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Dogged Everton won't be able to smother Didier Drogba

Scott Minto
29 May 2009


Guus Hiddink has already shown that he has one of the best tactical brains in world football.

His impact on the club has been massive this season. Hiddink has come in, gained instant respect from the squad, got Didier Drogba back to his best, and the team playing for each other again. The Luiz Felipe Scolari era already seems a long time ago.

Barcelona completely destroyed Manchester United in the Champions League Final on Wednesday, yet the Catalan giants know they should have been beaten by Hiddink's Chelsea in the previous round.

Tomorrow's FA Cup Final will provide Hiddink with a totally different set of problems from the games against Pep Guardiola's team. Everton are no Barcelona. Nor will they try to play like them but that's not to say they don't have good players. In the absence of the injured Mikel Arteta, both Steven Pienaar and Leon Osman have shown that they are good technical footballers.

But dogged Everton base their play on graft and working hard for each other.

Despite the loss of Phil Jagielka and Arteta, they have continued to go from strength to strength. And the fact that Chelsea haven't beaten them in the League this season, or even scored a goal against them, shows that this will be one of their toughest games of the campaign.

This is a massive occasion for the Blues. If they don't win they will look back at this season as a failure, especially as it will mean two years without a trophy.

Alex and Frank Lampard are fit again after missing the Sunderland game so Hiddink's only selection problem is whether to play Michael Ballack and have Michael Essien holding in midfield or play John Obi Mikel and take the reins off the Ghana international.

Everton, with their 4-5-1 formation, will try and smother the midfield and keep it as tight as possible. They will want the game to be goalless for as long as they can and frustrate Chelsea in much the same way as they did against United in the semi-final.

It's important Hiddink's men don't panic and play long, hopeful balls up to Drogba if they get frustrated.

Everton, with Joseph Yobo and Joleon Lescott at the back, are strong and powerful and will eat up any balls that are pumped aimlessly high towards to the Ivorian striker.

However, offensively, Drogba is the key to winning the match. If quality balls are played to him and Nicolas Anelka, Lampard, Essien and the much improved Florent Malouda can support him and Chelsea will score.

Defensively for the Blues, they need to be careful at set-pieces. Terry will have to make sure that his team, firstly, don't concede free-kicks in dangerous areas, and, secondly, that they pick up the danger men Yobo, Lescott, Louis Saha and, of course, Tim Cahill.

The FA Cup means a lot to Hiddink as well as the players.

He has already said this week how as a kid, then a player and even as a manager, he set aside cup final weekend to sit down and watch the game.

I don't see it being a classic. But it would be a fitting end to the Dutchman's short reign that, in his last game for the club, he handed them a major trophy.

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