Chelsea is often bandied about as being old, ageing, beyond their prime, as Sir Alex Ferguson would attest. And it’s hard to argue the point, with a fair slice of our key players over 30, the most notable including Ballack, Drogba and Lampard.

And whilst there are players who are under 25, only a few continue to make the grade week after week. And in my opinon, the most notable of these is John Obi Mikel.

It is not idle fun that Jose Mourinho is chasing the Nigerian. Since arriving at Chelsea from Lyn Oslo at the tender age of 18, he was a Manchester United player. The Reds cried foul that they had signed him, but Chelsea struck back by saying they had signed him. However, Ferguson appeared with Mikel, showing a shirt emblazoned with 21, Mikel.

But then John disappeared at a Norwegian Cup match. He wasn’t playing, he was supposed to be in the stands watching. But he wasn’t. Had he been kidnapped? The media thought so, and Man Utd assistant Carlos Quieroz said that it was Chelsea.

But John was really in London with his agent, “mulling over the deal”. Then he appeared on the news, pointing the finger at United and saying that they had breached the rules.

Mikel was supposed to return to Lyn Oslo, but never did. A feud began to grow between the club and Manchester United. Then Chelsea heroically stepped through the door and offered to sign Mikel. They paid United twelve million euros, and Lyn four million. And finally through all that, Mikel was a Chelsea player.

And boy was it worth it!

Mikel, now 21, is a prominent voice in the side. Whilst not being absolute first choice, for the big games in particular, he can be relied on to make an appearance and perform, as he did when Essien was out for the first half of the season. Under Scolari, Mikel played superbly.

But it hasn’t been all happiness. Mikel does have a temper, having been sent off four times in his Chelsea career. During the early days, punctuality and personal life got in the way of his talent, and after being dropped considerably, his future hanged in balance.

Fortunately, Mikel cleaned up his act and got his career back on track. Stunning holding midfield performances, particulary in the Champions League, earned him plaudits. With the moving of Makelele, Mikel’s place in the team was cemented even more, with his transition to the Makelele role seamless.

In the FourFourTwo Top 100 list this year, Mikel was listed at Number 90. Just another stat that contributes to the talent that he amasses in almost every game. Forget signing young midfielders, Mikel is the future diamond in the crown. Bring Cork and Woods into the fringe, and we may just have a future we can proud of.

He’s just got to become a better shooter…

This and more on the new look and new name Stamford Blues – fomerly the Chelsea Blue.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Oh god, do you remember the terribly over drawn Robinho transfer saga and his final day move to Man City off the back of their mega money takeover?

Have you ever wondered what life would be like with Robinho amongst our ranks? I have… and this is what I have come up with.

Just say on August 30 we sign him, beating Manchester City to the deal – they are still mega rich, they just didn’t poach him. He joins the team, and hundreds of fans order a Robinho shirt for real. Scolari insists he will be a success, and Brazilian compatriot Alex welcomes him into training. So far so good…

Robinho debuts in the Premier League against none other than…Manchester City. Oh, the ironic twist of writing opinon articles like these…

He is an instant success, scoring a scorching goal off a fantastic dribble, to immediately introduce himself good and proper to the Shed End. Scolari hails his contribution.

He plays against Manchester United, and fails to score and his replacement Kalou scores the equaliser.

He enjoys a good run from October to December, scoring six goals (taking them away from Anelka, who fails to play as many games as he really did). Chelsea fans are hailing Scolari, saying he is a tactical genius and masterclass in the transfer market.

Then…we fail to beat Newcastle. And Arsenal. And West Ham. And Everton. And Fulham. And Man Utd.

Oh dear. A bit quiet on the Scolari front and the Robinho front, the Brazilians lacking the touch that the Blues were hailing.

Then, Robinho sparks flying back into life against Liverpool. Lampard isn’t sent off and we rampage against the Reds 5-0, Robinho scoring four.

Our killer run continues as Robinho chases the things he’s always dreamt about it, ever since he joined Santos. Trophies. And so we climb to the summit of the Premier League and Champions League, conquering the two mountains with our little midget running riot. Scolari is given a five year contract and is hailed the Special Brazilian One. Cliches abound, but the only thing that matters is that Robinho was such a good transfer…

Oh, who am I kidding? It could’ve all been so different if we hadn’t been pipped at the post.

But hey, who wouldn’t want Hiddink at the helm? It’s been so fun with him…

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

It all started so promising for Deco. He moved away from Barcelona for eight million euros, ready to revive his career and chase a third Champions League trophy with his new club, Chelsea.

August 16, 2008. Deco takes to the field against Portsmouth, and in Chelsea’s 4-0 rampage over the Pompey, he scores in the 90th minute with a forty-yard shot.

Seven days later, Chelsea travels to Wigan. In just the second minute, Deco scores a sublime free kick into the top left to gift Chelsea the spoils.

Deco wins the Premier League Player of the Month award for August. He makes his Champions League debut for Chelsea on September 16.

And then it begins. He injures himself in a training session and is ruled out for a month. He returns against Middlesbrough off the bench, and then we come to the Champions League clash against Roma. Deco is sent off, and Chelsea succumbs 3-1 and doubts are cast over Chelsea’s aspirations.

Deco looks like he might spark again when he scores a bicycle kick against Bolton Wanderers. But then Luis Felipe Scolari is sacked and Deco’s Chelsea career goes flying downhill. A string of bad performances keeps him out of Hiddink’s invigorated side, and whilst Hiddink has stated he wants Deco to play in a new creative midfield position, he has appeared intermittently in 2009.

Rumours abound that Deco will move to the Old Lady of Juventus, but he has pledged his skills to Chelsea. But do we really need him?

Our midfield already is extremely strong, with Lampard, Ballack, Essien and Mikel the core of the side. There is no real room for Deco, and even under Scolari he only fitted into a right winger role supporting Nicolas Anelka. With Drogba back in form, Anelka now resides on the right wing, thus there is no room for the Portugese. As stated before, Hiddink said that he wants Deco in a new creative midfield role, but our current set up does not require one.

Father Time is catching up with Deco. At 31, he is one of the oldest people in Chelsea’s squad, and one makes the point that Mikel is his closest rival, and with Abramovich and Hiddink looking to tighten the average age, Mikel, at just 21, seems more likely to be stepping up should Essien, Ballack or Lampard be unavailable.

Money. Whoever Chelsea’s next manager is, he will have to, reportedly, make do with a limited transfer budget compared to what Mourinho was handed. So the moving on of Deco, to Juventus as reported, may generate some income that can be used to strengthen our weak spots.

However, there is a strong case for Deco to stay. If he were to move in, the depth of our midfield would not be the same, and in light of an injury crisis, his services could come in handy. And perhaps, his transfer may not generate enough cash to bring in another younger player. And if he does regain the form that scored him the runners up prize in the 2004 Ballon d’Or, then Chelsea may just take another turn for the better.

I for one would like to see him stay for at least one more season. Give him a chance at Chelsea, he may be reborn again.

Troy Palmer writes on The Chelsea Blue – leave a comment, spark a debate.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

It would be hard to find a Englishman who does not sing the praises of the significantly large contingent of foreign players that ply their trade on the world’s biggest stage, the Barclays Premier League.

Machester United’s Portugese winger Cristiano Ronaldo had a stunning 07/08 season. Liverpool’s Fernando Torres is the most successful debut foriegner in the Premier League’s history. Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas is the heartbeat of the Gunners. Chelsea’s Didier Drogba has roared the Blues into a great period of success. And all of these players have an impressive supporting cast made up of many cultures and countries.

So why does Sepp Blatter want to end it all?

The UEFA president is heavily pushing the bid for a 6+5 quota in domestic competitions, which would mean that six players on the side are eligible to play for the national team of the country of the club. So in England, twelve English players would have to grace the pitch for the game to start.

Sit back in your seat. And think of the complications, the revolution this would bring to domestic competitions around the world.

Chelsea would be in a position where their English players would be forced to play every single game – and Chelsea’s current first team has these English stocks: Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole, John Terry, Michael Mancienne, Scott Sinclair, Jimmy Smith and Lee Sawyer.

Only four of those players play in the first team on a consistent basis. Michael Mancienne has only played in two games for the club. Scott Sinclair, Jimmy Smith and Lee Sawyer are all out on loan at the moment – and only Sinclair has played for Chelsea first team with five appearances.

The idea for 6+5 is that it would be gradually rolled out slowly, with 4+7 the starting point. In a hypothetical situation, if 4+7 was to be introduced for the last game of the current season, then A. Cole, Lampard, Terry and Mancienne would have to start – Joe Cole is out for the season, and the three other players, are, as mentioned before, on loan.

And so, with the introduction of Mancienne, in our hypothetical situation, would mean that Bosingwa or Ivanovic would have to be dropped so the Englishman can take the right back position. And doing this, would weaken the team. And that is just 4+7.

Now we enter the transfer window, and Chelsea must get ready for the 6+5 ruling. So we purchase, say Aston Villa’s Ashley Young, and sell the services of Kalou, seeing that we need Englishmen and not Ivory Coast men. But the wrecking ball of 6+5 doesn’t stop there. Aston Villa, now without the option of Ashley Young, must go and purchase another Englishman to make up their 6+5 quota.

You can see the where this is going to take us – eventually teams like West Bromwich Albion, with their English players poached by the lure of money from bigger clubs needing to fill in the gaps left by the English players that have moved from their club to an even bigger club – the Big 4.

And so lesser quality players would have to be purchased by West Brom and such, taken from the Championship and such. But if they were better than the foriegn players already at these clubs, they would be there. Put simply, they’re not. So that’s why the foriegn players are purchased, to improve the standard of players at these clubs.

I cannot fathom the possibility that Chelsea would be where they are now without Michael Essien, Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho, John Obi Mikel, Nicolas Anelka, Michael Ballack and many more. Indeed, if it weren’t for Ballack’s goals last season, we would’ve been 13 , not 1 point behind United. Makes you think.

I can see the positives in Blatter’s proposal, and I do admit that England does have quite a few top players. Obviously, there is some sort of a problem when Liverpool have more Spanish players on the field than Spanish side Real Madrid. But if 6+5 were to come in, just take a look at Arsenal. They would have to forego a lot of their talented foriegn youngsters in favour of lesser talented Englishmen.

It is not the foriegners’ fault that England did not qualify for Euro 2008. It is not the Premier League’s fault that Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool have invested better in their squads and are more successful in the Champions League. A while back, Spain were kings of Europe. Now, it’s England. They will move on, to be replaced by another dominant nation for a period of time.

Losing the foriegners and introducing lesser players into the top flights around the world is not the answer.

This & more at The Chelsea Blue.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

When the Guus Hiddink genius rolled into town two months ago to replace Luis Felipe Scolari, few could be forgiven for feeling a bit of worry that Hiddink, yes Hiddink, was rocking up to take over Chelsea. Robin van Persie was part of what must have been a very large crew cursing their luck about the new Chelsea gaffer.

Tomorrow at Wembley Stadium, the stars have aligned to produce a night of well, stars, that will undoubtedly see Michael Essien ghost Emmanuel Adebayor out of sight for the game. Essien’s fine cloaking skills aside, this is a London clash that could not have wished for a better lead in — Chelsea fresh from one of the top 10 Champions League epics of all-time and Arsenal sticking a potato down the Yellow Submarine’s periscope. Hiddink vs. Wenger. Who will win?

My money is on Hiddink, naturally. But who wouldn’t? The Dutchman has transformed Chelsea from what was supposed to be a beautiful side to watch into a side that wins games, scores nice goals and has backed up this with consistency. Something Scolari couldn’t get into his head. (No offence to Felipe but I’ve got a first class carriage with the Hiddink express now.)

Arsenal may now boast Andrei Arshavin as part of their attacking options — unfortunately for Wenger, Hiddink was the coach of the Russian side that Arshavin carried to the Euro semi’s. So I think we can see that we won’t see an Andrei masterclass tomorrow night.

Who will shine? I’m backing Didier Drogba to follow up on his recent fine form and provide more reason that he is the best striker in the world on his day (Messi’s a winger, so he doesn’t count). And of course, if Van Persie does overcome his phobia of Hiddink and his Midas touch and scores early, well then, we know what to do. Give it to Ivanovic.

Betting:
Arsenal 3.2
Chelsea 2.54

Prediction:
Chelsea 3 – Arsenal 2

“The first thing I thought when he came was ‘Oh no! He will win something’, because he is unbelievable,”

“I asked him: ‘Can I see your hands?’ and he said: ‘Yes, why?’. I said: ‘Because everything you put your hand on turns to gold’.

Robin van Persie loves everything Hiddink

Troy Palmer writes on The Chelsea Blue (were you expecting a Wenger acolyte?).

From Soccerlens.com - Football News

Who will be Chelsea’s manager next season?

Whilst the fans ferventely hope that it is current interim boss Guus Hiddink who stays in his position, the chances of the Dutch mastermind staying on are quite slim – considering he’s told everyone he’s not staying, as has the chairman. The bookies have been taking bets on everyone from ex Barca gaffer Frank Riijkard to Mourinho to Mourinho’s predecessor, Roberto Mancini.

But one name that has been overlooked quite a fair bit is current Everton manager David Moyes. The Scot took over at the Merseyside club in 2002, and has transformed a once mid table side into one of the most consistent and talented teams in the Premier League. Some have even forget that under Moyes led Everton to a top four finish in 2005 – something that the much-hyped Tottenham and Aston Villa teams have been unable to manage in recent years – on, importantly, lesser funds than the aforementioned teams.

His transfer dealings are impressive, with some of the best players in England’s top division brought in. Some of those names include Australian Tim Cahill, goalscoring centreback Joseph Yobo, the talented Mikel Arteta, custodian Tim Howard and also Joleon Lescott, fierce striker Yakubu, rated left-back Leighton Baines and many more. That’s an impressive list of players, all brought in hardly earth-shattering fees. Indeed, the most he has paid is fifteen million for Marioque Fellaini, who proved to be a great acquisition this season. Imagine the possibilities at hardly cash strapped Chelsea.

Also important to note in Moyes’ CV is his persistence in Everton’s 2004 campaign which had many board members and fans crying foul of conspiracy and turmoil. He managed to keep his head up during these turbulent times, even during Wayne Rooney’s dragged out transfer to Manchester United.

As Andy Burham, the Secretary for Sport, Music and Culture in England has said:

“Mr.David Moyes is probably a fine example to everybody in Government of stability and making the right decisions for the long term.”

Sounds impressive, what the Pensioners need in their new manager and what Chelsea could and should, be taking on board when it comes to decision time for Hiddink’s successor.

Hopefully there is never a decision time though…

Troy Palmer writes on The Chelsea Blue.

From Soccerlens.com - Football News