CHELSEA 2 CITY 1
League Division 1
18th October 1986
attendance 12,990
Scorers
City Varadi(6)
Chelsea Hazard(77), Bumstead(79)
Ref R Groves
City Suckling, Clements, Wilson, May, McCarthy, Redmond, White, McNab, Varadi, I Brightwell, Simpson – sub Baker(86)
Chelsea Godden, Wood, Rougvie, Pates, McLaughlin, Bumstead, Nevin, Jones, Dixon, McAllister, McNaught – sub Hazard(63)
FROM THE PRESS BOX
ROBERT PRYCE WRITING IN THE GUARDIAN 20TH OCTOBER 1986
It may be time to start worrying about John Hollins. Though he remains as fresh-faced and engaging as ever under a barrage of complaints from Chelsea fans. players and former managers, he has taken to spending hours in morbid obsession alone with his VCR. He has seen the tape of Chelsea’s last home defeat, 1-0 against Charlton, at least five times already. “And.” he says. “l still can’t believe that’s how we played.“
For 60 minutes Saturday’s game was almost as horrible. Two teams that conscientiousiy eschew the welly contrived to spend most of the first half batting the ball around in the air.
Manchester City did better out of these exchanges. lmre Varadi gave them the lead after six minutes of his debut, before shooting straight at Godden from a range of about four yards. Then White mlshit a chance so inviting that it should have been arrested for soliciting. The visitors could have been four up by the time Hollins brought some sweetness to midfield, swapping Hazard for McNaught, as the crowd had been urging for more than half an hour, to transform the game.
Hazard beat Suckling from more than 20 yards wtth his left foot then. within two minutes. supplied Dixon with the most telling ball he received all afternoon with his right. The centre forward headed down and across the goal to where Bumstead, slipping in at the defence’s back door, made off with the week’s groceries.
This was Chelsea’s first home win in the League for seven months, since City were last here, in fact. But Hollins does not need to replay this tape to learn that he was fortunate to take three points off a scratch City team..
On balance, Jimmy Frizzeil could be the better off of the two managers. His team may he artiessly thrashing‘about on the flonr of the First Division, but at least he is still in credit with the club’s supporters and the club’s board. who have agreed to stake.him in the transfer market. He should have even more to spend soon provided Davles Agrees to return to Fulham this week.
Last week he traded Robert Hopkins, a right winger with a list at priors out of Hill Street, to West Bromwlch, thereby saving us from a confrontation too fearsome even for Stamford Bridge: Hopkins against Doug Rougvie, whose performance on Saturday deserved a red triangle all to itself.