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Chelsea left to marvel at Charlie Adam's prowess but Loic Rémy shows a true striker's instinct

Chelsea beat Stoke 2-1 at Stamford Bridge

Miguel Delaney
Sunday 05 April 2015 18:04 BST
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Charlie Adam's goal wasn't enough to stop his side losing 2-1 at Stamford Bridge
Charlie Adam's goal wasn't enough to stop his side losing 2-1 at Stamford Bridge

After such a big goal, Didier Drogba’s only response to Charlie Adam was one big question: “Why?”

Adam had been talking earnestly to the press about his sensational 65-yard strike for Stoke City against Chelsea and how it ultimately meant little, when the Ivorian striker interrupted with a tone of mock indignation.

“Why?” Drogba asked. “Tell me why!”

He was one of a number from the Chelsea squad looking to congratulate Adam, and the Scot responded with a quip.

“I watch your videos,” Adam laughed.

The Stoke midfielder later expressed satisfaction that it was a goal he would watch for years, but he also went on to answer Drogba’s question. It wasn’t so much a question of “why”, but “when”. Adam admitted he always looks to score such goals.

“Every time,” he said. “You always have a look if you’ve got the ability to try it.

“The manager keeps saying to me ‘come in the middle of the pitch’ to try and get on the ball. He wanted me to get in the hole. I’m not a winger, I’m not a wide left midfielder. I don’t have the pace to go in behind so I’ve seen an opening. I’ve seen the goalie off his line and I thought, ‘Why not do it at a place like Chelsea?’

“It doesn’t matter where it is, I’ll try it. Today it came off. I’ve seen the goalie back-pedalling and I was praying it would go in… It’s the best goal I’ve ever scored.”

Chelsea’s manager, Jose Mourinho, had his own congratulations for Adam, but also praise for Loïc Rémy, whose strike to make it 2-1 rendered Adam’s goal irrelevant. With Diego Costa’s hamstring set to be assessed today to see how long he will be out for after going off following just 10 minutes as a substitute, the French striker could become even more important, and Mourinho gushed about Rémy’s second successive match-winner.

“It’s the way he trains,” Mourinho said. “He trains fantastically well. He keeps himself in great condition to come to matches, even without many, many minutes to be ready for us, so I’m really pleased and everybody’s pleased for him.

“He’s a striker. Every striker has this [instinct] in them, so today when Eden [Hazard] recovered the ball you could see immediately he sprinted to score what I call an easy goal. The tap-in when the goalkeeper has an incomplete save, attack the ball in a low cross, rebounds – I love the easy goals from a striker.”

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