Heroic Southend draw at Stamford Bridge

Third tier minnows Southend will be the toast of their town this week after standing up to Premier League giants, Chelsea, in their FA Cup fixture at Stamford Bridge this weekend.

Southend secured a place in the FA Cup history books by fighting back from a goal down to draw with Chelsea and set up a return fixture at their home stadium. The result was a significant setback for Chelsea, who have now failed to win in four matches.

A Saloman Kalou goal put Chelsea in the lead on the half hour, as the Blues created a number of scoring opportunities. However, failure to convert opportunities into goals cost Chelsea dear when Peter Clarke produced a stunning equaliser a minute into injury time.

The result left Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari searching for answers. Scolari fielded a strong team for the match, with John Terry and Petr Cech the most significant absentees.

“I have a very good squad,” Scolari told the AFP after the match. “If the board want players then good, if not then I still have a good squad, but I don’t need another striker. We need people to score more goals. We need to work on finishing in training. I believe in these players. I need to say what is not correct and maybe after one week, one month or one year, we will be better.”