2009-10 FA Cup · The Final
2010 FA Cup Final: Chelsea 1-0 Portsmouth
The final turned on the 145 seconds between a saved penalty and a free kick, and even the BBC's own report cannot agree who was fouled for the first of them.
Chelsea beat Portsmouth 1-0 at Wembley to complete the first League and FA Cup Double in the club's history, Didier Drogba's free kick settling a final in which Chelsea hit the woodwork five times in the first half, Portsmouth had a penalty saved and Frank Lampard missed one. It was the 129th FA Cup final, and the first in which both sides failed from the penalty spot.
Saturday 15 May 2010 · Wembley Stadium
What you will not find elsewhere
The BBC's own report names the wrong man in the incident that nearly won Portsmouth the cup
The BBC Sport prose report of this final says Juliano Belletti brought down Boateng for Portsmouth's second-half penalty. The BBC's own live text of the same match records, at 54:51, Aruna Dindane fouled by Juliano Belletti, the ref awards a Penalty - and the Guardian, the Associated Press report carried by the Deseret News and Chelsea's own club history all say Dindane too. Boateng took the kick, which is almost certainly how the mix-up happened: the taker's name drifted into the foul. We record Dindane as the man fouled, because four accounts including the BBC's own timestamped log say so, and we flag the prose error rather than repeating it.[1][2][3][4]
The only goal is recorded in two different minutes, including by the same outlet
The BBC's scoreline records Drogba 59, but the BBC's own live text timestamps the goal at 58:12. Wikipedia manages the same trick: its prose says Drogba struck in the 58th minute while its match box says 59. FA-CupFinals.co.uk also gives 59. The gap is the usual one between seconds elapsed and the minute of play, and it is more useful to show it than to hide it. We record 59 as the headline figure because more outlets agree on it, and we keep the 58:12 timestamp on the page rather than rounding it away.[1][7][8]
Portsmouth went from a kick at leading to a goal behind in 145 seconds
Read the BBC's own live text as a clock. Petr Cech saves Kevin-Prince Boateng's penalty at 55:47. Didier Drogba's free kick hits the net at 58:12. That is 145 seconds - under three minutes - between Portsmouth standing one kick away from a 1-0 lead and trailing 1-0, a two-goal swing in the time it takes to make a cup of tea. Ancelotti called the save the key moment and said the match was not under control at that point; the arithmetic of the timestamps is why.[1][4]
The footage
The match report
Chelsea beat Portsmouth 1-0 at Wembley on Saturday 15 May 2010 to win the 129th FA Cup final and complete the first League and FA Cup Double in the club's history. Didier Drogba's second-half free kick settled a meeting of the newly crowned champions and a relegated club playing in administration, and it made Carlo Ancelotti's first season in England the most successful any Chelsea manager had ever had. They were the seventh club to win the Double.[1][3][2]
The first half produced no goals and near-total Chelsea dominance. Frank Lampard glanced the outside of the post with a swerving shot after 13 minutes, and after Petr Cech had clawed away Frederic Piquionne's close-range finish at the other end, Salomon Kalou somehow hit the bar from almost on the goal line with the net unguarded. John Terry headed Florent Malouda's free kick against the bar, David James turned a Drogba free kick on to the bar and down on to the goal line with replays showing it had not crossed, and Drogba slid a shot under James but against the post: five woodwork strikes before the interval, a tally Ancelotti said he had never seen from a team in one half in his career.[1][2][4]
The half's most consequential moment was a foul. Kevin-Prince Boateng went through the back of Michael Ballack and was booked, and Ballack's right ankle took the damage. He tried to continue but Juliano Belletti replaced him just before the interval, and two days later the German federation confirmed the medial ligament injury that ruled Germany's captain out of the World Cup in South Africa.[1][6][2]
Portsmouth's moment came early in the second half. Belletti, the substitute, brought down Aruna Dindane as he carried the ball into the area and Chris Foy pointed to the spot. Boateng drove the penalty weakly down the middle and Cech, having dived early to his right, blocked it with his legs. It was the chance Portsmouth's whole season had been waiting for, and it was gone. Ancelotti admitted afterwards that the match had not been under control at that point and that a Portsmouth goal would have changed everything.[1][2][3]
Four minutes later the final turned for good. Aaron Mokoena fouled Drogba just outside the area and Drogba took the free kick himself, curling it low beyond James and in off the post - the sixth time he had scored in six games at Wembley, and his 37th goal of the season. Even the clock cannot settle the moment: the BBC's live text timestamps it in the 58th minute while its own scoreline records Drogba 59, and we record 59.[1][2][3]
There was still time for one more twist. In the 88th minute Michael Brown bundled Lampard over in the area, and Lampard, usually so reliable from the spot, dragged his penalty wide of the post. Portsmouth could not profit from the reprieve, and after Daniel Sturridge had replaced Nicolas Anelka in stoppage time Foy's whistle confirmed the Double.[1][2]
That Portsmouth were there at all was the story of their season. In February they had become the first Premier League club to enter administration, a nine-point deduction followed and relegation was confirmed in April, which made them the first club to reach an FA Cup final in a relegation season since Middlesbrough in 1997 - who had also lost to Chelsea. In Avram Grant's view his players, the club and the fans deserved a Europa League place, but Portsmouth's UEFA licence application was refused and the berth passed to Liverpool instead. It proved to be Grant's last match in charge.[7][2][8]
For Chelsea the trophy completed a league season of 103 goals, a Premier League record, sealed with an 8-0 win over Wigan on the final day. Ashley Cole collected a sixth winners' medal, more than any player in the competition's history, and at the other end of the age scale Portsmouth's captain David James played the final at 39 years and 287 days, the oldest goalkeeper to appear in one.[1][3][7]
How the match unfolded
- 13'Frank Lampard glances the outside of the post with a swerving long-range shot that leaves David James helpless - the first of five Chelsea woodwork strikes before half-time.[1]
- 21'Portsmouth's best moment of the half. Kevin-Prince Boateng volleys Aruna Dindane's cross into the six-yard area and Frederic Piquionne's close-range finish is clawed away by Petr Cech.[1][2]
- 26'Salomon Kalou hits the bar from almost on the goal line after Ashley Cole's cut-back, with the Portsmouth goal unguarded.[1][3]
- 29'John Terry rises to head Florent Malouda's free kick against the bar.[1]
- 35'Boateng is booked for a late tackle that catches Michael Ballack's right ankle. Ballack tries to continue but the damage ends his match - and, it turns out, his World Cup.[1][6]
- 36'From the free kick awarded for the foul on Ballack, Drogba's strike is turned on to the bar by James and bounces down on to the goal line. Chelsea's appeals are waved away; replays show the ball did not cross.[1][2]
- 41'Drogba slides a shot under James from an acute angle but against the post - the fifth time Chelsea have hit the woodwork in the half.[1][2]
- 44'Juliano Belletti replaces the injured Ballack.[1]
- 45'Half-time, goalless, despite Chelsea hitting the frame of the goal five times. Ancelotti said afterwards he had never seen a team hit the post and bar so often in one half without scoring.[1][4]
- 55'Belletti brings down Dindane as he carries the ball into the area and Chris Foy awards Portsmouth a penalty. The BBC's live text timestamps the foul at 54:51.[1][2]
- 56'Cech saves Boateng's penalty, driven weakly down the middle, with his legs after diving early to his right. Timestamped 55:47 by the BBC's live text.[1][2][3]
- 59'GOAL. Aaron Mokoena fouls Drogba just outside the area and Drogba curls the free kick low beyond James and in off the post. The BBC's live text timestamps it 58:12 while its own scoreline records Drogba 59.[1][2][8]
- 71'Joe Cole replaces Kalou to a huge ovation, amid speculation this is his final appearance for the club.[1]
- 73'John Utaka replaces Boateng.[1]
- 81'Nwankwo Kanu and Nadir Belhadj replace Papa Bouba Diop and Hayden Mullins as Portsmouth chase the game.[1]
- 88'Michael Brown bundles Lampard over in the area, but Lampard drags the penalty wide of the post. The BBC's live text timestamps both the foul and the miss at 87:03.[1][2]
- 90'Daniel Sturridge replaces Nicolas Anelka in stoppage time, and Foy's whistle confirms Chelsea's first Double.[1]
Match facts
- Date
- Saturday 15 May 2010
- Venue
- Wembley Stadium, London
- Attendance
- 88,335The figure given identically by the BBC's match report, FA-CupFinals.co.uk and the standard reference works. No governing-body or club document we could reach prints an attendance for this final.[1][8][7]
- Half-time
- 0-0
- Competition
- 2009-10 FA Cup
Where they played
Both sides as they lined up. Choose any player to read what they did in this final.
Select a shirt for that player's note.
Route to the final
Chelsea
- Third round: Watford (h) won 5-0
- Fourth round: Preston North End (a) won 2-0
- Fifth round: Cardiff City (h) won 4-1
- Quarter-final: Stoke City (h) won 2-0
- Semi-final: Aston Villa (Wembley) won 3-0
Portsmouth
- Third round: Coventry City (h) drew 1-1
- Third round replay: Coventry City (a) won 2-1 after extra time
- Fourth round: Sunderland (h) won 2-1
- Fifth round: Southampton (a) won 4-1
- Quarter-final: Birmingham City (h) won 2-0
- Semi-final: Tottenham Hotspur (Wembley) won 2-0 after extra time
Line-ups
Chelsea · 4-3-3
- Petr Cech Goalkeeper. Saved Boateng's second-half penalty with his legs, the save both managers identified as the key moment
- Branislav Ivanovic Right back. Passed a late fitness test to start
- Alex Centre back
- John Terry Captain. Headed a first-half free kick against the bar
- Ashley Cole Left back. His cut-back created Kalou's miss; won a record sixth FA Cup winners' medal
- Frank Lampard Hit the post early on, then dragged a late penalty wide
- Michael Ballack Off before half-time after Boateng's tackle damaged his ankle; the injury cost Germany's captain the 2010 World Cup
- Florent Malouda Left of the midfield three
- Salomon Kalou Hit the bar from almost on the goal line with the net unguarded
- Didier Drogba Scored the winning free kick, his 37th goal of the season, in off the post
- Nicolas Anelka Right of the front three
Portsmouth · 4-4-1-1
- David James Captain and goalkeeper, at 39 the oldest to play in an FA Cup final. Made a string of first-half saves, including turning a Drogba free kick on to the bar
- Steve Finnan Right back
- Ricardo Rocha Centre back. Booked for dissent in stoppage time
- Aaron Mokoena Centre back. Conceded the free kick from which Drogba scored
- Hayden Mullins Left back. Substituted late on
- Aruna Dindane Right midfield. Won the penalty that Boateng had saved
- Michael Brown Central midfield. Conceded the late penalty that Lampard dragged wide
- Papa Bouba Diop Central midfield
- Kevin-Prince Boateng Booked for the tackle that ended Ballack's match; his second-half penalty was saved by Cech
- Jamie O'Hara Played behind the striker. Booked in stoppage time
- Frederic Piquionne Lone striker. Denied by Cech's sharp reaction save in the first half
Trivia and detail
- The Football Association's own top ten list of FA Cup free-kicks, published on TheFA.com, places Drogba's winner against Portsmouth at number seven.[5]
- This was the first FA Cup final in which both sides missed a penalty. Lampard's miss was the first final penalty to fail to hit the target since Charlie Wallace's for Aston Villa in 1913 - whose team also won 1-0.[7]
- Both clubs' first-choice kits were blue, so a coin toss decided what the final would be played in. Chelsea won and wore their new home kit; Portsmouth wore a new white change kit with burgundy trim.[7][8]
- The Wembley pitch had been relaid for the 11th time in three years and played poorly again, an embarrassment with the FA using the final to promote England's 2018 World Cup bid. John Terry called it probably the worst surface he had played on that year.[3]
- Boateng, whose tackle injured Germany's captain, had chosen to play international football for Ghana rather than Germany.[2]
- Avram Grant had stood in the other dugout two years earlier: he managed Chelsea in the 2008 Champions League final, lost on penalties to Manchester United in Moscow.[8]
- The standard reference work names Drogba the man of the match. The award does not appear in the BBC or Guardian reports of the game.[7]
How well do you know the 2010 final?
Five questions. Every answer is sourced from the material on this page.
-
Who scored the only goal of the 2010 FA Cup final?
-
Whose second-half penalty did Petr Cech save with his legs?
-
What did this victory complete for Chelsea?
-
What happened to Michael Ballack as a result of this final?
-
Which record did Ashley Cole set at this final?
Answer
A sixth FA Cup winners' medal, the most in the competition's history. The medal made him the most decorated player in FA Cup history, passing every player before him.[1]
What is not settled
Honesty matters more than tidiness. These details are contested or unrecorded, and we have not guessed at them:
- The minute of the only goal is genuinely contested. The BBC's live text timestamps it 58:12 while the BBC's own scoreline records Drogba 59; Wikipedia's prose says the 58th minute and its match box says 59; FA-CupFinals.co.uk gives 59. We publish 59 and keep 58 on the page.
- Who was fouled for Portsmouth's penalty is contested by one prominent account. The BBC's prose report says Belletti brought down Boateng; the BBC's own live text, the Guardian, the Associated Press and Chelsea's club history all say it was Dindane. We publish Dindane.
- The Portsmouth penalty minute varies by convention. The BBC's live text timestamps the foul at 54:51 and the save at 55:47, which is why we use 55 and 56; Wikipedia's prose says the penalty came in the 54th minute; ESPN's timeline logs it at 56.
- Lampard's penalty is timestamped 87:03 for both the foul and the miss by the BBC's live text, the 88th minute, which is what we publish. FA-CupFinals.co.uk says the foul came in the 86th minute and ESPN's timeline logs the miss at 89.
- Portsmouth's formation is described as a 4-4-1-1 by Wikipedia and FA-CupFinals.co.uk, with O'Hara behind Piquionne, but as a 4-5-1 by Chelsea's own club history. We draw the 4-4-1-1 because two independent accounts agree on it.
- Drogba's Wembley scoring run is described two ways: the BBC says he had scored in each of his six games at the ground, the Guardian says the goal was his sixth in seven Wembley appearances.
- Attendance is recorded identically at 88,335 by the BBC, FA-CupFinals.co.uk and Wikipedia, but no governing-body or club document we could reach prints a figure, which is why it carries press and reference citations rather than an official one.
- No footage has been verified for this final yet, so the television shows no signal rather than an unchecked embed.
How we know
Every claim on this page is tied to a numbered source below. These are the contemporary records behind it, each one fetched and matched word for word before publication rather than taken on trust:
- Match report published on the day of the final, 15 May 2010 · The Guardian
- AP wire report from Wembley, 15 May 2010 · Associated Press, via Deseret News
- Club retrospective carrying verbatim post-match quotes from Ancelotti and Cech · Chelsea FC
- The FA's ranked list, 13 February 2014; Drogba v Portsmouth 2010 at number seven · The Football Association
Where a primary record and a modern account disagree, we show both rather than choosing the tidier number.
Sources
- Chelsea break Pompey hearts and get their hands on the FA Cup again · BBC Sport
- Didier Drogba secures Chelsea Double after Cech save stuns Portsmouth · The Guardian
- Soccer: Drogba's goal clinches FA Cup double for Chelsea · Associated Press, via Deseret News
- FA Cup final memories: Double delight · Chelsea FC
- TheFA.com's top ten FA Cup free-kicks from Gazza to Oscar · The Football Association
- Ballack out of World Cup · Sky Sports
- 2010 FA Cup final · Wikipedia
- 2010 FA Cup Final · FA-CupFinals.co.uk
- Chelsea v Portsmouth, FA Cup final match record · ESPN