Wow! What a surreal and special week for Brentford Football Club!
From the press coverage, to the sold-out stadium, to the game itself and how the players matched Chelsea all over the pitch; the word surreal is about the most accurate I can use to sum up the experience.
And it’s not over yet! The boys have a replay at Stamford Bridge to look forward to.
The whole club can be immensely proud of what we achieved on Sunday.
For the players to play like they did against the European champions was a momentous achievement and I think the reaction from across the football community shows we have woken them up to Brentford and what we are about.
Nothing prepared us for just how magical the day would be.
The night before, the squad stayed at a hotel, relaxing and spending time together as a group and it really helped with the excitement and focus ahead of the game.
But that excitement exploded when we reached the ground a few hours before kick-off and there was legions of people outside.
We were not expecting so many people there supporting us so early in the day and it was fantastic to walk into the stadium and the changing rooms with so much support.
I understand the Chelsea players were welcomed by a similar number of people but not given quite the same positive reception! If it was startling for us I can’t imagine how their players must have felt.
I’ve never known there to be so many people present for the warm-up, There was such a fantastic atmosphere from the moment I walked out onto the pitch with Simon Moore.
I thought we were shaky at first but the manager Uwe Rosler made an excellent call with the way he set up the team – playing Clayton Donaldon out wide, frustrating Chelsea and putting them under pressure from the start.
The conditions really helped us and we knew they were not happy with them by their body language and some of things being said.
From the bench, as the half progressed, it was surreal to see us outplay one of the best teams in world football.
In fact, the lads were actually disappointed to draw 2-2 by the end of the game.
It was an odd atmosphere in the dressing room afterwards – a strange mix of satisfaction but disappointment too. We all truly felt we should have won that game.
But there is a bigger picture. If the players, fans and the whole of English football needed proof that what we are doing at Brentford is the right thing, then it came against Chelsea.
There is no doubt that the replay will be tougher.
But we have nothing lose, are in a great position and they are under pressure from their fans.
It’s something everyone is excited about, but there are three more important league fixtures coming up before then.
It is always a worry that your league form can be hindered by a cup situation like this one but the way I look at it, and hopefully the rest of the players do too, is that we have three games in which every player will be fighting for a place in the team that plays at Stamford Bridge.
We can use that as an extra inspiration to win the next three games and stay in the strong position we have made for ourselves in the division.
I myself am feeling stronger than I have done for a long while. I came through a reserve-team fixture on Tuesday night and am ready to push Simon for his place again.
Not much was actually said about Simon in the press about his performance in the Chelsea game, but I thought he was excellent.
The wind made for tough conditions for both keepers and he handled it brilliantly, made some good saves, and in the end it took two world class strikes to finally beat him.
The biggest thing that came from the Chelsea game, and we will get more of from the replay, is the experience.
The boys dealt with world class players – the very best in the industry – and if any of our lads had any self doubt, then what a boost they will have had from Sunday’s performance.
They should realise how close they are to the top – how fine the margins have become. Our players are not a million miles away.
Richard Lee is the author of Graduation: Life Lessons Of A Professional Footballer.
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This post was last modified on 01/02/2013