Mourinho wanted out as the club were not prepared to back him on his transfer targets and follow his advice. Abramovich fell into the trap Mourinho set for him, paid Mourinho anything between £12m and £18m for him to go and has left himself with the club in a mess.

Clearly Abramovich and the Chelsea hierarchy did not see a parting of the ways coming at his moment. They did not have a replacement lined up. Avram Grant is a clearly a make-shift, pending Chelsea being able to get a manager of their choice. They might have to wait until next summer. The new man will have to completely revamp the team; get rid of the disgruntled (Drogba, Lampard? and anyone else) and start again.

Next summer could be a spending (and selling) bonanza. Ronaldinho might prove to be another mistake, though. Chelsea should recruit younger, hungrier players and not those already bloated with success: e.g. Shevchenko, Ballack, who are only at Chelsea for a last big pay-day. If Abramovich is not prepared to learn from his mistakes, he will be destined to repeat them. Paying massive salaries to players who have contributed nothing to the team’s recent successes risks unsettling the entire squad. Chelsea’s greatest strength was their team spirit. This was severely fractured by the arrival of Shevchenko and Ballack and their massive salaries. Abramovich needs to understand that team spirit just as important as a player’s ability.

I commend Abramovich on his vision; on wanting to play attractive football. He may need to be patient and appreciate that it may take time (2 or 3 years) to build such a team. Even then the team might be more entertaining than Mourinhho’s teams, but may not be nearly as successful.

Will Chelsea become a new Arsenal or Barcelona or Manchester United (at their best) or just another Spurs?