and their faith, have been their shining light. [LNB]They knew they will not return to Wembley this side of the 22nd century, so they flaunted their flags and sang their songs and stored their memories. And wistfully wondered what might have been. FA CUP FINAL: Chelsea 1 Portsmouth 0: Didier Drogba wrecks Pompey's dream as Ancelotti clinches Double Ashley's six of the best! Chelsea star Cole sets record for FA Cup wins after Portsmouth sunk at WembleyGARY LINEKER: Tradition of the FA Cup is always safe at Chelsea CHELSEA FC
