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Talking Chelsea With… Feeder

Talking Chelsea With... Feeder
Feeder... Discussing Chelsea players players players!

Melodic rock heroes Feeder return with their eighth studio album Generation Freakshow on April 23rd, the same day that they shall begin a fourteen-date tour of the UK and Ireland (dates here). To celebrate their return, Football Burp caught up with the band’s bassist Taka Hirose for a chat about his beloved Chelsea…

Great win at Benfica in the Champions League quarter-finals the other night. Were you watching?

Yeah. To be honest, I didn’t expect us to be so lucky because Benfica are a pretty good team. At the end of the day, the result is important.

You’re a bit more cautious than Didier Drogba! Do you think Roberto Di Matteo should be handed the manager’s job on a permanent basis?

I’m not so sure, actually. Di Matteo has been around for a while, but they’ve definitely been playing better since Andre Villas-Boas left, which is great. Supporters need to cheer up sometimes! Chelsea hadn’t been that good, as you can see from the table, but they’re doing okay in Europe. I don’t know how far they’ll go, but sometimes you need luck.

In a way, is it annoying to see them playing so well now? It could be taken as evidence that they weren’t giving it their best under the previous manager.

I think that Arsenal are the same – they started really badly but now they’re doing okay. I wish Chelsea was on top all the time but it can’t be like that. Look at Barcelona – they’re only 2nd in the league. I hope Chelsea do well but I’m not so sure they can finish in the top four.

Would you settle for Chelsea getting to the Champions League final and losing there to Barcelona, just like Manchester United have made a habit of in recent years?

(Laughs) That wouldn’t be that bad, but I have to say that Bayern Munich look pretty good. All the top players in their team are free of injury too. Barcelona couldn’t score against AC Milan but they’ll be at home in the second leg so they’ll probably be alright. And there’s Real Madrid too. If Chelsea get to the semi-finals, I can’t see them beating any of Barcelona, Bayern or Real Madrid. But you never know, AC Milan might get through too. It will be interesting.

You could end up playing against Jose Mourinho. That could be kind of strange.

Very interesting and strange, yeah. (Laughs)

If he wanted to come back as manager, would you take him?

I’m sure most supporters would welcome him, but at the same time, is it a good idea coming back to your old team? Maybe you should just move on.

Do you follow the J. League and/or Japanese national team?

I don’t really follow the J. League but obviously I do follow the national team. Actually, the female team are doing very well. They won the World Cup, so they’re probably more famous in Japan.

Is Grant a football fan? (Feeder front man Grant Nicholas, that is – not Avram Grant.)

He supports Arsenal, but he’s more into rugby.

Which rugby team does he support?

I guess Wales. He’s not really into a club team, but he’s always supported Wales big time.

Have you managed to get to Stamford Bridge recently, or have you been too busy with the band?

No. To be honest, I’m too busy, it’s too expensive, and I’m living in the north now. Anyway, it’s hard to get tickets these days. I’d love to go though. The last game I saw was probably against Manchester United at Old Trafford, and I think they lost 3-0. I had to sit next to the Man U supporters. It was a terrible day!

Finally, if you had to select a five-a-side team out of all the Chelsea players you’ve seen in your time as a fan, who would you pick?

Obviously Petr Cech as goalkeeper, Didier Drogba, Juan Mata, Frank Lampard and John Terry.

Taka, thank you.

Feeder’s eighth studio album Generation Freakshow will be released on April 23rd through the band’s own Big Teeth Music label. (Click here to pre-order your copy.) This will be followed by the release of the single “Children of the Sun” on April 30th. For more information, including a list of live dates, please visit feederweb.com or the band’s Facebook page.