As Liverpool fans continued to debate last week whether Roberto Martinez was the man to reinstate them to the Premier League’s upper echelons the news that Brendan Rodgers would be their new messiah must have been like a bolt from the blue. After all everyone including the media thought Martinez would be the man to replace Kenny Dalglish in the Reds dugout. It must have come as somewhat of a surprise to learn Rodgers was the man Fenway Sports Group had pinpointed to lead them into a new era. His record at Swansea is certainly an admirable one and he’s certainly proved his top-flight credentials after guiding the South Wales club to 11th in their first season after promotion from the Championship 12-months prior. More so the preference for his teams to play an attractive brand of possessional football, closely resembling the tiki-taka philosophy, has won him a legion of admirers. It will be interesting to see whether he can mould the Reds to his requirements and implement his style upon a playing squad that drastically underachieved under Dalglish.
This week on FFC do the Liverpool owners need to act under a degree of stoicism with Rodgers and could an Icelandic midfielder he managed at Swansea be following him to Merseyside?
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Best of FFC
Liverpool Must Exercise Patience To Exorcise Demons
Have Liverpool missed a big trick here?
The man to oversee the Anfield rebuilding process?
Time for English football to break away from tradition?
Liverpool looking to hijack Swans £6.8m deal
Ligue 1 ace confirms Liverpool interest
Caption Competition: Chelsea and Liverpool stars clash on the course
Changes to English football mean nothing in the wrong hands
A huge investment that delivers no guarantees
Gone but certainly not forgotten at Anfield
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Best of WEB
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Why Rodgers Is The Perfect Man To Usher In A New Red Dawn – Live 4 Liverpool
“The truth is…” – Agent responds to £30m striker speculation. Still a chance…? – Liverpool Kop
FSG = Future Success Guaranteed? – This is Anfield
“It’s legal! – Luis Suarez can’t really believe this…can he? – Liverpool Kop
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Rodgers: Blueprint for a Bright Red Future – The Tomkins Times
A Rational Look at Raheem Sterling – Live 4 Liverpool
LFC manager search: Brendan Rodgers in profile – This is Anfield
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Quote of the Week
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“This is a long-term plan, that was important for me. It’s going to be over a number of years. First and foremost I want to defend the principals of this great club, which is about offensive, creative football but with technical discipline and to maintain the values of the club.” Brendan Rodgers talks about his vision for Liverpool after being appointed manager at Anfield.
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Liverpool unveil Brendan Rodgers as their new manager
Roberto Di Matteo has admitted that he is fully aware of the pressure on him to deliver with Chelsea in 2012-13, after moving from the interim manager to permanent boss of the Stamford Bridge club.
The Italian coach filled in on a temporary basis last term and excelled after Andre Villas Boas’ dismissal, leading the west London side to the Champions League and FA Cup trophies.
Despite this, Chelsea are on something of a transfer push this summer, signing Eden Hazard, Marko Marin and Kevin De Bruyne, and Di Matteo knows he needs to succeed to keep his job.
“I am very happy to be here,” he told reporters at a press conference, reported by Sky Sports.
“I was going to respect and accept any decision [from the board] but I am looking forward now to working with this group of players and hopefully bringing further success.
“The pressure will always be there. There has been speculation from day one and I have lived with it from day one.
“I have lived with it and I focus on my job and everyone else can say and write what they want.
“I have been in football all my life. I clearly know that managers are judged by results, as simple as that. It’s no different for me than anybody else.
“The end of the season was remarkable and the team was outstanding in achieving those targets, but that is the past – now we look to the future and we have to start again.
“We have to try and get running from the start and be competitive in all the competitions we are involved in.
“With Chelsea you are always looking to compete and be in the frame to win something at the end of the season, that will be the key.
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Brendan Rodgers is attempting to tie up a deal of to bring Fulham’s Clint Dempsey to Liverpool, according to The Daily Mail.
The transfer is expected to be completed at the end of the week and will relieve the Anfield faithful after losing out on the signature of Gylfi Sigurdsson.
The Iceland international held back from a permanent move to Swansea following Rodgers’ departure from the club but Tottenham Hotspur swooped in late on and snatched him from under Liverpool’s nose.
Dempsey, 87-times capped by the USA, could become Rodgers’ second signing of the summer, following the capture of former Chelsea striker Fabio Borini from Roma last week.
The 29-year-old’s goal scoring record has improved year upon year for the Cottagers, with his 17-goal haul last season representing his most prolific to date.
Dempsey is capable of playing anywhere across the midfield and forward lines and his versatility would therefore make him a very astute signing.
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He may be unlikely to play with Andy Carroll however, who continues to be linked with a move away from Liverpool with reported interest from West Ham United, AC Milan and his former club Newcastle United.
There’s simply no satisfying some people, is there? Just as Chelsea continue their unremittingly impressive start to the Premier League, it seems as if Roberto Di Matteo’s side are yet to convince the doubters of their championship credentials. But although their superb Eden Hazard-led charge out of the blocks has been superb, they’ve still got a hell of a way to go before they can be taken as any kind of serious challengers to Manchester City’s throne.
The talk at the beginning of the season circled around the buzzword of expectation. The visions of last season’s unprecedented success are all but champagne blurred memories. No one can ever take away Chelsea and Roberto Di Matteo’s amazing cup achievements last term, but this time, things are different. The Italian is now expected to win football matches and expected to challenge for silverware. There will be no plucky atmosphere of underdogs this term.
The scale of this summer’s investment has only cranked up the feeling of expectation, too. When you pay the sort of money that has been shelled out for the likes of Eden Hazard and Oscar amongst others, you would imagine that Roman Abramovich wouldn’t mind seeing some kind of return on that.
Martin Tyler described Didier Drogba’s Champions League winning penalty as the biggest moment in the history of Chelsea Football Club. While the prestige and stature of winning a European Cup ensures that statement is correct, it is still after all, a cup. It has been bleated a thousand times within these articles, but while the best club doesn’t always win the cup, they always win the league. Premier League success is the yardstick amongst what everything else shall always be measured by and the Blues must ensure they are competitive on the domestic front.
Pre-season form suggested that this might not necessarily be quite as cut and dried as some observers predicted. Using the new term’s period of preparation and condition as some form of barometer for their Premier League fortunes has made a mug out of many. Although a string of pre-season defeats didn’t look particularly encouraging, especially after a lackluster 3-1 defeat at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion at the beginning of the month. While Hazard looked a mercurial talent, the rest of the team seemed to have some real work to do as both Di Matteo and Frank Lampard testified.
Some even continued to doubt the Stamford Bridge recruitment policy. Although they were in need of beefing up the attacking side of things, there was even a feeling that things were looking too top-heavy and unbalanced. Hazard’s £32million acquisition was followed by the arrivals of Marko Marin from Werder Bremen and the highly rated Oscar from Internacional. Victor Moses has since also joined but Cesar Azpilicueta has been their only defensive bolster.
So what did Chelsea do amongst the swirl of doubt and whispers of disapproval? Predictably, they’ve gone and won their first three games on the bounce, scoring eight goals in the process and playing some superb attacking football. Eden Hazard has arguably been the man of the match in every game they’ve played and Fernando Torres looks like something of a man reborn, leaving a large smattering of egg on many observers’ faces.
It’s somewhat pointing out the obvious, but you simply cannot look past the performances of Hazard in this early season galvanization of Stamford Bridge. The Belgian gave the impression he bestowed the sort of levels of confidence that veer perilously on the side of arrogance, before his big money switch to the Blues. Some thought that’d be an issue. Instead, it seems to have catalysed the fortunes of both him and his teammates as he’s swaggered around the first three games of the season, clocking up four assists and one goal in the process.
In fairness to Chelsea, the whole team has deserved merit for their superb start to Premier League proceedings. Juan Mata has been equally superb as his attacking colleagues and Ryan Bertrand has also caught the eye in these tentative stages of the season.
But whilst the doubters can hold their hands up in some respects, some certainly feel as if they’re overstepping the mark in these revised predictions for Chelsea’s season. If pre-season fortunes are a poor barometer for a team’s league fortunes, than the opening three games can hardly be taken as gospel. It’s early days at Stamford Bridge and Roberto Di Matteo’s men are yet to be really tested by one of the bigger boys.
You can only beat what is in front of you some will say, and to all intents and purposes, that’s bang on the money. Wins away to Wigan and at home to Reading don’t constitute the most strenuous of tests. Newcastle did of course finish above the Blues last season but without taking anything away from Chelsea’s performance, the Magpies looked jaded after a mid-season trip to Greece in the Europa League.
They have certainly looked more impressive than the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal so far and perhaps with their scale of investment, that is to be expected. Both North London clubs have faced their fair share of problems pre-season but they will improve. Chelsea currently look a step above the pair but that doesn’t mean that will necessarily transcend into some form of title push or even remain the case, as the season continues.
An away win against Wigan came before conceding two goals to the promoted Reading, in a game that they were very lucky to come out with three points. They may have had their fair share of chances, but the truth is that at 2-2, they shouldn’t have beaten the Royals. Chelsea’s third came courtesy of a shocker of an offside decision and the fourth was a sucker punch as Reading sent Adam Federici up for a corner. They might have made a more impressive start than the two Manchester clubs, but they still have to improve.
The 3-2 Community Shield defeat to Manchester City suggested that whilst Chelsea didn’t necessarily get the rub of the green, they have some work to do before they start harbouring title hopes. Branislav Ivanovic’s dismissal harmed the game as a contest, but Chelsea were outplayed and outmanoeuvred for large periods of the game. If Manchester City represent a well-oiled machine, then Chelsea resembled something of a cautious prototype – full of promise, but not quite ready to fire on the production line.
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The next few weeks will tell us all we need to know about just how much promise Roberto Di Matteo’s prototype is showing. Friday’s Uefa Super Cup fixture against Atletico Madird will offer a tough examination, but perhaps the first, big test in the league will come away to Arsenal at the end of the month. You get the feeling that they’re perhaps only one injury to Fernando Torres or Eden Hazard away from a spot of bother. But if they continue their current level of performance, it’ll be exciting to see what this season has in store for them.
Chelsea haven’t committed a crime, but they’re certainly innocent until proven guilty. As opposed to waiting for the team to slip up, perhaps some should appreciate their current level of output for what it is today.
How do you rate Chelsea’s current form? More than just a promising start? Or are some reading too much into their current Premier League form? Tell me what you think on Twitter: follow @samuel_antrobus and bat me all your views.
Liverpool are set to miss out on yet another transfer target, as Real Madrid playmaker Nuri Sahin looks to have opted for a loan move to The Emirates despite Liverpool submitting a more attractive offer. It is thought Sahin’s decision was based upon wanting Champions League football, a competition Liverpool have failed to qualify for in the last three seasons.
The sad truth of the matter, is Liverpool’s failure to qualify for Europe’s elite competition, is now having a big impact on their transfer business. Brendan Rodgers is having to wheel and deal in a manner it seems only Harry Redknapp is capable of, as he attempts to build a squad capable of challenging for the top four.
The setbacks he has suffered in the transfer market prove that Liverpool is no longer viewed as the ‘dream move’ it once was for so many players. Whether it be through lack of funds or lack of Champions League football, there seems to be a fundemental problem in attracting the right calibre of players to Anfield.
Glyfi Sigurdsson became the first player to snub the Rodgers revolution, despite playing some fantastic football under the Liverpool boss at Swansea. Many Liverpool fans were furious at Sigurdsson’s decision to snub the Reds for a bigger pay packet at Tottenham, but the Icelandic midfielder claimed the move was entirely based on footballing reasons.
If you look at the statistics from the past three seasons, Tottenham have finished 4th, 5th and 4th, only missing out on Champions League football this season after Chelsea won the competition to claim their last spot. Liverpool have finished 7th, 6th and 8th in the same time period, and last year finished a massive 17 points behind Tottenham in 4th place.
Yes, the money would have been a factor in Sigurdsson’s decision, but even so you can understand his reasons for opting for a move to White Hart Lane based on Liverpool’s recent run. Liverpool fans will tell you they would never expect to see a player choose Tottenham over their famous club, but the current truth is that Tottenham have been a better side than Liverpool for the past three years.
For me, the problems began in the summer of 2009. Rafa Benitez had guided the Reds to their best ever Premier League season, which saw them narrowly pipped to the title by Manchester United. The following summer would prove crucial in determining whether they would be able to take the next step.
Benitez was not backed in the transfer market at the most crucial time of his tenure by former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillette. Alonso left for Real Madrid, a crocked Alberto Aquilani was bought in alongside Glen Johnson, Liverpool’s only major signing.
They finished 7th that season, Benitez was axed, Hodgson was bought in and the rest is history. Liverpool have been out of the top four ever since, and been underwhelmed with the transfer business done by first Hodgson, and then Kenny Dalglish.
It is a depressing thought for Liverpool fans, that only three years ago top players like Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano and Fernando Torres were gracing the Anfield pitch. All three have now moved on, and countless names have been drafted in on the cheap as Liverpool have looked to re-establish themselves in Europe’s elite competition. The likes of Christian Poulsen, Milan Jovanavic and Joe Cole have all arrived with huge salaries and made little to no impact during their time at Anfield.
Kenny Dalglish was given plenty of cash in a bid to get Liverpool back as quickly as possible, but was let down by the likes of Stewart Downing, Jordan Henderson and Andy Carroll. Rodgers is now paying the price with a limited transfer budget.
It has been a remarkably quick decline for Liverpool, and one Rodgers is tasked with halting. The lack of Champions League football is making this task far more difficult then he perhaps envisaged.
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Sahin now looks set to join Sigurdsson on Rodgers list of failed transfer targets. Cristian Tello of Barcelona is another thought to not fancy the move to Merseyside, whereas Liverpool have failed to meet Fulhams valuation of Clint Dempsey. You would have thought a 29-year-old in the final year of his contract should not be a particularly hard deal to tie up?
Rodgers has made some decent signings with the likes of Borini and Allen bought in, but faces a tough task during the final few days of the transfer window to convince players Liverpool is still a top club, despite the lack of Champions League football. In all honesty, he is not the biggest of managerial names. Whereas before players would join Liverpool saying ‘I want to play under Benitez’ or ‘I want to play under Dalglish.’ Last season apart, Rodgers is something of an unknown quantity.
Rodgers has bought in players he already knows and worked with before, and is hoping to sell his philosophy of football to potential new signings. Whether this is enough to attract the top players remains to be seen. This transfer window has proved the lack of Champions League football is making his task all the more difficult.
England manager Roy Hodgson has expressed his concern that he only has a handful of players to select from that play regularly for their Premier League clubs, according to The Telegraph.
England begin their World Cup qualifying campaign with a trip to lowly Moldova on Friday, followed by a potentially tricky tie against Euro 2012 co-hosts and group opponents Ukraine at Wembley on Tuesday.
Although the prospect of facing a Moldova side who are currently ranked 137th in the FIFA World Rankings won’t cause Hodgson too many sleepless nights, the fact that the majority of his squad haven’t played too many minutes on the pitch will come as a concern to the manager.
England’s back line is not a problem. Goalkeeper Joe Hart is a certain starter for Roberto Mancini at Manchester City. Additionally, England’s defence should all be ready and fit for the Moldova and Ukraine encounters.
Likewise, Leighton Baines, Ryan Bertrand, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka, Glen Johnson, Kyle Walker and Joleon Lescott have all featured for their respective clubs in the first three weekends of the Premier League season.
John Terry has also been declared fit for the Moldova game after suffering from a neck injury which had seen him absent for Chelsea’s victory over Newcastle in the Premier League and their defeat at the hands of Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup last Friday.
The only minor setback in defence for Hodgson is the withdrawal of Ashley Cole from the Moldova game after he suffered a knock to ankle during the Super Cup game aforementioned. The 31-year-old will be reassessed by the England medical team just before the Ukraine match.
It is in midfield and attack where the 64-year-old Hodgson will be feeling uneasy. Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard and Manchester United’s Michael Carrick are the only week-in-week-out starters for their respective clubs.
Other England inclusions such as James Milner, Tom Cleverley, Frank Lampard, Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain and Theo Walcott can only currently be described as squad players rather than key members of the first team judging by the Premier League team-sheets at present.
One would assume that Adam Johnson will become a first-team regular for Sunderland after joining the black cats for £10 million last week. However, it will take him time to regain his match sharpness after being left out of the cold at Manchester City last season.
Hodgson will have even more of a selection dilemma up front following the withdrawals from Wayne Rooney and Andy Carroll. Of the three strikers that the England manager has at his disposal, none of them are guaranteed picks for their clubs.
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Arguably, all three players have been hindered by new arrivals at their respective clubs. Danny Welbeck may be encounter limited first-team action by the arrival of Robin van Persie, Daniel Sturridge hasn’t started a game following the arrival of Eden Hazard at Stamford Bridge and Jermain Defoe may have to accept being second choice striker at Tottenham after capturing Emmanuel Adebayor from Manchester City.
England should have the strength in depth to overcome Moldova and Ukraine in their opening two fixtures and perhaps throughout the whole World Cup qualification campaign. However, lingering is the concern that once a major tournament arrives, will the new exciting youthful looking England side have played enough minutes on the pitch to cope with the world’s best?
Robin Van Persie’s late penalty earned Manchester United all three points against Liverpool on an emotionally charged afternoon at Anfield that saw Jonjo Shelvey sent off.
Victims of the Hillsborough disaster were remembered in poignant scenes with both clubs setting aside their rivalry to observe the pre-match ceremonies with impeccable decorum. There also no repeat of the ugly scenes from Old Trafford when Luis Suarez refused to shake Patrice Evra’s hand as the pair carried out the pre-match ritual with zero fuss.
When the action did get underway Liverpool dominated but lacked the finishing touch that would have brought them a well earned lead, Steven Gerrard going closest with a shot that sailed narrowly wide. United were struggling to deal with the home sides fluent passing and movement but were offered a route back into the game after Jonjo Shelvey was shown a straight red card for a reckless lunge on Jonny Evans much to the annoyance of Brendan Rodgers.
The Reds boss threw Suso on at the break in place of Fabio Borini and the youngster made an immediate impact as his cross fell to Glen Johnson, who did brilliantly to tee up Gerrard to volley past Anders Lindegard at the Kop End. That kicked Sir Alex Ferguson’s men into gear and they were level in the 51st minute as Rafael curled a brilliant effort past Pepe Reina after Shinji Kagawa chested Antonio Valencia’s cross from the right into his path.
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Lindegard twice came to his sides rescue as Liverpool pressed forward, saving from Luis Suarez and Suso, before Van Persie snatched victory from the penalty spot after Johnson brought down Valencia in the area after a collision between him Daniel Agger in the centre conceded possession, the latter worryingly leaving the field on a stretcher.
Managers moan constantly about referees, opposition players and anything else that draws away from their own short-comings. But is that really a bad thing when club bosses are drawing attention to acts of violent conduct or even more rarely if they are right.
I believe if in Alan Pardew’s situation if he’s sees his playmaker getting elbowed in the face he has every right to draw attention to the situation after the match. If Pardew is correct then Robin Van Persie has gone out and intentionally tried to hurt and possibly injure one of his star players, then he has every right to pressure in the FA into acting on the incident. Equally should Sir Alex Ferguson have come out and mentioned how incensed he was about Cheick Tiote’s disgusting, dangerous stamp on Tom Cleverley, I wouldn’t have had an issue with it.
I have less time and sympathy for Tony Pulis wanting Luis Suarez to be banned for diving. While I don’t deny Suarez’s dive displayed a willingness to cheat and con an official, he isn’t hurting anyone. Also within the context of the game, there were far worse actions displayed by those representing the Welshman at Anfield. While I wouldn’t be overly bothered if the Uruguay international was handed a three game ban I’d rather see Robert Huth reprimanded for his deliberate stamp on Suarez or Dean Whitehead handed further punishment for his scissor tackle on Raheem Sterling. Or maybe the FA ought to hit the pocket of the team who stepped out on Merseyside to hurt and injure more influential members of the opposition team. Football is a man’s game but the Potters often play with an aggression and ferocity that has no place in the sport.
While it is obvious referees have a tough job and managers often look to displace blame and perhaps ought to be more accountable for their own short-comings. I have no issue with managers speaking out against the actions of other teams. As fans we all do it, if I’m in stadium or pub watching a game and I disagree with a decision or action from a player I’m going to shout and moan, about it. Therefore for me to kick up a fuss when Newcastle’s gaffer is taking acceptation to a challenge from another team, it would hypercritical of me to be bothered or annoyed about it.
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Roberto Mancini has turned his attentions to Malaga midfielder Isco after cooling potential moves for Radamel Falcao and Steven Jovetic, according to Goal.com
The Spanish starlet has a relatively low £16.9m release clause which makes the youngster an attractive proposition for Manchester City during the January window.
It appears that City have baulked at the £48m needed to bring Falcao to the Premier League or the £28m that Fiorentina want for Jovetic and Isco represents better value for money while still offering class. Mancini watched the midfielder during Malaga’s clash against Atletico Madrid last week and was suitably impressed with his display.
Isco has done well for Malaga so far this season, scoring three times in nine appearances including a brilliant double against Zenit St Petersburg in the Champions League.
The club’s sporting director Mario Armando Husillos has already confessed that he faces a real struggle to keep Isco in Spain with the cash strapped club eager to cash in on their top players.
“Isco is our player and is a very important member of the team,” Husillos said. “He’s not for sale. We want to keep him here, but everyone knows that players have a release clause. So, if a club meets this clause, it will be out of our hands.”
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The Premier League champions have made a slow start to the season and are already four points behind leaders Chelsea so Mancini is eager to strengthen during the upcoming transfer window to make sure the club can mount a title challenge again.
Demba Ba’s own goal four minutes from time rescued a point for Sunderland in a feisty Tyne Wear derby with bitter rivals Newcastle, who had Cheick Tiote sent off.
Martin O’Neill’s men trailed to Yohan Cabaye’s early strike but pegged the Magpies back at the death as John O’Shea’s header deflected off an unfortunate Ba to send the ball past a bemused Tim Krul.
It was harsh on the visitors as they held on for more than an hour with 10-men after Tiote was harshly given his marching orders following a late challenge on Black Cats striker Steven Fletcher.
A point was the least Newcastle deserved for their organised defensive efforts, underpinned by the return of goalkeeper Tim Krul and captain Fabricio Coloccini to the back line for the first time since September.
And any nerves prior to kick off were allayed when Cabaye slotted home from just inside the area after Simon Mignolet pushed Ba’s low cross into his path. Sunderland struggled to gain a foothold in the game and barely troubled Pardew’s measured Magpies with Cabaye going close to doubling his tally with a long range free kick that was tipped over by Mignolet.
But Newcastle’s honeymoon period didn’t last long as Tiote, under pressure from Jack Colback, lost control of the ball and caught Fletcher high on the shin prompting referee Martin Atkinson to show him a straight red card, forcing Pardew to send James Perch on for Shola Ameobi soon after.
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Sunderland controlled proceedings after the break but couldn’t break down their North East counterparts with Sebastian Larsson, James McClean and substitute Louis Saha all wasting good chances. But their pressure finally paid as Larsson floated a free kick into the area and O’Shea saw his header bounce into the net off Ba’s chest to salvage a draw.