bridge views - the thinking fan's chelsea blog

Chelsea youth system gets another kick in the teeth

It doesn’t rain, but it pours. Well, for Frank Arnesen and Chelsea’s youth set-up, at least.

Yesterday I posted on Arnesen’s poor record at Chelsea and the lack of young players pushing for a place in the first team. In what has become a vicious circle, it looks like the general shortage of young talent at the club has combined with the lack of opportunities afforded to those who do have ability to make Chelsea a very unattractive prospect to players learning their trade.

It’s reported today that long-time Chelsea target, Jonjo Shelvey (he was included in the bridgeviews list of rumoured Chelsea transfers back in early June), has turned down the opportunity to join the Blues. Now I haven’t seen the Charlton man play, but reportedly he’s a rising star, a box-to-box midfielder who has a bit of everything to his game. The news will come as a double blow to Arnesen after Frank Nouble, the striker who learned the game at Chelsea and scored 12 goals for the under-18s last season, refused a new contract and joined West Ham two weeks ago. Two seventeen year olds turn down one of the biggest clubs in the world inside of a month. Is that some kind of record?

Breaking it down, you would imagine that Chelsea would generally be an attractive prospect for youngsters – learning alongside some of the best in the business, training at the very best facilities and so on. So there’s obviously a perception out there – and a fair one - that young players don’t get chances at Chelsea, and other clubs that can offer less in other departments are deemed more attractive (in the case of Shelvey, West Ham). To reverse that perception young players need to be given opportunities, and to an extent that is down to the manager. Encouragingly, Ancelotti looks willing to give the likes of Mancienne, Hutchinson and Sinclair a go.

But if Ancelotti is to do it consistently, two things will need to change: Arnesen will have to provide the players; and both the board and the media will need to reduce their expectations of the side to win everything immediately. Without those two things, Carlo might not have enough room to manoeuver.

Over-promoted Arnesen’s failures lie at the heart of Chelsea’s future

Frank Arnesen, who was poached from Spurs in 2005 to help spearhead Chelsea’s drive to create a world-leading youth academy, today defended his ‘record’ at the club. One of the few people out there to be promoted despite achieving nothing – in a recession no less – Chelsea’s new Sporting Director was today quoted in the Berlingske Tidende, saying:

"It is clearly laid out in our long term planning for 2004 to 2014 - after which we aim to be self-financed - that from 2010 and onwards our top priority is to introduce one player [per year] into the Premiership squad. But that is from 2010. It was never the objective that I should be delivering two talents for the first team from 2007 on a yearly basis. I don't know how that misunderstanding has surfaced. You don't create talents at the assembly line. Patience is a virtue. In a top club like Chelsea you do not waltz into the team at the age of 18-19 years.”

An interesting statement, if only because Arnesen obviously felt there was a need to defend his record. On the face of it though, he hasn’t really much of a record to defend, having singularly failed to bring through even one young player to make consistent first team performances in the four years he’s been at the club. Yes, I’m sure patience is a virtue – but in my view Abramovich and Chelsea fans have the right to expect more from an academy that has had money chucked at it (to fund both facilities and personnel) left, right and centre.

And if Chelsea’s board are happy to give Arnesen five years to produce just one young player of sufficient ability to play in the Premier League, they’re not setting their expectations high enough. Look at the youth set-up at rival clubs – for example Arsenal and even West Ham – and you would expect Chelsea’s expensive academy to be working more like an assembly line. Arnesen is suggesting that it’s too much to expect that any of the 16,17 and 18 year old players bought when he arrived in 2005 (or already at the club) should now be making the first team. Frank – that would make them either 20, 21 or 22 now. How many players at that age – or younger - have made their debuts with our main rivals, Man Utd, Arsenal or Liverpool? And how many of them have made successful debuts? There has been plenty of time to either grow or identify young talent.

And on another one of his points, Arnesen is just plain wrong. 18-19 year olds are ‘waltzing into’ other top clubs – and also clubs that have been more successful than Chelsea over the past four years. I’m not talking about Arsenal, who are a unique example and have achieved little success. But how old was Evans when he debuted for United last year? How old were Messi or Bojan when they started playing for Barcelona? Pato at AC Milan, Balotelli at Inter or Lucas and Insua at Liverpool? While United were blooding Evans and Macheda last year, Chelsea’s Mancienne, Sinclair and Di Santo were either on loan, on the bench or in the reserves. Mancienne, perhaps Chelsea’s most promising young player, made four appearances last season. Evans made 34 for Utd. Both sides had significant injury problems in defence.

This summer, long-term hopes Sahar, Nouble and Tejera have left the club permanently while Taiwo and Stoch have gone out on loan. Of course it’s ok for players to not make it and for others to go out on loan for more experience. Clearly Mourinho didn’t think it was too much to ask that one or two might break through, but he was one of the people suffering from the ‘misunderstanding’ Arnesen cites in his quote. Just crossed wires, and certainly not ol’ Arnesen’s fault.

But let’s make one thing clear: this doesn’t have to be about finding the next Messi. The first priority of a good youth system for a top class side, in my view, should be to unearth an alternative stream of talent to supplement signing more established players. Chelsea are fast approaching a situation where a large number of the squad will need replacing inside the next 3-4 years – as I mentioned in this morning’s post on Chelsea potentially buying Pirlo, the club already has 11 players over 30 in the first team squad. The lack of good, if not excellent, young players coming through the ranks puts real pressure on the club to bankroll expensive new signings, and damages its ability to break even, if that is the aim. On the playing side, it also boxes the management into a tricky corner with regards to coming up with a strategy to replace those ageing players – they can’t afford to release them gradually without viable replacements getting game time.

Arnesen’s role sits right at the heart of the future of the club. Despite what he says, he hasn’t delivered – and if he continues in that vein his failure will pose significant problems both on and off the pitch.

Chelsea close in on Pirlo - fans collectively ask themselves 'why'

Rumours suggesting Milan's Pirlo is on his way to Stamford Bridge have intensified over the past couple of days, not least because Galliani confirmed that his club has rejected an offer for the midfielder.

I can't pretend to be the authority on Pirlo. But, from my limited knowledge, he is a player not unlike Deco - good on the ball and a creative passer - who in the latter years of his career has played a slightly different role for Milan, dictating play from a deeper position. Undoubtedly he's a top class player, with exceptional passing from long or short range, but the idea that's he's on Chelsea's shopping list still beggars belief. He just isn't a player that Chelsea need, for two reasons. 

Firstly, the squad is already drowning in central midfield talent. Clearly Ancelotti sees the holding role in his diamond as vitally important, but Chelsea have two players in Mikel and Essien who are excellent in that position. Furthermore, we already have plethora of world class central midfield options to fill the other three beths in the diamond, not to mention wide players like Zhirkov, Malouda and Cole who could fill the left and right positions. There are other areas of the team where money could (and should) be more wisely spent.

Secondly, the well documented age of Chelsea's squad. Currently Chelsea's first team squad has eleven players aged 30 or over - more than the rest of the big four combined. Only four of those eleven play in defence (or in goal), and it's perhaps no coincidence that in the last few seasons Chelsea have remained excellent at the back but started to look slow and one-dimensional in attack.

This is a team that has come close to winning everything for the last two years - additions to the squad should not only address reducing the average age of the squad but also bring something new in attack. And if I were asked to come up with a strategy to inject some creativity into Chelsea's attack? Well, buying 30-year old deep-lying playmaker who has never played outside of Italy wouldn't be top of my list.

Match report: Reading 2 Chelsea 2 – and Ancelotti’s diamond misfires

The final game of Chelsea’s pre-season saw Ancelotti’s team travel to Reading to serve up a performance that leaves a few question marks ahead of next week’s Community Shield opener.

Whilst it was no surprise to see Chelsea once again line up with an increasingly familiar 4-4-2 formation, Carlo’s decision to play Deco at the tip of the diamond (with Lampard and Essien filling the left and right berths respectively) and give Ivanovic the nod at right back ahead of Bosingwa was unexpected.

And for the first 45 minutes, it didn’t work. Like Jose Mourinho’s diamond midfield in 06/07, Ancelotti’s diamond of Mikel, Lampard, Deco and Essien looked slow and predictable. With a packed central midfield, Chelsea’s formation presented its most attacking players no space to make an impact on the game. If a 4-4-2 diamond formation is going to work, Carlo has to find a way to get width into the team.

It didn’t look so bleak for the first ten or fifteen minutes, however. Reading perhaps looked a little fazed and for the first five minutes and Chelsea’s central midfield were dominant, albeit with play getting scrappy in the last third. Half chances were arriving however, Anelka hitting tame shot wide after a good move, Lampard having a 25 yard shot saved on six minutes and and Terry heading a corner just wide a minute later.

More half-chances followed, with Drogba hitting controlled volley at goal from a Lampard cross, and in the first 15 minutes the game was being played entirely in the Reading half. Mikel (who had started the game a little slowly) was playing on the half way line and he and Essien were breaking up Reading’s play and feeding the more advanced Deco and Lampard. Cech had his first touch of the ball on fifteen minutes and, with Reading’s only attacking forays resulting in over-hit crosses from the left, it seemed at the time that Chelsea wouldn’t be seriously tested.

Anelka headed wide in the sixteenth minute from a well worked corner, but a reasonable chance for Reading just sixty seconds later – a cross narrowly failing to find a white shirt in the box - kick-started a sustained strong spell for Reading, with Robson-Kanu and Kebe looking particularly lively. Only Reading had shown any willingness to stretch the play wide and it was starting to show, with the blues increasingly playing only up a narrow central channel. Essien wasn’t getting into advanced positions and the 4-4-2 diamond was looking more a column-like 4-2-2-2, with Deco AWOL and Drogba and Anelka struggling to get in the game.

Reading were starting to have the better of the game but, despite the increasing predictability of the approach play, Chelsea were still intermittently carving out opportunities. Federici, the Reading keeper, nearly gifted Anelka a goal following a poor attempted clearance, and Essien fired in a shot from 25 yards that was saved by the keeper at the second time of asking. On 36 minutes Carvalho headed yet another corner wide. 

Executing a perfect counter attack, Reading immediately found themselves one nil up. The lively Robson-Kanu taking advantage of uncharacteristically poor defending from Ashely Cole to find Kebe in the box, who deftly took the ball past Cech before slotting the ball home. One nil Reading.

It didn’t stay one nil for long. The final kick of the first half came from the boot of Reading’s Davies – a well taken free-kick on the edge of Chelsea’s penalty area firmly struck into the bottom right hand corner.

Chelsea had enjoyed the lion’s share of possession but, in truth, hadn’t asked significant questions of the Reading defence from open play. No neat passing triangles this time, and the best chances had almost exclusively come from long-range attempts or corners. Yes, chances were arriving, but it was telling that Chelsea looked at their most dangerous on the few occasions when Anelka or Lampard did manage to find the ball out wide.

Alex, Bosingwa and Malouda came on for Ivanovic, Carvalho and Deco (Lampard moving to the tip of the diamond) and Chelsea did play with a little more dynamism and purpose in the second half. The game from this point was played almost entirely in Reading’s half and, before 60 minutes had passed, Alex had headed a Mikel cross wide and Federici had brilliantly saved a point-blank range header from Lampard.

More changes came on 65 minutes, with Beletti, Kalou and Sturridge taking the places of Drogba (who was looking leaden-footed), Essien and Anelka. With Reading tiring, a more balanced Chelsea finally started to stretch the play wide on occasion through Kalou running with the ball from the left and Bosingwa delivering crosses (of varying quality) from the right. Sturridge looked confident, lively and willing to try things on the ball and, whilst three shots in the space of five minutes didn’t find the net, his performance again looked encouraging. He turned creator on 83 minutes, feeding Lampard with a beautifully placed pass into the box before nearly dismembering Federici when following in Frank’s saved shot. He made another creative and intelligent reverse ball to Lampard two minutes later. He’s worth chances, this guy.

The game was reminiscent of Scolari-era Chelsea – impressive possession and territory stats but ineffective football leading to a charge for goals in the last ten minutes. Lampard had been involved in everything good and he was involved again, interchanging passes with Malouda who eventually scuffed a shot just high and wide. Bosingwa too got into the act, firing a powerful shot at the keeper from an acute angle on 88 minutes.

The frustration was to end there however, with Chelsea finally carving out, and taking, a good chance. Mikel picked up the ball on the half way line, took the ball on five yards before playing a ball between the two tired-looking Reading centre halves. Kalou was swiftly onto the ball, before shrugging off one challenge and slipping the ball under the advancing keeper. 

And only moments later Chelsea somehow scrambled an equaliser. Providing the game with an eerie symmetry, the last touch of the second half resulted in a goal. Malouda fizzed in a good cross from a dead ball on the right flank and, under pressure from Alex, Alex Pearce got a head to the ball and headed into his own net. Heart-breaking for a well-organised Reading side.

Yes, the first priority for pre-season games is building fitness and yes, Chelsea did manage to scramble a draw. But despite massive possession, the positives start to run out there. The 4-4-2 diamond was far from convincing against a Championship side, attacking play was predictable and the side were unable to carve out fully-fledged goalscoring opportunities with any consistency. Under last season’s 4-3-3, Chelsea were one, maximum two – top class attacking players away from completing the jigsaw. We’re in early days, but from my perspective one thing is clear: the jury is still out on Ancelotti’s 4-4-2, which has put an entirely new jigsaw on the table.

bridgeviews.co.uk’s man of the match – another difficult one. Credit must go to Reading, who played very well, particularly in the first half. The lively Robson-Kanu wand Kebe impressive from the right and left respectively, and their back four played a disciplined game. In contrast, many of Chelsea’s players were lack lustre and guilty of sloppiness, and for that reason Lampard’s consistent quality in attack was the standout performance – again.

Sir Alex’s hypocrisy points to his fear of the Man City threat

He's a funny one, is Sir. Clearly bored of the uber laid back, calm and collected alter ego he's wheeled out for most of Manchester United's press conferences during pre-season, Ferguson turned nasty earlier this week when the subject of Man City came up.

Some probably innocent looking journalist asked Ferguson for his reaction to Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez ‘welcome to Manchester’ advert, and he obviously couldn’t help himself.

"It's City, isn't it? They are a small club with a small mentality. That arrogance will be rewarded. It is very poor stuff".

Clearly however, Ferguson’s memory is as short as his fuse.  It was only last April that he lost his temper again, this time with Benitez (fair enough, we’ve all done it) for labelling Everton a “small club”. Of Benitez’s comments about Everton, Ferguson scowled: “It points to his arrogance”.

I’m sure the irony is lost on him. But there’s something else about his anti-Man City tirade (read more about it – and his suggestion that Liverpool and Chelsea will be his main rivals - on the Guardian’s website here). Traditionally Ferguson has only really taken the time to launch verbal attacks against clubs he perceives as a threat – hence his battles with Wenger and, more recently, Benitez. Aside from the odd scuffle, it was strange that the touch-paper was never truly lit with Mourinho.

So I’m taking Ferguson’s comments as a sign that he expects Man City to pose a threat next season. In turn, we can expect more mind games and some occasional fireworks along the way. 

Look out for team-by-team previews of the forthcoming season on bridgeviews.co.uk in the next couple of weeks.

The Mutu case: when good values are worth millions

When Chelsea sacked Adrian Mutu back in 2004, it seemed a bold and unprecedented decision.

What other club would be prepared – or able – to dismiss a player because of entirely unacceptable behaviour? There are countless incidences of footballers, who live constantly in the media spotlight and are role models to thousands of young people, behaving badly and yet receiving no condemnation from their clubs. Joey Barton springs to mind.

Back in 2004 however, Mutu supposedly refused his club’s offer of support to help him rid his life from drugs and, as a consequence, he was told to leave the club because of breach of contract. He was also given a worldwide seven month ban from the game from football. Chelsea were prepared to stick by their values and write off the £15m they had paid for his services – an admirable stance that deserves some credit.

Today however, it was announced that they will get at least some of that money back when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled against Mutu’s appeal over the compensation package FIFA had judged he owed Chelsea. The Romanian now owes Chelsea just over £14m – a nice little nest egg to add to the transfer kitty.

The true cost of supporting Chelsea

Putting the ‘cost’ of going out of the Champions League in the 93rd minute of the semi final second leg aside, being a Chelsea fan can be an expensive pursuit.

Chelsea’s opening game against Hull is only two weeks away – and we better get saving. Research from the Football Fans Census shows that matchday at Stamford Bridge is more expensive for fans of the West London club than for any other in the capital (and probably the country). Their fans survey revealed that the average home game costed each individual Chelsea fan a staggering £102 in 2008 – an amount comparing very unfavourably to our rivals (Arsenal - £92, Spurs - £84, West Ham - £81). When you consider that getting a quick pint before the game typically involves going to a bar on either the King’s Road or the Fulham Road however, it isn’t perhaps that surprising. A little different from the pubs near Plaistow tube…

It does seem preposterous that the average fine might spend £1,900 each season to watch their team play (assuming they only go to home league games of course) – but perhaps it’s better value for money than it looks.

Buying tickets clearly accounts for a large proportion of fans’ expenditure, and on that front Chelsea unfairly have a reputation for exorbitant prices. The cheapest season ticket, for a seat in the Matthew Harding stand – costs ‘just’ £635 for the 09/10 season, and prices have been frozen for the past four years. By comparison, to help shoulder the financial burden of the Emirates, Arsenal fans pay by far the most in the league for the pleasure of watching their team come fourth with their tickets ranging from £855 to £1,825 (kindly the Arsenal board don’t seem to have passed on this year’s VAT cut to their supporters either – how nice of them). A cheap seat at White Hart Lane will cost you pretty much the same as at Stamford Bridge, but those wanting to pay top dollar will shell out £1,640, some £500 more than at Chelsea.

All of those prices, of course, don’t compare well to those charged by most other clubs in the Premier League – and the bottom line is that, to the majority, such amounts take considerable chunks of monthly income. But if you compare the success that London’s biggest rivals have delivered (as opposed to entertainment on the field, which I’ll neatly sidestep), you’ll find that Chelsea offers the best value for money, charging £7.65 per point during 08/09, compared to £11.88 at Arsenal and £12.20 at Spurs.

And for that money you get to watch Lampard, Terry, Essien, Ballack, Drobga and Joe Cole play. Not too bad at all.   

The same Football Fans Census survey suggested that 5% of Chelsea supporters would not renew their season ticket because of the cost, and a further 20% would go to less games. Are ticket prices in football too high? Post a comment.

Could injuries determine Chelsea’s success in 09/10?

Chelsea’s injury record over the past two or three seasons has made fairly sickening reading, with Petr Cech’s horrific injury at Reading 2006 kick-starting a lengthy – and ongoing – queue for the treatment table at Cobham. 

I discussed yesterday the potential impact of Bruno Dimichelis  joining the club, suggesting that reducing the number of injuries could be his most significant contribution. And, looking back over the last campaign in particular, that could well be the case.

Essien himself, the previous season’s player of the year who suffered torn knee ligaments, ended up playing 11 premiership games while Joe Cole played 13 and Carvalho just 12. That’s £50m worth of talent that have played just a quarter of a league season each. Drogba and Ballack also suffered early season injuries, making only 24 appearances, and John Terry, Deco and Ashley Cole all had niggling problems. Peripheral players suffered too, with Ferreira not available for most of the season.

Having suffered a number of injuries to key players for three successive seasons, Dimichelis will have to evaluate what, if anything, could be behind what looks more like a worrying trend than poor fortune. One wonders whether Mourinho’s policy of playing top players week-in, week-out in all competitions during his three and a half year tenure have had a long-term impact on the squad…

It looks like Ancelotti has plans of his own to tackle the problem however, and we might see the return (without meaning to sound derogatory) of more ‘tinkerman’ tactics. Speaking last week, Ancelotti hinted that he will look to use the full depth of the squad over the coming season: “I don’t want to choose my first team. Chelsea is a great team because it has 25 great players, and for me it is impossible to choose the first team. It may be that I never want to choose. I want 25 players that can play well for Chelsea”.

Rotation aside, there has been some good news on the injury front for Blues fans over the past couple of days, first with Ancelotti confirming the importance of Joe Cole in his plans (having suffered a setback in his recovery)  and then with Essien insisting yesterday that his long period on the sidelines last season has made him stronger as a player.

United finished seven points ahead of Chelsea last season – I’ll let you decide whether you think having a fully fit Essien and Cole – both entirely unique in the Chelsea squad - could make up that difference. Either way, hopefully it won’t be long before we find out.

Training changes at Chelsea

There’s been plenty of talk over the last week or so about Ancelotti’s reversion to a 4-4-2 formation. The Italian’s arrival has also brought about key changes behind the scenes too, with the introduction of new training regime and the hiring of the man who was behind an innovative new scientific facility at AC Milan.

In direct contrast to Scolari’s methods, training is reportedly now much more focused around working with the ball. This switch in emphasis has been welcomed by Frank Lampard:

"We did quite a lot of running without the ball last year. This year there is a lot more running with the ball and a lot more football-based stuff. That's something players always want to do, espeically if they can bring something new into their game. From the first day I came back we were playing small-sided games, keeping possession and working with the ball".

On his arrival in 2004 Mourinho brought the same focus on ball-work into Chelsea’s regime, and at that time it seemed a culture shock for the players who registered surprise at having a ball at their feet throughout training. It was undoubtedly to Chelsea’s benefit: whilst a free-flowing, pass and move side in (say) Arsenal’s image didn’t emerge, the side arguably became more confident and adept on the ball, especially when keeping possession in tight space. Hopefully a renewed focus on the ball in training is another sign that Ancelotti will be successful in carving out a new fluidity to Chelsea’s play. 

There is also a new figure on the training pitch, Bruno Demichelis, who joined from Milan and linked up with the club during the American tour. There’s an interesting Q&A with Bruno on the Chelsea website (the insight and expertise he reveals is far more impressive than Arnesen’s interview last week, which you can read here). In short however, Demichelis will look after  the performance, medical and psychological side of team preparation and will co-ordinate implementing new ways of assessing players’ nervous systems and new approaches to dealing with the mental side of performance.

Interestingly, Demichelis was a key figure behind Milan’s MilanLab, a scientific body set up by the club in 2002 in the wake of the terrible injury record of Redondo following his big money move to the Rossoneri. MilanLab was hugely innovative in its time, looking at individual player’s physical and mental needs down to finest detail to hone performance and help prevent injury (supposedly it ran a new range of tests throughout the season and could accurately predict when a player needed a rest to avoid injury). Some have suggested that the work of MilanLab has helped extend the careers of Milan’s ageing players and keep their 30-something year olds competitive despite being past their prime. 

It’s probably a little too far fetched to attribute too much of a team’s success to something like MilanLab, but in a sport where the biggest matches are tightly contested affairs, any application of science to help up performance by one or two percent could be invaluable. Chelsea will already have it’s own ‘ChelseaLab’, but if Demichelis can bring something new to the club, and reduce the number of injuries the team have sustained over the last two seasons, he’ll be worth his weight in gold.

Mourinho coming back to the premiership?

I’ve been saying for a while that I thought Jose was making a long and drawn-out pitch for the Man Utd hotseat – and it seems that yesterday he stepped it up a notch.

Comments from Mourinho saying that he would like to take over from Alex Ferguson when he retires have been reported everywhere since he made them yesterday afternoon. Bearing in mind that Ferguson will likely continue for at least another two years, we Chelsea fans face the very realistic prospect of both Mourinho and Hiddink managing other clubs in the league (the latter has made hints that he wants to return to England, and not necessarily to Chelsea).

In my view, Jose would be the ideal candidate for the job. Ferguson’s been there for pretty much two decades – the man who takes over is going to need a colossal ego to step into those shoes. He’s need to be something ‘special’ to instantly command the respect of the dressing room and calm any apprehension from the stands. If those are the criteria, then realistically there’s only one man with the character and CV for the job. On the other hand, perhaps the Man Utd hierarchy and their fans wouldn’t take to Jose’s perceived defensive mentality.

Personally however, the possibility of him moving to Old Trafford is something I dread. And that’s what’s interesting - should Mourinho move to Utd, what would Chelsea fans make of it en masse? 

What do you think? How does this compare to Zola moving to West Ham, which didn’t seem to make too much of a splash with Chelsea fans?

What Chelsea’s pre-season tells us

The squad having now left the US to head back to London (following a run-of-the-mill 2-0 victory over Club America in which Di Santo finally scored a senior goal for Chelsea), it looks like the team hasn’t lost the habit of winning. Four wins, eight goals scored and one trophy brought home – it's been an encouraging pre-season. Check out our match reports of the games against the Sounders, Inter and Milan.

But what have we learned from the club’s fourth - and most successful - pre-season stateside inside of five years? What have the warm up games told us about Ancelotti and his plans for 09/10? 

1) Ancelotti’s tactical masterplan
When Chelsea played a 4-4-2 diamond against the Seattle Sounders, I was unconvinced. Then again, I was sure it was merely experimentation before reverting back to the tried and tested 4-3-3 of recent years. But having played that formation for the remaining three games, it’s clear that Ancelotti plans to make it the bedrock of Chelsea’s way of playing during 09/10. It seemed to work well – our midfield easily outclassed Inter, more than held it’s own against a determined Milan and in Mikel and Essien we have the players adept at playing the disciplined game needed at the bottom of the diamond. Playing two up front should help our strikers get goals, and Anelka will be able to play in his own position.

Where it could all fall down: width. There was a real lack of width from midfield in each of the warm-up games, with overlapping full backs providing the main outlet downthe wings. Sound familiar? Ancelotti will need to find a way to ensure the midfield doesn't get too narrow - otherwise Chelsea will again become predictable, and beatable. Oh - and a final point - we seem to be overflowing with central midfield players. Will they all get a game?
 
2) Style and identity
Already during the pre-season tour there were signs that the team was looking to keep the ball on the deck, with neat triangles and creative runs the order of the day. Inter and the Seattle Sounders in particular were unable to deal with it.

Where it could fall down: who knows what will happen against more determined opposition. We saw more passing football from Chelsea early last season, but when the going got tough Chelsea reverted to type. Now personally, I’m happy to see clinical, winning football. But if Roman wants ‘identity’, he may have to put up with a temporary dip in performance…

3) Profile in the states 
Kenyon comes in for a lot of criticism. But if he were being judged purely on Chelsea’s increasing profile in the US, he should be a fans favourite. Chelsea have been playing their pre-season games in some of America’s best stadiums and have entertained over 260,000 fans in them. Were there four consecutive games last season in which Chelsea played before such a large audience? I’ve always been left feeling slightly bemused by clubs chasing increased fanbases in the far east – I’m not convinced my the size of the market. How many shirts (real rather than fake) are going to be sold over there? Each of the four stadiums  during this tour were crammed fans wearning official Chelsea shirts.

Where it could fall down: I’m not sure it can. But if cheerleaders and monster trucks start making an appearance at half time at the Bridge, you’ll know I’ve gone wrong.

4) Youth getting a chance
Sturridge looks a good buy. He’ll be a valuable back-up behind Drogba and Anelka this season and after that, who knows? Aside from our new striker though, Ancelotti was willing to give Mancienne, Sinclair, Hutchinson and Di Santo time on the pitch. Yes, some of them will probably go out on loan, but this could well be the time when some of these players finally get a chance.

Where it could fall down: if the team doesn’t perform early on. If you need to win, who are you going to play? Mancienne or Ivanovic? Hutchinson or Ashley Cole? Sinclair or Beletti? I could go on, but you get the point. Where there’s pressure to win every game and every trophy, playing the youngsters won’t always be possible.

5) Comings and goings
It’s early days, but Zhirkov and Sturridge look good signings. It woudn’t hurt to make one more signing upfront either – someone with a creative spark who can perhaps play off the right. More interesting perhaps though, is the fact that no-one has left the club yet (months ago Bruce Buck promised five or six players coming in with the same number going the other way). Pizarro and Shevchenko have both been given a chance and have been found wanting – pre-season should tell us that, provided clubs come in for them, they’ll be on there way in the next few weeks. Strength and depth is essential, but if Ancelotti wants to trim the squad and the club want to balance the books, you would expect one or two more to follow them, but who? Kalou? Not improving, but one of our young players and hasn’t got a bad scoring record. One of our right backs? We do seem to be collecting them… Deco? No-one seems willing to pay for him.

Where it could fall down: just how marketable are our players? Portsmouth have sold six players since Christmas and made just shy of £80m. Compare that to Chelsea where, of the players that might be available, probably only Kalou could command a transfer fee of £10m. Shying away from buying young talent in favour of bringing in established players leaves us short of options if we want to generate revenue from sales.

These are just my thoughts on the pre-season so far. What do other fans think – been impressed?

Terry staying is great, but his influence is out of control

So, Terry’s staying. Course he is - never in doubt.

It’s been an interesting few weeks, with endless debate in the papers about where John Terry would be playing next season. Yesterday however (and as you will have no doubt read), our captain committed his future to Chelsea, claiming he never considered leaving. He also gave us a some ‘insight’ into what has been going on behind the scenes over the last month. To summarise, this is what he’s said so far:

• He’s staying at Chelsea – and wants to finish his career at Stamford Bridge
• He never considered leaving for Man City
• The issue wasn’t about money – he hasn’t discussed a new contract
• He was concerned about the club securing key players – citing Ashley Cole and Didier Drogba – with new deals
• He was also concerned about the club signing top quality players – he revealed that Chelsea have fallen short of signing top names because prices were just a little too high. He didn’t rule out new signings being made
• He now feels assured about the club’s ambition

We may never know what the thrust of these last five weeks have really been about for Terry. Yes, he may not have considered leaving – but it’s not just a coincidence that Man City’s interest occurred at the same time as his talks with the board: he was certainly using the interest as leverage for something, whether it was money or otherwise.

Having heard his comments on Sky Sports News this morning, the cynic in me struggles to believe that money played no part in the conversations. JT said that they didn’t discuss a contract but intimated that one might be signed next year. Perhaps talk that Abramovich refused to countenance a new contract wasn’t far off the mark, but as a compromise it was agreed to re-negotiate at the end of 09/10? But who knows, perhaps a new contract will be announced in the next couple of weeks. It also seems likely from his comments that Ashley Cole and Drogba will sign new deals in the near future – undoubtedly good news, especially regarding the former, who had been linked with a move to Spain.

Like most fans out there (of Chelsea and other sides), I’m genuinely happy that Terry’s head hasn’t been turned by lure of preposterous amounts of cash – though I would also admit to thinking that £40m for him would be an excellent deal for the club. The announcement is also positive as it rubber-stamps Chelsea’s status in the league and helps ensure that we won’t be weakened going into the new season, unlike some of our competitors. That he's staying is what really matters.

But if, as John Terry says, this wasn’t about money, then one thing does concern me slightly: the power he is wielding at the club and what that means long-term.

As a captain, John Terry is out there on his own in England – there isn’t another like him – and Chelsea are the lucky benefactors. So perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that he’s more vocal than most, both publically and privately, about club policy. But if I were Kenyon, I’d see the last five weeks as a troubling sign that Terry’s influence (which is probably the result of the ego vacuum left after Mourinho's departure) is spiralling out of control. There’s no way Terry should have been talking about signing Villa or Ribery after the FA Cup. He shouldn’t be holding the club to ransom over the players he wants to see getting new contracts and openly naming them. And admitting where the club has fallen short in the transfer market - what is the point in Chelsea denying making a bid for Kaka if Terry’s going to suggest otherwise?

And who is caught in the middle of this? Ancelotti. Plenty has been said in the papers that Ancelotti is happy to work with an opinionated owner, and that his pliability was one of the reasons he was hired. Fine. But clearly Ancelotti now has two contending voices of considerable authority seeking to influence the club’s direction from above and below. What if, hypothetically, Ancelotti had decided that for the club to change its playing style and identity it was necessary for Drogba to move on (not an unrealistic hypothesis)?

If the primary objective of hiring a top manager this time is to finally get some consistency and long term-ism into Chelsea’s planning after a tumultuous few years, Terry’s inexorably increasing influence is surely a spanner in the works. And that cannot be a good thing.

Am I worrying too much? Wouldn’t be the first time…but post a comment.

Match report: Chelsea 2 AC Milan 1

Chelsea’s second game in succession against Milanese opposition resulted in another win. This game however – aside from being played in front of another mammoth American crowd – was an entirely different prospect to Wednesday’s stroll against Inter.

Once again Chelsea lined up with a 4-4-2 diamond formation, but this time with Zhirkov and Beletti filling the wide roles and Essien not even on the bench. Drogba and Anelka started upfront, and Ivanovic partnered Terry in the centre of defence.

Chelsea started brightly, and ten minutes of slick one touch football were enough to convince most that this was going to be another dominant match for the blues. Chelsea’s first goal came after just six minutes when Drogba took advantage of Milan’s refusal to close him down to strike a fierce shot into the top left hand corner of Kalac’s net from a good 35 yards. A bit special, and Drogba looked in great form throughout the first half.

Despite Chelsea’s dominance, it was already becoming clear that AC Milan would pose more of a threat than their local rivals had midweek. Ronaldinho was showing that he hasn’t lost any of the skills that made him the best player in the world and Pato’s guile and pace were providing the perfect outlet for Leonardo’s side. On 19 minutes they carved out their first chance, with Pirlo’s shot from distance forcing a block from Cech, only for the ball to fall to Ronaldinho who attempted an exquisite overhead kick, which went wide.

A far more balanced half followed, although arguably Chelsea were carving out the better chances with Lampard pulling the strings and both Drogba and Anelka looking sharp. Zhirkov, making his debut, played a conservative game but looked very accomplished on the ball, making a series of good runs, passes and interceptions. He’s quick, too. It looks like he’s got a good cross – Drogba could enjoy playing with him this season.

Despite Chelsea’s best efforts, it was Milan who scored next to bring the score level. Receiving the ball on the edge of the box, Ronaldinho layed the ball off expertly to Seedorf who arrived to slap a shot that wickedly swerved up and away from Cech into the roof of the net. Cech got close, but in my view the shot was struck with such venom that there wasn’t much he could have done about it.

Chelsea nearly responded immediately, with Lampard and Zhirkov both having shots blocked and Bosingwa hitting a left footed drive narrowly over the bar, but the score remained one all going in at half time. Good performances from each side, but you get the feeling Ancelotti would have liked Beletti and Zhirkov to provide a little more width and Mikel to show a little more discipline at the base of the diamond. Leonardo too must have been unhappy with his side’s pressing in defence, which was offering Drogba, Anelka and Lampard far too much time and space.

No changes by either side after half time, and Chelsea again started brightly with Drogba and Anelka combining well, with the latter putting a shot just wide after 47. But it was Milan who provided the real moment of quality in the game just one minute later, with Ronaldinho feeding Seedorf with an incredible outside of the boot flick, with the Dutchman eventually volleying just over from just inside the penalty box. Milan increased the pressure and played the better football for the next 10-20 minutes, with the best chance falling to Ronaldinho who smashed a freekick against the crossbar.

Beletti and particularly Zhirkov were acquitting themselves well, but you still get the feeling that the team could do with a little extra creativity from the right – especially if the plan is to play a slightly narrow 4-4-2.

The first substitution for Chelsea came on 63 minutes, with Shevchenko replacing Anelka, and it took just five minutes for Chelsea to score what turned out to the the winning goal. Shevchenko showed uncommon quick feet on the left side of the box to find the space to shoot, only for the shot to be blocked. Lampard’s volley from the rebound was also blocked, but this time the ball found its way to Zhirkov who had arrived on the edge of a packed penalty area to hit a clean left-footed strike low to the right of Kalac’s outstretched hand.

Immediately Milan upped the pressure on Cech’s goal again, but this time Chelsea held the lead. Pizarro came on for Drogba on 74 minutes, but aside from one nice interchange with Lampard ten minutes later he remained largely anonymous. It’s interesting that Ancelotti chose to play both Shevchenko an Pizarro in this game – perhaps he saw it as a good shop window for two strikers who are unlikely to remain at the club, although I guess it’s possible he’s considering keeping one. However unlikely the latter might seem, there isn’t a situation I can envisage in which anyone at Chelsea could identify anything about Pizarro’s game that was is worthy of keeping him at the club. You’re running out of time to prove me wrong, Claudio…

Mancienne and Hutchinson came on for cameo roles in the last five but, despite a late surge from Milan (Inzaghi heading a good chance wide) and Chelsea perhaps looking a little weary, it never looked likely that the score would end level. In fact, Lampard arguably should have scored deep into injury time having turned beautifully in the box and shooting wide from six yards following good build up play from Shevchenko.

In summary, another good warm up game for Chelsea. Whilst on the face of it the performance wasn’t at the same level as Wednesday’s, Milan put up a sterner test and provided Chelsea’s rearguard an entirely different set of problems to deal with – ideal in terms of preparing for the season proper. Just one game left in the States before returning to England for the final warm up game against Reading.

bridgeviews man of the match - difficult one, this. Mikel started slowly but improved in the second half, successfully shackling Milan's ageing but nevertheless quality attacking talent. Lampard too was very effective in taking advantage of the space between Milan's attack and defence, and Ashley Cole was again excellent. Zhirkov's opening display for the club was intelligent and saw him score the winning goal though - so just he edges out those three, for me.

Didier Drogba: peacemaker, diplomat and not all that bad

Poor old Didier – he’s come in for some criticism over the past few years. Whether it be haranguing referees, feigning injury, throwing coins, slapping Tevez or yapping to French football magazines, many Drogbaisms haven’t exactly endeared him to the average football fan.

And it’s a crying shame. For me, there isn’t a better exponent of the lone striker in world football. Ancelotti alluded to it earlier this week (shortly before suggesting that Drogba would be signing a new contract): Drogba is quite unique in that position. It’s too easy to think that Chelsea’s team has been built around Terry and Lampard for the last five years when, in fact, it has been built around the Ivorian.

But his play acting and sometimes (let’s say) unconventional behaviour has masked all that – and his performances tend to be forgotten by fans of both Chelsea and other clubs. In 06/07 he scored more than a goal every two games - 33 goals from 60 appearances (a ratio Cristiano Ronaldo managed only once, too). 

But some of the better parts of Drogba’s off-field behaviour have been overlooked too. By chance I recently picked up an interesting article written by Paul Doyle in the Guardian, who was writing in 2007 about Drogba throwing a tantrum following the departure of Mourinho. The article started as you might expect, but took an unexpected twist when Doyle recounted attempts made by Drogba to use his status in the game to help in the fight for peace in his native country, the Ivory Coast. You wouldn’t believe it, but Drogba acted selflessly and bravely to try and intervene to put a halt to a civil war (essentially between north and south Ivory Coast) that was causing untold death and destruction for the population.

Here’s what Doyle wrote:

“How do you explain his activism in Ivory Coast, where he has courageously and cleverly used his immense popularity not merely to endorse products but also to advance peace and reconciliation amid conflict and distrust?

Drogba could easily have ignored the politically fuelled fighting that finally erupted in Ivory Coast just a few months after he made his international debut in 2002; he could have flown his friends and family to safety and then just kept his head down and left others to sort the mess out... But instead he, more than any other Ivorian player, committed himself to cajoling and pressurising politicians into acting responsibility.

After being presented with his African Player of the Year award earlier this year, he flew to Abidjan to show his trophy to president Laurent Gbagbo, who, of course, was keen to bask in his reflected glory. But Drogba wanted something in return - he asked the president to arrange it so that Les Elephants could play their next home African Nations Cup qualifier not in Abidjan but in Bouaké, the centre of power of the rebels who had been fighting Gbagbo's regime. It would be a heroic, unifying gesture, declared Drogba. Placed squarely before his responsibilities by the country's favourite son, Gbagbo obliged, and last June Ivory Coast hosted Madagascar in Bouaké in an atmosphere of celebration that went far beyond anything a normal football match could muster.”

Later that month Drogba made another visit back to his homeland, this time to the separatist, rebel-held north. He took with him his award and, knowing the arrangements for the next qualifying game, he made a speech from a podium to a huge crowd of Ivorian fans, including New Forces general secretary and new Ivory Coast Prime Minister Guillaume Soro. He said: I’ve come here to offer you a golden ball, it’s a golden ball for the whole of the Ivory Coast. This is only the beginning. 3 June (the date of the game) will be memorable day: it will be a victory for Ivory Coast football, the victory of the Ivory Coast people and quite simply there will be peace”. One can only imagine that, for people in the midst of conflict of the like we will never experience in this country, this must have been pretty stirring stuff.

Through his actions Drogba managed to achieve something no politician, diplomat or intellectual could have got close to with one act. Now of course, Doyle wasn’t suggesting that Drogba alone managed to bring peace (and neither am I).  All he’s saying is that Drogba did as much as someone in his position could do to help – and did something remarkable. And in an age when footballers are accused of being selfish mercenaries, I for one think that’s quite refreshing.

So the next time you’re in a pub and some lagered-up Gooner is laying into Didier (shortly after he steamrollered their pubescent defence, again, probably) remind them that the Drog is actually the Kofi Annan of the footballing world. And that can’t be a bad thing. Puts a little slap in a Champions League final into perspective, no?

It looks like he’s staying, but would you get shot of Drogba this summer? Post a comment.

Match report: Chelsea 2 Inter 0

Another game, another two-nil win. But this wasn’t an ordinary game, or an ordinary performance. Aside from Chelsea's newest biggest fans, Will Ferrell and Charlize Theron, another 80,998 people crammed themselves into the stadium at Pasadena to see Chelsea take on the champions of Italy and produce a performance that suggests the squad is nearing readiness for the 09/10 campaign.

As he did against the Sounders, Ancelotti opted for a 4-4-2 diamond, this time with slightly more familiar personnel. Despite his good performance at the weekend, Sturridge found himself on the bench (my first impressions are that, when playing two up front, it will be Drogba and either Sturridge or Anelka), Mikel and Lampard at the bottom and top of the diamond respectively and Essien and Malouda taking the ‘wide’ roles.

With 81,000 supporters creating a good atmosphere for a pre-season game (we’ll ignore the mexican waves that rippled round the ground in the second half), Chelsea started brightly against Jose Mourinho’s side and didn’t look back. Smart one and two touch possession football was the order of the day and, with Kalou, Malouda and Cole linking up well down the left there was far more width than we saw on Saturday. Whilst against the Sounders Chelsea didn’t force a corner until the second half, this time two early corners inside the first five minutes produced good chances for Drogba and Terry – both headed over the bar.

A relatively high tempo game was already punctuated with its fair share of solid tackles (Carvalho on Balotelli, for example, and Mikel had a good battle with Veira), but Chelsea’s lively start was rewarded after just ten minutes. Drogba, who had found himself on the left, unleashed a curling shot towards goal. Despite a slight deflection, the Inter keeper should have done far better diving to his left but wasn’t able to keep it out. Wouldn’t say Jose looked entirely happy…

The first ten minutes set the tone for the following 80 – with Lampard going close and Kalou squandering one or two half chances. With Inter barely getting out of their half, Chelsea’s 4-4-2 was functioning well, creating fluent football I wouldn’t have expected 135 minutes into pre-season. From a building fitness perspective the game was perfect: both sides pressing well and maintaining a good pace to the game.

Only three changes at half time meant that Chelsea kept their fluidity and it took just three minutes for Chelsea to double their lead. Deco found Sturridge in the box (both had come on at half time) and, in a reversal of his goal on Saturday, his first touch helped him deftly check back past the defender and onto his right boot while his shot was blocked. Picking up the loose ball he shot again, this time finding the hand of the same defender. Result: a penalty (I admit that, being slightly blurry eyed watching the game this morning, I’ve no recollection of whether it was a fair pen or not) which Lampard converted.

More players got a run out (Turnbull, Beletti, the impressive Mancienne, Hutchinson) but Chelsea continued in the same vein for the remainder of the half – albeit perhaps lacking a cutting edge, with more half-chances for Deco, Lampard and Sturridge failing to find their target. The arrival of Ibrahimovic and Mancini did have a galvanising effect on Inter but, aside from one long range effort and a misplaced shot in the box (83 minute), the former was unable to make much of an impact. His head is probably already in Barcelona, to be fair…

Lampard – you have to say his fitness is incredible – came off the field on 87 minutes to a standing ovation from the American fans. Di Santo was his replacement and should have done better than blazing over from point blank range following a beautiful flick into the box from Deco. With Sturridge making such an impressive start you get the feeling Di Santo has to do better, and quickly, if he doesn’t want to spend another season in the reserves or out on loan.

Again, pre-season games are about fitness and you certainly can’t read too much into results or performances. But it certainly was an impressive performance – genuinely Inter weren’t in the game – and the 4-4-2 formation was a whole lot more convincing than I expected. All that was missing was a little extra sharpness in the final third, and perhaps a more consistently high tempo, but that should come…

Bridgeviews man of the match: Ashley Cole. The left back worked tirelessly up and down the left for 80 minutes, linking well with Kalou and Malouda particularly in the first half. Flawless in defence.

Chelsea v. Inter: remembering Jose Mourinho

So, in under twenty-four hours Chelsea will line up against Inter Milan in Los Angeles – the first time we will come up against a Jose Mourinho side since he left the club in 2007. I for one am looking forward to the game, if only as an opportunity to relive some of the Mourinho magic.

Always entertaining, I remember in particular the press conference where he correctly identified Barcelona’s starting eleven ahead of the second leg tie, and the time when he took offence at journalists asking banal questions rather than asking about his team (when they finally did ask him he told them it was too late and left with a grin). Jose always said what us fans wanted to hear – he backed the players and club at the right time and mocked the right opposition managers and players, all the while throwing in a heavy dose of comedy along the way. On the few occasions where we lost a game under his management, you could rely on Jose to say something that would somehow make it a little better. Realise this is reading like a eulogy, but bear with me…

So what better way to prepare for the Inter game than to look back at some of Jose’s best moments at Chelsea – inevitably in front of the press. There are absolutely too many to include, but I’ve dug out some of my favourite Mourinho quotes.

On being special: “I’m not a defender of old or new football managers. I believe in good ones and bad ones, those that achieve success and those that don’t. Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”

On achieving success: “We are on top at the moment but not because of the club’s financial power. We are in contention for a lot of trophies because of my hard work.”

On the UK's love for the blues: “Everybody was waiting for Chelsea not to win every game and one day, when we lose, there will be a holiday in the country. But we are ready for that.”

On Chelsea’s injury crisis in February 2007: “It is like having a blanket that is too small for the bed. You pull the blanket up to keep your chest warm and your feet stick out. I cannot buy a bigger blanket because the supermarket is closed. But I am content because the blanket is cashmere.”

On Chelsea’s melons: “Young players are a little bit like melons. Only when you open and taste the melon are you 100 per cent sure that the melon is good."

On liberté in France:“Makelele is not a football player - Makelele is a slave. He’s played the biggest game you can, the World Cup final, and now wants to retire but the coach told us if he is not playing for France, he is not playing for Chelsea. We know the rules. You are a slave, you have no human rights.”

On Ricky complaining about being left out: “Carvalho seems to have problems understanding things, maybe he should have an IQ test, or go to a mental hospital or something.”

In the aftermath of Cech’s head injury: “There are still other things which concern me (and) leave me in a very emotional situation. If my goalkeeper dies in that dressing room it is something English football has to think about. It looks like what I did against Liverpool that ’shut up’ was a nightmare. I think this is a real nightmare, a real nightmare. I would like somebody to tell me why my goalkeeper was put in this situation for 30 minutes.”

On squad rotation: “Why drive Aston Martin all the time, when I have Ferrari and Porsche as well? That would just be stupid.”

On Arsenal’s 5-4 win over Spurs: “That was not a football score, it was a hockey score…in training I often play matches of three against three and when the score reaches 5-4 I send the players back to the dressing room, because they are not defending properly.”

On Barcelona: “In 200 years of history they have won the European Cup only once. I have been managing for a few years and I have already won the same amount.”

On Messi’s antics against Chelsea in the Champions League: “How do you say ‘cheating’ in Catalan?”

On Wenger: “I think he is one of these people who is a voyeur. He likes to watch other people. There are some guys who, when they are at home, have a big telescope to see what happens in other families. He speaks, speaks, speaks about Chelsea.”

On Rijkaard: “My history as a manager cannot be compared with Frank Rijkaard’s history. He has zero trophies and I have a lot of them…”

On Cruyff’s criticism of Chelsea’s style: “I don’t want him to teach me how to lose 4-0 in a Champions League final because I don’t want to learn that.”

On Ferguson and Wenger: “If they don’t touch me, I won’t touch anyone. If they touch me, I’ll be ready to hit back even harder.”

On being god: “If I wanted to have an easy job… I would have stayed at Porto - beautiful blue chair, the Champions League trophy, God, and after God, me.”

On pressure: “Pressure? There is no pressure. Bird Flu is pressure. No, you laugh, but I am being serious. I am more worried about the swan then I am about football.”

On playing the tambourine: “The moral of the story is not to listen to those who tell you not to play the violin but stick to the tambourine.”

On UEFA calling him the enemy of football:“Mr Roth has two ways out, apologise or it goes to court.”

On his dog’s dodgy health certification: “The dog is fine in Portugal - that big threat is away - you don’t have to worry about crime anymore.”

On being under the thumb: "It all depends on my wife. If I am at home, yes, I will see it. But maybe my wife would like to go somewhere. I would like to see it (Arsenal v. Utd) - it is a big game. But maybe I will have no permission."

On Gallas missing the pre-season trip to the US: "As you know Gallas had an unbelievable holiday. I hope he enjoyed it very much in Guadeloupe, which I think is a fantastic place to be on holiday, so he wanted to stay there for a long time."

On Graham Poll: "If you ask me if I jump with happiness when I know Mr Poll is our referee? No."

On Benitez: "Three years without a Premiership title? I don't think I would still be in a job."

We miss you, Jose. Any Jose quotes or memories that I’ve missed? Post a comment.

Seattle Sounders 0 Chelsea 2

So, with the summer’s first pre-season game under the belt, what have we learned? Well, never let an American sing the English National Anthem, for a start…

On a more serious note, Ancelotti said before the game against the Sounders that he wanted to try something different. He certainly did, lining up the starting 11 in a 4-4-2 diamond (we haven’t seen that for a while) in the first half, with Deco in a holding role. Whilst by no means a bad performance, I suspect he might not have entirely liked what he saw – the side was almost entirely devoid of width, with Malouda largely playing inside and only Bosingwa occasionally overlapping down the right.

It was the Sounders who started the better, their superior fitness and match-sharpness evident, but the American side was unable to cause any real problems for Chelsea’s back four. As the first ten drew to a close, Chelsea launched perhaps their first meaningful attack with Malouda hitting a thirty yard ball up the pitch to Sturridge who, despite an awkward first touch, managed to turn and bend a perfectly placed shot past Kasey Keller and into the bottom right hand corner. A good start from the new man…

Throughout the first half Sturridge looked confident and had the willingness to try things, but it took longer for the central midfield to get into the game. Seattle’s centre-half pairing seemed willing to help out however – you could regularly park several buses between them – and it wasn’t long before Deco was picking out passes to find the runs of Sturridge and Anelka, who both spurned chances to add to Chelsea’s lead. When the going is easy, Deco looks good…

Assisted by sloppy play from Chelsea’s defence and Deco being no Makalele, a period of Sounders pressure followed, with Freddie Ljungberg clearly a class apart from most of his teammates. The Swede made a couple of threatening runs from the right and forced a good save from Cech from a freekick, but the Sounders never really looked like hitting the net.

As if to absorb the pressure, Chelsea embarked on some good possession football, with Sturridge eventually unlocking the Sounders defence with a fine reversed pass through to Anelka, who duly cut the ball back to Lampard to score from five yards. I could comment on Frank’s unerring ability to find space in the box, but we’ve heard it all before. Two nil.

The second half saw nine changes with only Ballack and Lampard kept on (Frank ended up playing the full 90) and the structure of both the Chelsea side, and the game, seemed to fall apart. Huge space in midfield for both sides resulted in surprisingly few goal scoring opportunities at either end, although Hilario was determined to bring more excitement to the game with some exquisite flapping. Chelsea’s front three of Pizarro, Shevchenko and Di Santo was a little confusing – Shevchenko was dropping too deep for my liking – and most of Chelsea’s attacks petered out once they reached the last third.

It was good to see Hutchinson, Di Santo and Sinclair get a run out, and while Hutchinson made some good interventions in the last twenty minutes I suspect Di Santo and Sinclair will be looking to have more of an impact in other pre-season games once they’re more into their stride. It will be interesting to see what becomes of Pizarro and Sheva (who did make a good few touches and somehow looked quicker than normal) over the next few weeks – I’m yet to be convinced that they still have the quality to make an impact over the coming season.

Clearly the aim of pre-season games – and especially the first one – is to increase the fitness of the squad, and from that perspective the Sounders provided perfect opposition. The team played well without really excelling, but that doesn’t matter. On the plus side, Sturridge looked good and is sure to get another run out over the next week. Aside from getting to know his players that little bit better however, I’m not sure what else Ancelotti will have learned – although hopefully he’ll realise there’s very little point in playing two upfront if you’re not going to support them down the wings (it was telling that Chelsea didn’t have a corner until the 54th minute, by which point we’d switched away from 4-4-2). Against more stubborn opposition, just picking passes through the central defence will look one-dimensional. We’ve been there before…

One final point – the Sounders’ play in a remarkable stadium (they share it with NFL team the Seattle Seahawks) and their fans, whilst not sounding quite the same as their English counterparts, made quite a racket throughout the 90. There won’t be many teams playing in front of 65,000+ crowds this pre-season. Good to see the game growing in popularity stateside. You certainly get the impression that Chelsea visiting was quite a big thing for both American football fans and the players alike - you can read some of the Sounders’ players commenting how they found playing Chelsea here.

bridgeviews man of the match: Daniel Sturridge. His first touch looked suspect occasionally, but his confidence, willingness to try things and well taken goal are encouraging. If I was Di Santo, I’d be concerned.

Introducing Chelsea's US Tour

Don't forget that Chelsea's pre-season US tour kicks off today, with a game against the Seattle Sounders (8pm UK time, live on Chelsea TV).  I have to confess, I don't know much about the Sounders, other than that they play in a very fetching green kit, and that they have a couple of familiar names on their roster (their word, not mine): Kasey Kellar and Freddie Ljungberg.  Their website's worth a look though, if only because they have a 'Soccer 101' section (which, in fairness, a few referees could benefit from reading). 

Seriously though, a bit of background on our opponents.  The Sounders were established in 2007, played their first game in March of this year, and are currently sitting third in the MLS Western Conference.  MLS teams are currenly mid-season (their league runs from March to November), so the Sounders should be operating at their peak.  And Chelsea should expect a great atmosphere at the game - Qwest Field (the Sounders' home ground) holds more than 65,000, and is expected to be packed for the game with fans hoping to see some of Chelsea's biggest names play. 

Chelsea will follow-up their friendly against Seattle by participating in the World Football Challenge (also in the US), where they will be up against Inter (22nd), Milan (24th), and Club America (26th), before heading home.  Check in at bridgeviews for match reviews.

Joe Cole's loyalty

The whole John Terry issue isn't clear at all - and many fans have taken his silence over the last couple of weeks badly. In light of all that, when I stumbled across a press cutting with the following quote from Joe Cole I warmed to it all the more. Here's hoping he's back to full fitness soon.

He's here, he's there, he's every fu*king where...

 

Terry leaving Chelsea – the pros and cons

It’s all gone a bit quiet on the John Terry front today – I still think we’ll know the full picture by the end of the week – but in the meantime there have been a couple of related articles in the papers, for example Matt Dickinson in the Times discussing the need for stability at Stamford Bridge and Stuart James of the Guardian suggesting Terry has had renewed talks with his agent over the potential move.

This brief pause in what was otherwise relentless gossip about the Chelsea captain’s future has given me time to think through the potential implications of Terry leaving a little more, and I’ve come up with a handy list of seven pros and seven cons. Have I missed anything?

Terry leaving: for

1. The fee. Upwards of £35m for any central defender (let alone a 29 year old) is a lot of money – money that could be used to strengthen the team where it’s most needed
2. Alex. The Brazilian centre-half developed into a fine defender last season and, as he is actually a player in the same vein as Terry, his presence might mean the captain’s departure wouldn’t be so impactful
3. His head has been turned. It seems unlikely, but there is at least potential for his commitment on and off the pitch to have diminished if he stays
4. Whilst clearly not yet a first team player, Terry leaving could mean more opportunities for Mancienne. Ivanovic might also get the chances his performances at the end of last season deserve
5. We have a ready-made replacement captain waiting in the wings in the form of Frank Lampard
6. Injuries. At his age and with his recent record of niggling injuries, Terry is certainly a declining asset. He claims he could play until he’s at least 35, but it seems unlikely. The money offered by Man City certainly doesn’t reflect his true value and he isn’t in his prime
7. It’s arguable that Terry has too much influence at the club. Rumours from Makalele suggested Terry had a hand in Mourinho’s departure (seems unlikely) and the papers have claimed that Terry has been demanding certain signings – certainly not the way a club should be run. If indeed Terry is looking to hold the club to ransom over signings rather than wages, it might be that his power at Stamford Bridge has gone a little bit too far

Terry leaving: against

1. Terry is the club’s most successful captain, and the core of both the team and the side as a whole. Technically he is still an excellent player and amongst the best in the world. Criticised for his lack of pace, his detractors fail to recognise how the rest of his game is of sufficient quality to compensate
2. Leadership. More than an ordinary captain, Terry is one of a kind in the league. The relative success in 07/08 – in my eyes – can be at least partially attributed to Terry’s leadership and the little bit of Jose that the captain maintained. What is Terry’s role in bringing through youngsters such as Mancienne, and surely the loss of such an influential figure would have a huge impact of squad morale
3. The likely loss of Carvalho. Can we really afford to lose our two best and most experienced defenders in one summer? Losing Terry and keeping a demotivated and injury-prone Ricky might be no better
4. Chelsea have changed more managers than I’ve had Stamford Bridge hot dogs over the past six years (and that’s saying something). Add to that the loss of Steve Clarke, John Terry pretty much represents the club’s only chance for any form of real continuity
5. In a world (created by Real Madrid) where standing still is the new going forward, it is imperative that we hang onto our best players
6. Status in the game. Whatever club you are, it’s difficult not to flinch when someone offers you £40m. But Chelsea should have no desire to set a precedent for being a club that sells its best players
7. Manchester City. I’m still convinced that it’s too early for them to be a threat to Chelsea this season (though football365 have them finishing third ahead of us – one good season and they think Liverpool are a great side. We’ll see). But Terry would be an acquisition that would help them pick up the pace in the search of a top four finish

Chelsea are getting it right on Terry

The Terry saga is causing a bit of a stir, isn’t it? Not surprising really – if it were to happen (and I’m still far from convinced that it will), it would probably be the most remarkable transfer of the summer, perhaps more extraordinary than Owen’s move to Utd.

We’ve already posted on the gossip and what Terry brings to the club. We’ll probably post on it again. But one thought that has occurred to me is that, for once, Chelsea might be playing their cards right with how they’re dealing with this one.

The board and Ancelotti have unquestionably made clear their commitment to keeping JT a the club and, if reports are to be believed, are refusing to be held to ransom by the club captain’s wage demands.

So on the one hand Terry should be left in no doubt that he is wanted by the club, and should he end up staying we could almost legitimately say a move was never on the cards. If he does end up forcing a sale the price needed to prize him away from Stamford Bridge will be kept high. It will also send a further clear message to current players, prospective players and other clubs that Chelsea won’t continue an unrestrained open-wallet policy. Finally of course, if the unthinkable does happen, fans won’t be able to blame the club for not making a concerted effort to keep our most successful captain.

Now that we’ve all had the chance to think about it a little more, I’ll put a proposition to you: perhaps getting good money for Terry will allow that little bit more freedom in the transfer market and help us to get the creative influence we desperately need in attack. If it meant we could sign Aguero or Ribery (and secure a solid English replacement for JT like Upson or Taylor), would you let Terry go?

Credit where credit's due

Football clubs get a lot of stick for the conduct of the players, the amount of money spent and the trouble fans can get themselves into.  However, Chelsea have finally got a bit of credit for some of the great community work they do.  Today Chelsea are hosting a Celebrity Sports Day for Right to Play - a charity that uses sport and play to help children facing poverty, conflict and disease in 23 countries across the developing world.  Confirmed attendees at the event include Terry, Lampard, Essien, Cech, Ballack, the Coles and Drogba.  What a great initiative.

Sepp Blatter: The Most Hypocritical Man in Football?

In the light of Blatter's recent remarks trying to rationalise Ronaldo's ridiculous-money move to Real Madrid, I thought it might be worth taking a quick tour through his career to see what other craziness I could find.  And the answer was: quite a lot...

1998 and 2002:  Allegations abound that Blatter is bribing officials to vote for him in the FIFA presidential elections.

2002:  FIFA's secretary-general Michael Zen-Ruffinendrew up a dossier outlining allegations of financial mismanagement within the organisation.  The dossier alleged that the collapse of FIFA's marketing partner ISL had led to losses of up to $100M under Blatter's management.  No action was taken by the Swiss authorities, and an internal investigation within FIFA was halted by Blatter, seen by many as proof of his guilt. Zen-Ruffinen was later removed from office by Blatter, and the ISL Director (a good friend of Blatter's) was convicted of embezzlement.

2004:  Blatter's 'Silver Goal' rule was used for the first time in International competition, helping Greece to beat Cech and the Czech Republic in the European Championships semi-final.  The rule has subsequently been dropped.  Other great Blatter rule-changes include the mandate that national associations must enforce player suspensions even if video evidence shows the referee made a bad call (the FA happily ignore that one), and that players who are over-zealous in their goal celebrations should be booked.

Later on in 2004, Blatter commented that women footballers might want to think about wearing tighter shorts to create a female aesthetic.  He's also expressed his surprise that there aren't more openly gay footballers, pointing to the example of women's football: "homosexuality is popular there".

2007:  Blatter decrees that football matches shouldn't be played above 2,500m.  All very well unless you're Bolivia, whose national stadium was rendered useless.  As with many of Blatter's edicts, this decision has since been reversed.

2008/2009:  Blatter criticises Man Utd for not allowing Ronaldo to move in 2008, claiming that this makes Ronaldo a 'slave'.  Obviously the facts that (a) he had willingly signed a contract, and (b) was being paid millions of dollars had passed Blatter by.  This year he sought to legitimise Madrid's £80M purchase by comparing Ronaldo to Picasso, and the size of the bid by saying it merely reflected the health of the football transfer market.  Why no criticism of all the money being spent?  Oh that's right, he's a Real Madrid fan.

Blatter has also taken the opportunity to have a pop at the English dominance of the Champions League.  Confused?  You should be.  English clubs have only won the Champions League three times since its re-launch in 1992, the same as the Italians and fewer than the Spanish.  Whilst waffling on about excessive money in English football, Blatter has overseen the spend of £120M on FIFA headquarters (making Wembley look like a bargain), allowed FIFA officials a daily expense rate of €500 (no receipts required), and spent only £5Mbuilding football centres in Africa.  Way to go, Sepp.

Think I've missed anything?  Or that I've given Blatter too much stick, and that he's actually good for the game?  Post a comment.

Transfer Gossip: Ribery to Liverpool?

Shock news this morning from Sky that Liverpool are planning a big money bid for Ribery, a story given credence by the fact that Skybet have slashed the odds of Ribery joining the Scousers from 66-1 to odds on.  Skybet have said that "every price we have put up has been taken on Ribery moving to Liverpool, which has left us stumped as in recent weeks he has been linked with every club except the reds!"  Skybet similarly slashed the odds of Owen going to Man Utd just days before the deal was signed.

All this follows a Rafa Rant, this time aimed at the other half of Manchester.  In a press conference yesterday, Benitez slammed Barry for going to Man City, calling him "100 per cent" mercenary.  "It is not a bad thing to miss out on him.  The most important thing is the passion of the player."

Contrasting stories this morning on Terry's future.  The Sun has reported that Terry is likely to get a £25k-a-week payrise, and that his discussions with Lancelot went well yesterday.  Meanwhile the broadsheets have been reporting that his future is very much in the balance.  There's also further evidence that we're looking to the future with this year's transfer purchases - The Telegraph today reported that we're interested in buying England U21 player Adam Johnson (a player Real Madrid were interested in last year) for £8M from Middlesbrough.

Rumours are fast growing that Fabregas is off to Barcelona.  The Spanish press has been full of it for days.  This would be a huge loss for Arsenal, especially with Man City pressing hard for Champions League football.  The loss of a player of Fabregas' calibre damages any side, but it also confirms the growing feeling that Arsenal can't keep their biggest players, and are functioning as a development ground for some of the game's biggest teams.

And finally, Ronaldo has addressed the question we've all been wondering: is he really worth £80M?  His answer: "I'm worth more".  Well that solves that then...

John Terry Update

We were all waiting for the rumours to start on the outcome of John Terry's discussions with the Club today.  So far nothing, but we'll keep you posted as soon as we hear anything.  Whatever the result, JT hasn't yet felt the need to reassure fans as to his future.  The Independent has an interesting take on Terry's position: they're attributing his departure to two factors - the first is money, but surprisingly the second is ambition.

"The England captain's restlessness is not just about the money on offer from City - though that undoubtedly plays a part - but also the ambition that Ambramovich is prepared to show in buying the kind of players who can seriously challenge again for the Premier League and Champions League...  Terry is understood to be doubtful about the potential of a club that has not come close to competing with City this summer, much less Real Madrid, in the acquisition of new players."

Really? If so, I'm stunned.  Terry should remember that we've come pretty close to winning the Premiership and Champions League for the past couple of years, missed penalties aside.  (Sorry, low blow, and I don't really mean it - I respect the man no-end for having the balls to stand up when needed.)  If The Independent's source is accurate, it seems likely that JT's conversations with the Club will be about our plans for the transfer window, as well as the size of his pay packet.  Terry's certainly got the power to influence club plans - I'm sure you'll all remember the furore caused by Makele's claim in his biography that Terry gave Ambramovich a Mourinho-or-me ultimatum - one that the Armani-clad manager lost (though it must be said that Terry has strongly denied these claims).

The talk coming from Chelsea implies that we're not going to willingly sell him, so if JT is to leave he will have to make continued life at the Bridge untenable, perhaps even putting in a transfer request.  My gut still says that this won't happen, and much of this is just paper talk.  But I'm starting to lose my faith.  Fingers crossed JT's around for long enough to help me believe again.

Chelsea FC: Transfer Gossip

Those of you who read yesterday's Fiver will already have seen the rather amusing commentary around Zhirkov's pre-destined arrival at the Bridge:

New Chelsea signing Yuri Zhirkov is worried his lack of English will hold him back at Stamford Bridge.  "Abramovich came to our [CSKA Moscow] dressing room to congratulate the team on winning the Russian Cup Final in May 2006.  Then, he suddenly turned to me and said, 'Yuri, start learning English'.  I didn't say anything, just smiled.  Unfortunately, I still have not learnt the language.  Now I know I should have taken his advice more seriously."

Perhaps he could take lessons with Carlo?

The Sun today reported that John Terry has demanded talks with Abramovich to discuss his contract.  Apparently his silence over Man City's bid is not so much because he's secretly planning a move north-wards, but instead because he intends to use City's interest as leverage to enhance his current £115k-a-week contract.  Rumour has it he's not happy that Frank's contract (signed last summer) is richer at £135k-a-week.  I love JT, and have always been a massive admirer, but he's fast becoming injury prone, is unlikely to age well given his back and lack-of-pace issues, and has always been dependent on a strong partner alongside him.  Given he hasn't come out to declare his loyalty to Chelsea, should we really be upping his contract by another £20/30k a week at this stage in his career?  If he's willing to call our bluff and go to Man City for a bit of extra cash, he may not be the man I thought he was...

And finally, The Times is reporting that we're still in the market for Ribery.  Given that Real Madrid have stated that they've been priced out of buying him, it seems crazy to suggest that we'll be prepared to splash enough cash.  But this is football, and stranger things have certainly happened...

Ancelotti's First Day in Charge

Some good news - Ancelotti faced the media today, showing off some not too shabby English, and even chucking in a joke or two to keep the journos amused.  Even better news, Ancelotti reiterated that JT will remain a Chelsea player: "he said he wants to stay, there is no problem for him for us, the story continues - Chelsea and Terry".  He went on to compare Terry to Maldini, high praise indeed.

Worryingly, Ancelotti once again took the opportunity to reiterate that he's joined us to win the Champions League, so whatever the fans may think, it seems definite that we're prioritising Europe over the Premiership this year.  He also commented that he "would like that Chelsea have an identity to play, and this identity we want to build".  This harks back to earlier comments Ancelotti made that Roman was unable to recognise the Chelsea side, and that they lacked personality.  This is crazy - we might lack world-class wingers, on a consistent strike force, but personality we have in droves (the home-leg against Barca was some of the most committed, disciplined and driven football I've seen in years).  Team spirit is one of our greatest assets.  Let's hope he spots that once pre-season training gets going.

Back to the good news again - Chelsea also announced today that they've completed the signing of Yuri Zhirkov from CSKA Moscow for £18M.  He's very versatile, able to play left-back and left-midfield, so provides much needed cover and competition following the departure of Wayne Bridge.  He's only 25, so adds a bit of youth to the side.  Given his versatility and our need for genuine cover on the left, he's probably a better buy than Johnson would have been.  Combined with recent purchases of Sturridge and Turnbull, it seems like we might have abandonned the policy to buy ready-made stars (that the team may or may not need), and instead to focus on building a team for the future.  It remains to be seen whether they're good enough to take us to the title next season.

Let us know whether you think this is a good start to Ancelotti's reign, and what you make of the Zhirkov signing.

Real Madrid Strike Again...

...Only this time it's not in the transfer market.  In a big weekend for sport (Wimbledon, Lions, Tour de France and Ashes warm-ups), Florentino Perez did his bit to keep football on the front pages of the sports pages by demanding a change to the current Champions League format.  He's asked for a new format that guarantees 16 big clubs a place in the competition - however they perform in their domestic league, and that ensures the big clubs will consistently play each other (rather than minnows from across Europe).  He has indicated he will push for a breakaway "closed shop competition" if UEFA refuse to consider his proposal, and has commented that he hopes his format can be implemented "without abandoning the national leagues".

To Perez's way of thinking, the big clubs that would quialify for this special treatment are: Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Manchester Utd, Chelsea (phew), Liverpool, Arsenal, Inter, AC Milan, Juventus, Bayern Munich, Lyons, Porto, Celtic, Rangers and Olympiakos.  In some ways a strange list - after all, Madrid have qualified for the CL in each of the past 12 seasons without any special favours, and Celtic and Rangers have rarely had to beat off strong Scottish competition for their places in the competition.  Are Madrid in such a bad financial place that they need guaranteed Champions League places, and guaranteed revenue from huge games?  And who made Perez God anyway?

It seems unlikely that this will go ahead so there's little need to worry about it right now, but my gut instinct is that this is truly terrible idea.  You can either view it as a pointless endeavour to set in stone something that's already pretty much set in stone, or much worse, as an attempt to maintain the current status quo into the future and forever more.  If we'd completed an exercise like this just ten years ago, Chelsea certainly wouldn't be in the list, and Ajax probably would be.  This wouldn't have been good for Chelsea, but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be good for football either.  Whatever level you play at, football is about dreams.  The dream of beating your greatest rivals, winning a Cup, getting promoted, avoiding relegation, turning over the tournament favourites, or winning the league.  If we fix the list of those who get to play, without any room for change, we take away the chance to dream, and that would be the end of the football as we know it.

Chelsea reject bid for John Terry

Good on us.  Terry is not only key to our defence, but also the heartbeat of our side.  We certainly couldn’t replace what he brings for £30M.  Much as Utd will find it impossible to find one player who can bring everything Ronaldo offered (even with £80M burning a hole in their pocket), we wouldn’t be able to find one player to replace JT: technical excellence, leadership, bravery, a few key goals, and a better passer of the ball than many people credit.

But good on Man City too.  Far from being England’s answer to Real Madrid (will they play any defenders next season?!?), they’ve identified what it takes to win – not just fancy buys from Brazil, but also top quality passion and fight. 

And that’s why Terry’s staying at the Bridge.

G-Owen to Man Utd

In The Times today Tony Cascarino describes Michael Owen as a strange signing for Manchester United.  His logic seems to be that Owen’s injured so often he’s a big risk – he might only play 25 games, and score just 15 goals.

We posted on the merits of Michael Owen last month (take a read here), but again, what’s the problem?!  Most clubs would love to have a player who scores more than one every two games.  So what if he can only play 25 in a season? Newcastle’s problem was that they were dependent on Owen, with no other reliable strikers to step up and score when he couldn’t play.  At Utd this won’t be the case – if he’s not fit many others can play and score (I’m sure they’re not finished with new signings either), and if he is fit he can start/ come on and take the chances he’s given.  There will be less pressure on him to score (arguably he was suffering under the strain at Newcastle), and being signed by a big club like Utd will no doubt give his confidence a much-needed boost.

On the money front, all the papers seem pretty clear that Owen’s taking a big drop in wages (in essence gambling some cash for the chance to make it back into the England side).  This isn’t a deal that’s going to cost Utd mega-bucks, and will certainly leave plenty of cash free to make some longer-term player investments.  

It might not be the step-down some are suggesting for Utd. I would say good luck to the bloke (he’s had a rough ride with injuries and doesn’t get the credit his record deserves), but given that would mean goals for Utd, I wouldn’t really mean it…

Is the Owen deal a bargain or footballing suicide? Does it strengthen our chances in the league? Post a comment.