Paolo is probably one of the most respected left-backs in the history of the game but that seemingly wasn’t enough for some. Instead a banner was unfurled on the Curva Sud stating “Thank you, Skipper. On the pitch you were an infinite champion, but you failed to show respect towards those who made you rich.” Certainly not a snappy banner.

Those provided by Club and fans at the Bridge have improved dramatically in recent years. But “Born is the King” or “Pride of London” seem a bit, well, brief in comparison. How about more detail in future? One for Malouda could read “Thank you for your impressive performances of late. But were you just worried about your new contract? For the first half of the season you ran like a 12 year old posing in his PE lesson and pretending to be out of breath.”

Or for Peter Cech: “Thank you, goalie, for some fine performances. On shot-stopping you were immense but on command of the area and organising your defence you failed to reach the standards of 2004-06. Room for improvement but still a reasonable 6 out of 10 for the season.”

The Ultras failed to hold back in their assessment of Ancelotti. Not only do they expect a departure but their end of term report was decidedly mixed: “Thank you and good luck, but we won’t forget that you also made many mistakes.” What?! Just think what they would have made of Claudio Ranieri during his spell at the Bridge. They could have produced a banner containing a whole thesis on his quite random substitutions and tactical alterations during any match.

This is particularly apposite in Cup Final week. You may want to start grannie sewing your banner early in order to match the output of the Rossoneri …

Okay, we could have lost 3-2 and still gone through. Then it would not have mattered that we lost. Everyone going on about this record against Spurs has almost become a noose. Why has every Chelsea fan I have spoken to before the match felt a sense of doom? Strange. And why did every Spurs fan at work yesterday – I work in north London – have that smug complacent smile?

Rather than dwell on last night’s defeat, memories of twelve glorious years come flooding back. Four in particular come to my mind (excluding the 6-1 as I was not there): the 3-2 at home very early in the run, when Lineker scored and missed a penalty, I think; 3-0 in the famous Gulf War League Cup match, when we played them off the pitch at their place; 4-3 at home on a Sunday evening not long before the 1994 FA Cup final, 2-0 down quite early, amazing comeback and
loads of drama; and 1-0 at home a couple of years ago, when George Weir arrived in the morning and finished off Spurs in the evening.

I also remember when they last beat us at their place. Steve Wicks (I think) was unjustly sent off. They had to cheat to beat us then!

It has been a fantastic twelve years and these matches have given us all great memories. I would rather get the nostalgia out of the way early on, unlike Spurs, who seemed to have lived on it for years. They still harp back to the double team of 40+ years ago. I would much rather the team bounced straight back in our forthcoming home match against them. Let’s start another run and then we might just allow them another 90 minutes of satisfaction in 2014.

Many years ago, or so it seems, another seemingly unbeatable team in red emerged from the North West. For almost two decades Liverpool were clearly the (big gulp) Manchester United of their times.

The Scousers were, I suspect, reasonably well thought of by many Chelsea fans. Let’s face it, we weren’t challenging for the same trophies. Their sights were often set on Gullit’s “cup with the big ears”. Ours were set on the Full Members. They were also popular for playing amazing football except, strangely, when they visited the Bridge – Rhodes-Brown and co were clearly too much for them. Also, they were not London rivals.

Their fans were also known, sometimes inaccurately, for their appreciation of other teams playing well. Perhaps the Kop just used to be patronising? Whatever the reasons, there was nothing like the intense arrogance associated with the Mancs in recent years.

However, the point of this article is to question this assumption. I actually get the impression that many Man U supporters are getting bored with their dominance – this and last season have been something of a procession in the Premier League.

And Liverpool fans? Probably the most arrogant and spiteful towards the Chelsea resurgence in the land. They really do seem to claim a divine right to being the best team around. Now don’t get me wrong. All fans are jealous of other teams’ success. That’s expected.

But to start with, a recent article assessed the least liked clubs in the land, as voted for by a fanzine editor from each Premiership club. I quote the Liverpool ‘expert’, pontificating on Chelsea’s recent managerial change: “They have serious delusions of grandeur. Vialli wins five trophies in three years yet gets sacked because apparently that’s not good enough for Chelsea. Since when?”

What a terrible crime! For a Club to want their team to do better, to be more successful. And to cap it all, when the replica trophies at Anfield must be starting to amass a tonne of cobwebs.

After the Cup win of 1997, when all other footy fans I knew at least managed a grudging “well done”, a red Scouser in a huff at work on the Monday growled as he went past: “You won’t win anything else”. End of conversation.

Another Liverpool fan I know unleashed a torrent of abuse at the club. After the Reds got stuffed at the Bridge once again? No, after getting a ticket among the Barcelona fans at the Bridge last season. And that after perhaps our finest ever night of football.

A few weeks ago Liverpool fans were asked on national radio whether Fowler should leave. “Let him go and play Nationwide football next season,” one replied with glee, “‘cos Chelsea will be.”

I know too many other Chelsea fans who have had run-ins with graceless Scousers over recent years for it to be a coincidence. But why the bias? As if winning more trophies than them in the past four years is not enough, my mind goes back to one Sunday early in 1997. An FA Cup classic, for us anyway. That victory, more than any other, pointed the way to the next few years. They were top of the league at the time – it’s us who have won the silverware since.

We will take the trophies any day and the jealousy that goes with it. Are their fortunes changing? They may win the Worthless this year but then they will probably get even more annoying.