Damien Duff

[thejollyrodger]

I asked this before but forget where I posted it:o


So he will most likely go to watch Duffer play.


why would he go out to see Duff when he see's him week in week out :confused:

[eirebhoy]

why would he go out to see Duff when he see's him week in week out :confused:
I'm sure if England (or Holland) were playing Israel on Saturday he'd go to watch that.

BTW - he only see's Duff week in week out under his own instructions. He'd probably like to see how he fair's given more freedom in a competitive game. So far he has only seen him in two home friendlies.

[Colbert Report]

Yes, I'm a Liverpool fan. We haven't had a good Irish player since Ronnie Whelan left, McAteer doesn't count. Finnan is about as close as it gets, but I would absolutely love if we had Duff.

[thejollyrodger]

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=94&si=1364378&issue_id=12247
....Damien Duff could see one or two familiar faces in the crowd on Saturday night as Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and owner Roman Abramovich are expected at the game.

Roman Abramovich heading over as well ! I didnt think he would be in to that.

I cant see Duff ever leaving Chelsea, why would you move to a weaker team ? Unless he had a major drop in form. Liverpool have at least another season or two before they sort out all their problems with players etc.

[BaZmO*]

BTW - he only see's Duff week in week out under his own instructions. He'd probably like to see how he fair's given more freedom in a competitive game. So far he has only seen him in two home friendlies.


Plus you get a different perspective watching somebody from the stands rather than from the touchline.

And it's 20° in Israel at the moment which might have something to do with it.

B.

[FarBeag]

Chelsea Hijack 20m Wright-philips from Arsenal...Hope this is not more bad news for Duff..I think that Duff is the best player in the prem and i would have him first in my sheet everytime but i am not the chelsea manager.What do ye guys think?

[tetsujin1979]

Chelsea Hijack 20m Wright-philips from Arsenal...Hope this is not more bad news for Duff..I think that Duff is the best player in the prem and i would have him first in my sheet everytime but i am not the chelsea manager.What do ye guys think?

There's no way Ian Wright's son is going anywhere except Arsenal. I smell a slow news week for the tabloids

[Havelock Squire]

Duff turns to martial arts

(From the Irish Examiner)

DAMIEN DUFF took up judo earlier this season to put his injury nightmare behind him after twice dislocating his shoulder last season.

Chelsea physio Mike Banks was convinced that Duff’s shoulder problems were brought on by him falling awkwardly and arranged for him to have several sessions with British judo star James Lutman.

“Duff and I did about six sessions over two weeks,” Lutman said. “It was a real honour. I’m a big Chelsea fan.”

Duff was taught how to fall properly: “I taught him how to distribute his weight evenly and not stick his arm out,” Lutman added.

“Over the two weeks, I got him to do the falls harder and faster. When we’d finished, he could do a break-fall running at full pace and he could fall properly when I threw him.

“He’s had no problems since and I’ve seen him do a number of textbook rolls in matches.”


--


Good thinking from the Chelsea physio if this really has helped him. Although I'm not complaining as an Ireland fan, I'm sure I've also seen Duff do a number of texbook "rolls" in matches! ;) ahem

[paul_oshea]

ya i thought the instructors comment was quite funny:

"ive seen him do a number of textbook roles in matches"

duff certainly has a rolling sytle, along with a "being fouled" style!

[eirebhoy]

There was a huge thread on the Chelsea forum about Duff diving this season. Now we know the reason he makes a bit much of every tackle. :)

[tetsujin1979]

Crystal Palace and Bolton have both used swimming, boxing, pilates (sp?) to improve their players fitness levels this season. Roy Keane and Kenny Cunningham have used yoga to stay fitter longer

[tricky_colour]

I expect the Judo will also come in handy for punch ups in the tunnel :p

[Havelock Squire]

For those interested....

Hard to believe Duff still has to prove worth

From Emmet Malone's On Soccer Column in the IT:

About the craziest yarn to emerge from the Peter Ridsdale era at Leeds United was the one concerning Seth Johnson, then a Derby player who arrived at Elland Road with his agent one sunny morning to sort out the personal terms of his move.

The pair took a quick moment outside to agree a target. Though hardly the finished article, Johnson was a highly-regarded prospect seen by many as a future England regular and was on around £8,000 a week at Derby at the time. He clearly expected to improve substantially on that and so the £20,000 he and his advisor set the bar at probably didn't seem outlandish.

A couple of hours later the two men left the meeting struggling, we can only presume, to contain their glee. Details of how precisely the talks had gone are sketchy, but Ridsdale had got his man and the midfielder was to be paid not 20 but £38,000 per week.

For his efforts at Chelsea Damien Duff is paid roughly twice that amount each Friday, but at a club where, as long as Roman Abramovich sticks around, money really is no object, the diminutive Irishman continues to look fantastic value.

It was one of the many puzzles of Claudio Ranieri's last season at Stamford Bridge that he was reluctant to start Duff on a consistent basis or to play him in his preferred position. Injury subsequently limited the player's contribution during the latter part of last season, but long before that Duff had found it hard to disguise his frustration over the coach's selection policy.

Jose Mourinho seems upon arrival to have been unconvinced that Duff, who had cost £17 million from Blackburn, was somebody who could play an important part in his plans for the London club. Before the season started there was speculation that he would be offered as part-payment for Steven Gerrard. His initial treatment of the Irishman was cool and his departure from Lansdowne Road after an international game in the autumn without talking to Duff reportedly left the 26-year-old upset.

The rumours of a move have persisted with Duff apparently being reassured again in January that the club was not trying to offload him. By then Duff was a key member of a Chelsea team that was already on course for the Premiership title. Things quietened down over the weeks that followed, but few could now question his contribution to a campaign that could yet be rounded off by Champions League success.

When he was in the process of moving from Blackburn after an injury-disrupted season two years ago, Chelsea are said to have been shown medical reports by Ewood Park officials that suggested he was highly unlikely to manage more than 30 games a season. Since the summer Duff has started 29 league games and featured in another two and played just short of a further 20 times in competitive games, 10 of them in the Champions League.

His contributions in the Barcelona games were crucial and if he has, by his own admission, tired of late, then he is not the only one as Chelsea's fragile defence have shown recently. So famously hard to beat through much of the season, they have kept just two clean sheets in the club's last 13 games. Against Arsenal last week Duff looked well off his best, but despite struggling to cope with Lauren's close attentions, he managed two fine moments in the first half that could have led to goals.

Duff's willingness to contribute to the defensive side of things is sure to have pleased Mourinho, yet he must have been surprised to be shifted to left back at half time in Saturday's win over Fulham as Arjen Robben returned from another long injury lay-off.

The widespread perception of Robben as the team's brightest star on the wing (something underlined by his seven goals from just 18 league appearances and his inclusion on Sunday evening in the PFA's Premiership team of the year), combined with the dramatic improvement of Joe Cole (who has also scored more league goals in considerable less time on the pitch), means Duff's position remains remarkably vulnerable at the end of what has been his best season to date in English football.

When he was last linked with a move to Liverpool, sources close to him suggested that the story coming from Anfield was that the departure of Gerrard would have to be softened with more than just money.

But with Chelsea being linked to a move for Spanish winger Joaquin, amongst others, there is also a logic for the Londoners who would reduce the cost of recruiting Gerrard from perhaps £30 million, plus £120,000 per week, to perhaps half that by allowing Duff to go the other way.

Ironically, it is said that Duff would have preferred a move to Anfield two years ago, but Liverpool simply couldn't match either the fee or the salary offered by Chelsea. Now such a move would look like a serious step backwards for the Irishman.

Given his determination to stay, and Mourinho's probable preoccupation with showing the likes of Glen Johnson, Scott Parker and Geremi the door, it is unlikely to happen.

Having already eclipsed Roy Keane as Ireland's leading player in the Premiership, though, Duff will have to continue defying his sleepy reputation and prove his worth all over again after the summer.

---

Can't see the Duffman going anywhere for a while yet meself!

[livehead1]

the man has wasted time writing such an article, inlcuding not a single quote from anyone concerned with chelsea that they want rid of the man. hes been a mainstay in the side, joe cole will be left out when robben returns as duff has more end product. i was reading somewhere he has the most assists in the champions league and has played every game for chelsea in the competition. just forget it! lol

[tetsujin1979]

i was reading somewhere he has the most assists in the champions league and has played every game for chelsea in the competition.

Yeah, he has 5 assists, Pirlo, Lampard, Van Bommel, Cocu, Joe Cole and Kaká all have 3

[eirebhoy]

I could never get tired of watching the Duffer. He has some zest about him. Joe Cole is a poor man's (English) imitation.
I'm one of Duffer's biggest fans but I've got tired watching him this year (2005). He has 1 assist and no goals in his last 15 league games. I used to really love sitting down to watch Duff run riot but Joe Cole has been twice the player since he broke into the team. Whether we like to admit that or not it is the truth and I'd prefer Duffer to be rested for a few matches than playing the way he has been playing recently.

It would have been only a year ago that I would have named Duff and Zidane as the two most consistant players in the world. Duff never used to have a bad game.

[Stuttgart88]

I'm one of Duffer's biggest fans but I've got tired watching him this year (2005). He has 1 assist and no goals in his last 15 league games. I used to really love sitting down to watch Duff run riot but Joe Cole has been twice the player since he broke into the team. Whether we like to admit that or not it is the truth

I agree totally about Cole. He's been sensational since he knuckled down and adhered to Mourinho's methods. With Robben back Duff's place is under threat - good news in a way.

However, despite Duff having "lost" a lot of the dynamism he showed earlier in the year the quality of his crossing and, especially, his delivery of a ball on the ground either between the keeper and the six yard line, or between the centre halves and the 18 yard line has still been as good as any I've seen. If Drogba was a more reliable finisher Duff would have had at least 2 assists in the Arsenal game. Ollie Kahn made some good saves from him too (Ibaraki revisited).

[Slash/ED]

Duff needs a rest but he's 10 times the player Cole is, and when he's back to his best there will be no doubt he'd walk into any team in Europe.

[eirebhoy]

I tell ya one thing . . . if Duff was English Joe Cole would have the sum total of 0 international caps.
Furthermore, if Duff was English can you imagine a midfield like this:
DUFF, GERARD, LAMPARD, WRIGHT-PHILLIPS

with OWEN and ROONEY up front. I reckon that sort of attacking potency could win a World Cup.
Look how many goals Chelsea are conceding since Tiago was dropped. Lampard is way too attacking to be partnering Gerrard. They failed at Euro 2004 and they'd fail again with that partnership. They need a holding midfielder if they have any ambitions of winning a world cup.

Anyway, back to Duffer... :)

[DolansWaistcoat]

Will Duff start on the left wing for Chelski tomorrow night or is Robben supposed to start?

Duff vs Finnan on that side of the field!Another Irish player in a Champions league final this year which is the job.The first since Denis Irwin in 99.

[Stuttgart88]

I tell ya one thing . . . if Duff was English Joe Cole would have the sum total of 0 international caps.
Furthermore, if Duff was English can you imagine a midfield like this:
DUFF, GERARD, LAMPARD, WRIGHT-PHILLIPS

with OWEN and ROONEY up front. I reckon that sort of attacking potency could win a World Cup.

If the world cup was on this June they'd have a great chance as so many English players are playing out of their skins at the moment, and their players have pretty much all won things or come close at club level.

However, whereas Chelsea are a beautifully balanced side at the moment with little pairs and partnerships working really well throughout the side - Makelele & Tiago complementing Lampard for example - England's 4-4-2 has no balance about it. For the same reason as Eirebhoy points out, I just don't understand why Chelsea would want Gerrard. Nor Ferdinand for that matter as Carvalho is class.

[4tothefloor]

Duff vs Finnan on that side of the field!Another Irish player in a Champions league final this year which is the job.The first since Denis Irwin in 99.

Well Stevie Finnan is on a yellow card, and seeing as Liverpool are going all the way to the final, lets hope he doesn't pick up a silly booking in the second leg ;)

[eirebhoy]

Will Duff start on the left wing for Chelski tomorrow night or is Robben supposed to start?
It was reported on RTE news today that Duff didn't train today with a tight hamstring. Haven't seen anything on the internet about it though.

[tricky_colour]

Appparently Duff didn't take part in the first training session but did
take part in a later training session at which there were no cameras/press
allowed (forget exact phrase used), thats what I heard on Sky Sports
news.
There is also a really funny press conference with Mourinho where he talks
about how he arrived at in England with a really big ego after winning the
Champions League, and now it's even bigger, made me laugh.

Also just see a headline in the Guarduan shown on SSN "Duff Doubt's not enough to put Mourinho off his stride", not sure what that is about
so I will have a look on googe.

[tricky_colour]

"If he has a worry, apart from a hamstring injury that could rule out Damien Duff and force him to gamble on Arjen Robben’s fitness"

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,762-1587205,00.html

[DolansWaistcoat]

It was reported on RTE news today that Duff didn't train today with a tight hamstring. Haven't seen anything on the internet about it though.

Pity,Hope he gets the nod ahead of Robben so he can show what he can do in front of a huge tv audience. :cool:

Still hope Finnan can keep him under wraps. :o

[onenilgameover]

Well Stevie Finnan is on a yellow card, and seeing as Liverpool are going all the way to the final, lets hope he doesn't pick up a silly booking in the second leg ;)


Feck I forgot about that one...really would be disappointed if Finnan were to miss out on the final.

[ken foree]

For the same reason as Eirebhoy points out, I just don't understand why Chelsea would want Gerrard. Nor Ferdinand for that matter as Carvalho is class.

agree on both there, they'd f*ck up their team by adding them players

[Slash/ED]

Gerrard would replace Tiago and would play alongside Lampard and Makelele, so they'd still have their holding mid fielder if they bought him. I think they'd be better off getting Gerrards team mate Alonso though, someone who can pull the strings from in mid field would work better alongside Makelele and Lampard.

[eirebhoy]

Duff vs Finnan on that side of the field!Another Irish player in a Champions league final this year which is the job.The first since Denis Irwin in 99.
decent pic of the two here:
http://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Photo/competitions/UCL/296818_BIGLANDSCAPE.jpg

Fair play to Finnan if he's still on his feet 2 seconds after that picture was taken. :)

[tricky_colour]

Apparently Duff will not start and neither will Robben but Cole will.

[tricky_colour]

Correction Duff failed his fitness test and will not play, Robben starts on the bench.

[Baker]

Was just on the radio that duff failed his fitness test and wont play

[Baker]

Correction Duff failed his fitness test and will not play, Robben starts on the bench.

Just beat me to it!!

[tricky_colour]

Robben is on bench Cole starts, I guess Duff is not fit.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/live_text/default.stm
Mught be worth a bet on Liverpool, I wonder what the price is?

Hmmm 2-1 Liverpool, 2-1 Draw, 6-5 Chelsea.

Hmm Chelsea are the value bet, they win more away than at home,
however they don't need to win, so I will save my money :cool:

Apparently this game is being shown live in 250 odd countries, more than
world cup final (or something lilke that)!!!

[johnmac]

(I guess Duff is not fit)

What an inspired guess!!!

[tricky_colour]

Well I knew he was injured but I thought he might make the bench.

[FarBeag]

How badly injured is Duff? Will he be ok for June that's the main concern.

[supasparx]

Hamstring problem, should be fine for June.
I hope!

[eirebhoy]

Well he was badly missed over those two legs. Duff playing well or not Chelsea would have scored if he was playing. That is 2 finals in a row they could have made if he was fit.

[tricky_colour]

I am a little concerned about Duff too, it might be nothing, but then
again you never know, he does tend to be the injury prone type.
However there has been nothing in the news about it so hopefully
wll will be well.
Though Finnan had a good game, rarely troubled, Robben seemed to just
to tackle himself when Finnan was marking him :D

[Stuttgart88]

Chelsea have really done well in managing Duff's tendency to have hamstring problems. He's played almost every game since September which would have been unthinkable at Blackburn.

The fact that he trained on Monday suggests it's a short-term problem. Chelsea's season is now pretty much over so a 5 week rest will hopefully serve Duff well.

[dr_peepee]

For me Mourinho AND Kerr (China WTF??) should have been a bit more economic in his appearences lately knowing the run in for the title and the CL was due.

He done alot more work than he was given credit for after Robben went out injured i think... I mean Robben making the PFA team of the year was a joke and Joe Cole plays a couple of decent games and is hailed by the brittish media. Had Duffer been English like Lampard or Terry we'd know all about it.

There's a sense of satisfaction for me in Chelseas loss in that it highlighted duffers absense...... But on the night I was rooting for them because I wanted a fit and rested Duffer in the final

[eirebhoy]

Its actually amazing the stats of Chelsea with and without Duff.

Only including Duff's time on the pitch, Chelsea have only lost 4 times. Those matches were:

Barca
City
Bolton
Villa

He played in the following defeats but they didn't lose with him on the pitch. I'll explain it better with a comment:

Bayern - Duff went off when Chelsea were winning. Goals scored with Duff on: 2-1 to chelsea.
Newcastle - Duff came on when Chelsea were 1-0 down. Goals scored with Duff on: 0-0.
Porto - Duff got taken off when Chelsea were winning. Goals scored with Duff on: 1-0 to Chelsea.
Besiktas - Duff came on at half time. Goals scored with Duff on: 0-0.
Arsenal - Duff went off when Chelsea were drawing. Goals scored with Duff on: 1-1.
Villa - Duff went off at 1-1.

When you consider that Duff has played 84 times for Chelsea that really is an amazing stat. Less than 5% of their matches are defeats with Duff in the team.

[OwlsFan]

On 98 FM Sport this am it quoted Mourinho that his priority with Duff was to have him ready for next season and that the Faroes and Israel game were out.

Worried :(

[FarBeag]

When did he actually get the injury and is it definitely
a Hamstring.Jesus I hope this is only speculation re. what Mourinho has allegedlysaid.Duff is one player we just cant afford to lose and if its a Hamstring i would be extremely
worried at this stage.

[firestarter]

Its actually amazing the stats of Chelsea with and without Duff.

Only including Duff's time on the pitch, Chelsea have only lost 4 times. Those matches were:

Barca
City
Bolton
Villa

He played in the following defeats but they didn't lose with him on the pitch. I'll explain it better with a comment:

Bayern - Duff went off when Chelsea were winning. Goals scored with Duff on: 2-1 to chelsea.
Newcastle - Duff came on when Chelsea were 1-0 down. Goals scored with Duff on: 0-0.
Porto - Duff got taken off when Chelsea were winning. Goals scored with Duff on: 1-0 to Chelsea.
Besiktas - Duff came on at half time. Goals scored with Duff on: 0-0.
Arsenal - Duff went off when Chelsea were drawing. Goals scored with Duff on: 1-1.
Villa - Duff went off at 1-1.

When you consider that Duff has played 84 times for Chelsea that really is an amazing stat. Less than 5% of their matches are defeats with Duff in the team.

Another interesting Duff stat: He's only scored 1 goal for Chelsea since December. Not been in form for a while now. I doubt he'd have made much difference last night.

[Slash/ED]

Another interesting Duff stat: He's only scored 1 goal for Chelsea since December. Not been in form for a while now. I doubt he'd have made much difference last night.

Off form or not he'd have been miles better than some of the dross Chelsea had out there. Anyway, tiredness was his main problem and he'd had a few matches out with injury before it, so that should have been that.

[eirebhoy]

Another interesting Duff stat: He's only scored 1 goal for Chelsea since December. Not been in form for a while now. I doubt he'd have made much difference last night.
Its no coincidence that Joe Cole has gone from playing his best football of his career to being pretty anonymous in the 2 Liverpool matches when Duff was not there. Its also no coincidence that Chelsea got just 2 shots on target in the 180 minutes. Duff doesn't have to play well, everyone else gets more space with him in the team. Lampard would have got double the amount of shots on target alone if he wasn't been marked so tightly.

[dr_peepee]

one thing that struck me over the two legs was the number of last ditch defending and tackles, Particularly from Troare and Carragher...
Duff would either have exploited them once they commited OR have won the set peice... Either way he would've made a world of difference.