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Chelsea: The Blues’ complex battle with the CPO

  By O-Posts Team | June 9, 2013 - 20:31 | , , ,
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Two years ago, Chelsea lost their bid to buy back the Stamford Bridge freehold after a dramatic EGM with Chelsea Pitch Owners shareholders.

The consensus amongst the fans was, and still is, that, despite the obvious historical sentiment it holds and the fact a club legend, whose contributions to the club meant Chelsea Football Club still exists today, is buried underneath the pitch, we will have to leave Stamford Bridge at some point to get a bigger ground which will increase the revenue that will allow us to continue to compete at elite level.

Assuming that the fans actually want us to remain as a competitive force in European football and we cannot find a suitable site with a 3-mile radius, the only logical option is to expand our search area? I am not saying this is ideal but I fully understand this argument. Possibly the board could have stated a limit of 5, 7 or 10 mile radius from the current site as obviously there are many people who fear we could relocate to Glasgow (wild example I know but it makes my point).

This is why the proposed move to Earls Court has been almost unanimously welcomed.

However, there are still sections of supporters who remain a little sceptical of the CPO’s influence, and by voting no the CPO are not acting in the best interest of Chelsea Football Club.

One such supporter, Josh Green, sent me this email:

- “Whilst I am very grateful for the actions of the CPO investors at the time, please correct me if I am wrong, but I understood that the creation of the CPO was initiated purely as a legal maneuver to prevent any aggressive actions by one or more predatory property companies to protect Stamford Bridge from development. I am well aware of the past situation regarding Mahler estates etc.”

To clarify, I do not believe that the CPOs were ever issued, or intended to be used, as either collateral, leverage or to have any power related to dictating the future commercial interests of Chelsea Football Club. It was purely an emergency measure designed at the time to create a legal quagmire for the vultures.

The scheme obviously worked, but I am now somewhat alarmed that some CPO holders have moved the goalposts to imply that, for their 100 pounds, they consider that the issuing of the CPO shares was intended to, or actually gives them the right to dictate the future of Chelsea FC. I agree that protecting the future location of Chelsea FC is very important and rightfully an emotional subject.

I also agree that Chelsea FC should not be moved out of the immediate vicinity; however from a business perspective Chelsea FC cannot realistically negotiate anything unless they have the full control, authority to do so and that means owning the rights to the pitch etc..

In respect of the responsibilities of the CPO Directors and that the CPO should maintain a collective influence over the club to ensure that the club remains in West/South-West London, surely the clubs commitment to move to a site within 3 miles of the current stadium up to 2020 and it’s overall stated objective to remain as close to it’s roots as possible thereafter confirms what the clubs major objective to any possible move is. The sticking point still remains as to what exactly happens post 2020.

There has to be some realism though from the CPO that if by 2020 the club has not found a new site and there is a need to move to protect the clubs future and all sites within a 3 mile radius have been exhausted there will be a need to extend the search zone and both sides should be agreeing an extension of perhaps 5 miles to the original 3 mile objective.

I understand that legally this move must be done in agreement with the CPO but I don’t think the CPO should act as a barrier to the clubs progression, ensuring that the club remains as close to their original roots as possible is understandable but the club needs some maneuverability. We need a sensible solution to this and the protectionist view of “this is our home”, “Earls Court is not convenient to me” or “we can’t move away from the pubs we know” won’t help find a solution.” -

My response to this email would have been short and simple – the CPO are a noble organisation and those accusing them of a lack of gratitude are showing a huge lack of gratitude themselves.

As Abramovich has never given an interview no-one knows why he bought the club but I would suggest it wasn’t as a gesture to the fans to stop their club going bust. He probably bought Chelsea as a businessman or for a toy, or perhaps a combination of the two.

Clearly he has become a huge fan and has enormous affection for the club but does he have the unconditional love that lifelong Chelsea fans who bought into CPO have?

It’s been well established that the CPO bought their shares purely to protect the future of the club and so to get on their backs when they continue to act with the same motive is incredibly naive and, dare I say it, ungrateful.

Although there is a risk of upsetting our incredibly wealthy owner, for whom we should be grateful for our recent success, the CPO voted no as the proposal from the club was vague and represented it’s own risks, in that post 2020 we could feasibly end up playing our home games outside of London.

The bottom line is that there is a better compromise to be reached and until the CPO have more assurances, why should they give up what they acquired through good will during Chelsea’s most worrying times? Imagine they gave up their bargaining power on blind faith and in 2 years Abramovich was gone due to an accident, illness, economic downturn? The club could be in the hands of people like Hicks and Gillette before we know it and totally out of the control of the fans. What we have is unique and shouldn’t be given up on blind faith and vague promises.

The Shed End…. special.

I was, and still am, concerned by how things unfolded the last time the club and the CPO sat down together, but I was more critical as to how this was handled by the club rather than the CPO. Clearly people are worried by Abramovich’s response to this but if it turns out to be negative then surely that vindicates the CPO and strengthens their position.

With regards to the “rich fans” – by this I mean the 20 individuals hired by Bruce Buck & co to purchase over 10% of the shares – having a say. They should not have the same rights, unless of course you think taking specific actions to pervert the democratic process is acceptable.

With regard to general polls supporting the move, wherever they appear, you have to recognize that these days they are influenced by large numbers of people who will not be affected personally one way or the other, whether we move to a new stadium or not, yet they appear all to eager to back an option which will have a negative impact on most match going fans. If you want to widen the franchise on the vote, make it for season ticket holders and members, and then I think it’s fair to say you will find the vast majority would not want have voted ‘Yes’ to the proposals laid out a couple of years ago.

As said many, many times before CPO are happy to move to a larger stadium as long as its in the right area. Its just that Roman is going to have to take the fans views on the matter a little more seriously than he has done so hitherto, and on that basis we should indeed all be able to work together to come to the right solution for the club and its supporters.

All parties want what is best for Chelsea Football Club in the long term, but the club HAS to maintain a connection with its roots, it’s community, it’s history. It has to serve in the best interests of it’s paying customers, not forgetting that the atmosphere generated by the fans in the ground, and the tradition of those clubs is a big part of what makes English football such an enjoyable television experience for a global audience.

Its also helps attract the worlds best players. So let’s not throw that all away and become a US style soulless franchise.

 

Written by Frankie

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Chelsea: Schürrle closing in on move to the Blues

  By O-Posts Team | April 20, 2013 - 16:30 | , , , , , ,
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After months of speculation, it appears Chelsea are really making some significant headway in completing the signing of German striker Andre Schürrle from Bayer Leverkusen.

If the German does join, he will be the fourth striker at Chelsea next season, with Romelu Lukaku set to return after his successful loan spell at West Brom, in addition to Demba Ba and Fernando Torres who are already at the West London club.

To me, Chelsea’ team lacks a really consistent striker. The trio of Mata, Hazard and Oscar, have looked supreme, not always, but they seem to create chances almost effortlessly. The problem has been neither Fernando Torres or Demba Ba have been positionally aware enough to stick the ball into the back of the net more often, this has been especially true in the premier league.

So what does Schürrle offer that can change things in the striker department at Stamford Bridge? Well, for one thing, he is rather unique in the sense that he’s a centre forward, yet he possesses the ability to effortlessly drop back into a supporting striker role or even as a winger. In this sense, he’s quite similar to another former Chelsea striker, Nicolas Anelka who was dynamite at times, either when in a front three with Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba, or on his own.

The only slight doubt I have about Schürrle is whether he really is good enough or more specifically prolific enough to be Chelsea’s first choice striker. After all, Fernando Torres is a player who despite having generally been a disappointment while at Chelsea, has retained his place over and over again. Schürrle has scored a respectable, yet not incredible 12 goals in 38 games.

Many strikers have failed to replicate their previous goal scoring form whilst at Stamford Bridge, with Demba Ba, who has been decent so far at Chelsea, but he lacks the consistency that earned him so many plaudits during his time at Newcastle. For me, Schürrle will need to impress, and impress a lot, if he wants to become the first choice striker at Chelsea next season, a feat which will be even harder if Romelu Lukaku shows the same quality that he has at West Bromwich Albion this season.

Back to what was mentioned earlier and Chelsea’s attacking midfield trio. When Chelsea are at their strongest, it’s Hazard, Mata and Oscar, as that trio, with Moses, Benayoun and Marin all getting the occasional start. Hazard and Mata do tend to perform a class above what the others do, and many Chelsea fans question Oscar’s consistency, despite the Brazilian’s excellent performances for his country. Schürrle could well replace Oscar as a regular starter, and could double up with the striker, whoever that may be.

For me, Chelsea have almost endless possibilities with Schürrle. He’s versatile, able to score from all areas of the pitch, and has excellent movement, perhaps better than any other of Chelsea’s strikers.

I personally would much rather Chelsea buy Schürrle for the full price rather than swap him for the tricky Kevin De Bruyne, but for me, signing the big German would be a great move for the west London club, as it will give the new manager – whoever that may be – a unique and exciting option.

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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Chelsea: The Lukaku Predicament

  By O-Posts Team | March 17, 2013 - 18:45 | , ,
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Around this time last year, many Chelsea fans were scratching their heads thinking “why pay 20 odd million pounds for a player who is sitting on the bench” in reference to Romelu Lukaku. Now, many of the same Chelsea fans are desperate for him to return.

Lukaku’s loan move to West Bromwich Albion has worked out better than most people imagined it would, especially with the presence of proven Premier League strikers like Peter Odemwingie as well as the experienced and cultured Markus Rosenberg. However, despite not starting particularly many games at first, Lukaku’s superb substitute appearances swiftly put him in West Brom’s starting eleven on a regular basis. Currently, the Belgian striker sits on 13 goals in the Premier League and is one of the league’s most feared strikers.

What makes this whole Lukaku saga so interesting is the fact that neither 50 million pound man Fernando Torres, nor January signing Demba Ba look anywhere near as deadly right now as Lukaku does. Torres has had yet another disappointing and highly unconvincing situation despite a decent start, while Ba has only shown flashes of the form that led to his January move to the West London club. Theoretically, Lukaku should walk straight into the Chelsea team when he returns this summer, although there are some doubts about that.

After all, many feel Chelsea managers feel they often have to play Torres in order to satisfy notoriously hard to please Roman Abramovich (see Roberto Di Matteo). Rafael Benitez has generally gone with Torres in most of the games Chelsea have played, although in some of the bigger games such as the one away to Manchester City on February 24th, he went with Ba. So far, I’d class the signing of Ba as unsuccessful.

Despite a superb debut away to Southampton in the FA cup in which he scored twice, he has been largely unimpressive, and hasn’t looked truly into the game at times. The same problem exists and has existed for over two years now with Fernando Torres;  just not being part of the game.

When Chelsea signed Ba, I thought things would be different. After all, Ba was full of confidence after a superb first half of the season at Newcastle, and there was no reason why he would need any time to develop. Chelsea’s 4-2-3-1 formation with Oscar/Moses, Hazard and Mata has a very similar setup to the one employed by Newcastle with the likes of Hatem Ben Arfa, Yohan Cabaye and Sylvain Marveaux to switch around and create.

But for some reason, Ba hasn’t found himself in many good positions. When he is in said positions he generally takes the chances, but in terms of getting them, it’s not really happening for him.

So will Lukaku be any different? I have some doubts. Lukaku is a powerful target man, who is magnificent in the air, but Chelsea’s trio do not tend to put in a great deal of crosses. Lukaku’s footwork is still top notch, but not as good as his aerial ability. In order to get the absolute most out of Lukaku, Chelsea will probably have to slightly alter their style. However, all of Chelsea’s creative players do have excellent technical ability and I see no reason why they can’t adapt.

The real issue is whether the Chelsea manager at the time will be entirely comfortable with having a then 20 year old striker leading the line while Torres sits on the bench, as I can’t see the Chelsea number nine leaving just yet.

If I were Chelsea, here’s what I would do: sell Torres, keep Ba, buy a young, bright talent such as Jackson Martinez or Léo Baptistão from Rayo Vallecano. Falcao would be too expensive and is in his prime, and I think Chelsea need a younger player. Having Lukaku as well as one of these live wire, young players would set Chelsea up perfectly for the future, and would lead to a few games for the highly rated Islam Feruz who is currently impressing immensely in the Chelsea youth team.

Bringing Lukaku back and selling Torres is definitely a risk. But to be honest, I think anyone that genuinely expects Torres to return is, essentially, kidding themselves. The presence of Torres has done little other than divide the club’s fans, and his time is up for me.

So, please Mr. Abramovich and the Chelsea manager appointed from this coming August:  Give Lukaku a chance, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, he has all the ability in the world to become Chelsea’s main man.

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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Chelsea vs Brentford: Match Report

  By O-Posts Team | February 17, 2013 - 19:40 | , ,
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After a coma-inducing performance in Prague midweek, Chelsea would have been hoping for a comfortable win against Brentford to help quell the anger of the visibly irritated Blues fans. But the first half was a far from a comfortable encounter, with the home side finding themselves with the fair share of possession but rarely troubling Simon Moore in the Brentford goalmouth.

A Branislav Ivanović header a third of the way through the half gave the League One side a brief scare, but it was Oscar who came closest by far, the young Brazilian finding himself with the ball at his feet deep within the penalty area before losing his footing slightly and sending his shot bouncing off the outside of the post.

Brentford fans were left screaming in disapproval as the half came to a close when Italian striker Marcello Trotta broke past John Terry and calmly tucked the ball away into the corner of the goal, before turning to find referee Neil Swarbrick pointing for a free-kick on the edge of the penalty area after David Luiz had fouled Adam Forshaw just moments earlier.

Chelsea seemed to step it up a gear upon returning from the dressing room after half time and goalkeeper Moore once again came to the rescue of the Bees, superbly saving another strong header from Ivanović and diverting it away from the fast-approaching Demba Ba.

However, Juan Mata finally made the Blues pressure count and put the home side ahead after fifty-five minutes when he picked up a long ball on the edge of the area and fired into the far corner of the net, easing the fears of the Chelsea faithful.

Thirteen minutes later, a deft backwards flick from Oscar mere feet in front of goal evaded at least two Brentford defenders and Moore on the line and doubled their lead, and from then onwards Chelsea were firmly on the front foot and in full control.

It then took just three minutes for the hosts to make it 3-0, Mata, who, alongside Oscar, had been critical in the heart of the Chelsea midfield from the start until his substitution for Yossi Benayoun with just under fifteen minutes to play, lightly chipping in a beautiful cross to Frank Lampard, the veteran making up for his questionable attacking performance in the first half with a volleyed effort that extended his Chelsea goal scoring tally to 199, now only three behind Bobby Tambling.

With Brentford well and truly beaten, the home side were able to surge forward in numbers, and John Terry, back in the first team for the first time since their 3-2 defeat to Newcastle United at the start of the month after suffering a setback with his knee injury, marked his return in fine fashion with a headed effort that put his side 4-0 up and comfortably through to the fifth round with little under ten minutes to go.

The enigmatic David Luiz failed to see a 4-0 lead as a chance to play it safe and run out the clock and almost saw himself dismissed in the eighty-fifth minute after he cynically clattered into substitute Jake Reeves, the Brazilian keeping his eyes off the ball and firmly on the nineteen-year-old as he ran shoulder first into the youngster as he attempted one last attack for Brentford. Luiz got off with just a yellow card from referee Swarbrick, but, upon closer inspection, it could have easily warranted a far more harsh punishment.

A tale of two halves ended in an emphatic victory on paper for Chelsea, but, as those who were heartily singing the praises of former manager Roberto Di Matteo in the sixteenth minute know all too well, the scoreline doesn’t always tell the story, and for all of the silky smooth moves of players like Mata and Oscar that paper over the cracks, Rafa Benítez’s side are still missing something crucial.

If they are to challenge the two Manchester clubs for another Premier League title anytime soon, a lot of work still needs to be done.

 

Written by Ben Cullimore

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Chelsea: The Great Striker Enigma

  By O-Posts Team | February 2, 2013 - 12:27 | , ,
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Various words springs to mind when I think of Chelsea’s season so far: chaotic, wild, unpredictable, inconsistent. The latter perhaps best summarises the way in which Chelsea’s results have gone. The season started well with wins over Wigan, Newcastle and Reading, but a 4-1 demolition spearheaded by Radamel Falcao in the UEFA Super Cup against Atletico Madrid.

After the oh so controversial sacking of Roberto Di Matteo and equally controversial appointment, wins over Aston Villa, Norwich and Everton made it seem things were really on the up at Stamford Bridge. Yet again however, the positivity was disrupted after a shock 1-0 loss at home to local rivals QPR.

So what has caused all this inconsistency and vast but regular changes in the feelings of Chelsea fans. Well, one thing about Chelsea has been consistently poor: their striking options.

Although Fernando Torres has shown glimpses of his best this season, he hasn’t shown anywhere near enough of this form to justify his place in the team. Some would claim Torres deserves to be in the Chelsea starting line up week in week out due to his ability to score out of nothing as shown by his goal against Brentford, but goals like these have been far too rare.

In fact, I can’t remember a single occasion where Torres has scored a truly vital goal for Chelsea, and the goal against Barcelona, which was a chance that he couldn’t really miss was the only goal I can remember Torres scoring against a real top side. Instead, his goals have come in matches against weaker teams such as Nordsjaelland, Brentford, Leicester, Reading, etc.

Also, on most of these occasions, he has chipped in with a goal rather than be a heroic match winner, like he was many times during his days at both Atletico Madrid and Liverpool.

Chelsea fans, more and more of them, are becoming increasingly frustrated with Torres. Many fans are posting, saying and writing things reading messages such as: “Torres and Rafa out of our club”.

The reasoning behind this sentiment isn’t as obvious and one dimensional as it appears.

Contrary to popular belief, Chelsea fans’ support for Torres has only faded somewhat since the sacking of Di Matteo and hiring of Rafael Benitez. Many Chelsea fans feel all the drama surrounding Torres has been the clear reason behind Abramovich’s constant hiring and firing of managers, and that Benitez was only hired to help Torres find form.

So with Torres still misfiring and Chelsea fans becoming more and more impatient towards the Spanish striker, surely the conditions are ideal for Demba Ba to seize the role of Chelsea’s best striker to play up top?

Well, Rafael Benitez doesn’t seem to feel that way. One game that summarises the whole Torres/Ba and the general Chelsea striker situation is the blues’ game at home to Swansea in the Capital One cup first leg a few weeks back. Torres regularly lost the ball, and couldn’t seem to get hold of it, despite some decent crosses and passes. When Ba came on, things seemed to improve, but still no goals.

Ba looks to be a threat when he is on the pitch, and hasn’t really had a bad game in a blue shirt as of yet. But it appears Ba is doing something wrong, as he hardly ever seems to start. Since Ba joined the west London club in early January, he hasn’t really started any of Chelsea’s key games, to be precise, the games against Arsenal, Reading and both legs against Swansea.

To me, Benitez should stop playing Torres just to keep Abramovich happy.

Ultimately, football is about winning matches, and as of right now, I feel Chelsea are more dangerous and more able to score goals with Demba Ba playing.

Ba doesn’t have to play every week, or even be the distinct first choice striker, but I just feel that Torres is far too unreliable, and the more he is left on despite being what some would call lazy, and appearing exhausted almost constantly, the more the resentment of him and Benitez amongst a large proportion of Chelsea fans will grow.

So please Rafa, give Ba a go as otherwise it may damage the whole atmosphere at Chelsea, as it is being slowly but surely damaged now.

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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Chelsea: The Striker Conundrum

  By O-Posts Team | November 29, 2012 - 18:11 | , ,
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drogba-torres

When Chelsea football club won the Champions League trophy for the first time in May, many football followers hailed the impact of the big Ivorian striker, Didier Drogba, and quoting Sir Alex Ferguson, “As far as I was concerned, Drogba won the Champions League for Chelsea”.

Drogba was signed for £24m from Marseille in 2004, and went on to score 157 goals for the club in 341 games with 70 assists to cap it off. He was the first African player to score 100 goals in the English Premier League.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink joined Chelsea from Atletico Madrid in 2000 for a club record of £15m and went on to score 70 goals in 136 domestic games. He formed a good partnership with Iceland striker Eidur Gudjohnsen, who himself scored a total 54 domestic goals in 184 games. Many other prolific strikers have come and gone; Mikael Forsell, Andriy Shevchenko, Hernan Crespo, Claudio Pizarro to mention but few.

Strikers are known for their ability to peel off defenders and to run into space via the blindside of the defender and to receive the ball in a good scoring position where he should be able to shoot confidently with both feet, as well as possessing great power and accuracy and have the ability to pass the ball forward under pressure in any breakaway situation. But do Chelsea have such striker(s) in their fold at the moment?

In November 2010, a certain Spaniard by the name of Fernando Torres scored two goals in Chelsea’s defeat to Liverpool at Anfield. He later joined Chelsea for a Premier League record fee of £50m and many club fans saw a bright future in him, but playing as a back-up to Drogba, it took him 14 games before he found the net and went on to score 6 goals in 32 appearances in 2011-12 season.

Presently, he has scored 4 goals from 14 Premier League games with no assists. This is not to paint Torres as a bad striker, in fact a player who has scored over 200 goals for both club and country is a good striker. He has been a prolific striker before his knee injury when playing with Liverpool, now he has lost pace and was falling out of love for the game according to the player himself.

Chelsea needs to look elsewhere if they are to succeed both in domestic and international level. They need a striker that can score goals even with their eyes closed. Romelu Lukaku is doing well at West Brom having helped himself to 4 goals and some assists even through he has not been playing regularly.

Patrick Bamford, 19, is also good, infact he was recently compared to the Torres of old. Islam Feruz is also a young prolific goal scorer who can also make the mark, but the question is, can Chelsea be patient enough to see these young players growing into the first team set–up? I do not think so, the owner will look elsewhere, at least for now.

Chelsea have been linked with many prolific strikers at the moment, Radamel Falcao, Robert Lewandowski, Loic Remy, Andre Schurrle and just recently Liverpool’s Luis Suarez. With Chelsea’s attacking trio of Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and Oscar, many good strikers will score goals with ease, their creativity and vision to unlock any defense will make them score goals for fun.

Falcao is a prolific striker that scores goals for fun and has experience at the highest level, and if reports are true, he could join Chelsea sooner rather than later. Loic Remy is a little bit cheaper if the club is interested. Andre Schurrle, the German attacking winger can also play as a striker. Robert Lewandoski is also a good alternative, his goal ratio is second to none compared to what Chelsea has at the moment and he could be a good addition if the club is interested.

Chelsea needs to buy and fast as well. They need to get at least three strikers/ wingers as rumours of Daniel Sturridge’s possible transfer to Liverpool refuse to quell.

As a big name in European football, Radamel Falcao, Andre Schurrle and the presence of Belgian forward, Romelu Lukaku in the fold will make Chelsea one of the most frightening clubs on the continent. They will benefit from the services of Mata, Hazard and Oscar, many defenders will run around to get them and get tired in doing so.

The days of Drogba, Crespo, Hasselbaink and so on will be forgotten and a new life with a certain brand of football would take over, and Chelsea will be one of the best football clubs in the whole of Europe.

 

Written by Adeleke Olawale

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Fernando Torres: A Review of El Nino’s Start to the Season

  By O-Posts Team | October 31, 2012 - 16:09 | ,
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At the start of the season, there was a sense of “now or never” surrounding Chelsea’s £50 million striker Fernando Torres. In the year and a half since joining the Blues, Torres had shown little to nothing of the form that had made him one of the world’s top strikers in the late 2000′s. He had a good Euro 2012, with Torres scoring three goals, despite only starting two games for Spain, who went onto win the tournament.

So the new season bought a new sense of positively around Torres and a large number of people were tipping Chelsea’s number nine to win the prestigious Premier League golden boot. Torres got his first goal of the 2012/13 Premier League campaign in a 4-2 home win against newly promoted Reading in a dramatic 4-2 victory for the Blues, and his second was a stunning strike in a comfortable 2-0 win over Newcastle. Then came the introduction of Chelsea’s 4-2-3-1 formation featuring the explosive and exciting attacking midfield trio of Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and Brazilian Oscar.

Although this formation has made Chelsea’s play generally more impressive, Torres hasn’t really fulfilled his potential when playing in it. Goals against Arsenal and Norwich showed he can score with the help of the dynamic trio, but in other games such as the game at home to Stoke city and the away defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk, Torres has been essentially anonymous.

So why hasn’t Torres done particularly well when being the lone striker in the 4-2-3-1 formation? After all, his best days at Liverpool came when he was the man on his own at the top of mostly a 4-5-1 formation. It’s difficult to say really, but Mata, Oscar and Hazard all love to cut inside and bamboozle the opposition defence, which they have done on many occasions this season.

However, this often leaves Torres in positions which means he can’t attack the ball and is caught offside regularly. In my opinion, it would be foolish of Roberto Di Matteo to take away the 4-2-3-1 formation as it has led to better performances by Chelsea and more goals. If Torres doesn’t improve, some say Daniel Sturridge, who has a better delivery and is more versatile than Torres, should start every week.

Others say Chelsea should try to implement a 4-3-3 formation like they did during the Mourinho, Grant and Ancelotti years, but with maybe Oscar, Mata or Hazard playing as the “false number nine”. Having a “false number nine” would be interesting and similar to the one Barcelona often use and some have even made comparisons between Barcelona’s tiki-taka style and Chelsea’s style this season.

 

Conclusion

Although I feel more confident about Torres and his form than I did this time last year, his performances haven’t been consistent enough for me to proclaim that he is ‘’back to his best’’. In saying that, he does look sharp and is showing his pace regularly.

After an excellent start, Torres has lost his momentum a bit lately, and he’ll be looking to improve his form before the end of the season.

Torres’ season so far: 6/10

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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Champions League: Matchday 3 Preview – Part 1

  By O-Posts Team | October 23, 2012 - 12:55 | ,
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Group E

Shakhtar Donetsk v Chelsea

In form Chelsea will travel to Donetsk on Tuesday night in what will be a tricky game in the hostile Donbass arena. Both sides drew to have already drawn to Juventus and beat Nordsjaelland in their other group E games, but only one of the teams will be able to be on seven points at the end of the game.

Shakhtar’s Brazilian striker Willian allegedly nearly joined Chelsea both last summer and this, so many will be watching how he plays.

Key clash: Willian v John Terry.

 

Nordsjaelland v Juventus

Despite losing both of their Champions League games so far, Nordsjaelland have impressed many with their passing moves and Juventus should expect a tough game at the Parken stadium on Tuesday night.

The Danish side haven’t yet scored a Champions League goal, but they’ll be determined to change that against the Old Lady. However, Juventus will be determined to get their first Champions League win this season in what should be an interesting game.

Key clash: Jores Okore v Sebastian Giovinco

 

Group F

Lille v Bayern Munich

A shock 3-1 defeat against BATE Borisov last time out means Bayern Munich will need a result away at Lille to be in a strong position going into the next game. However, last season’s runners up have had a superb start to the season domestically, winning all of their eight games played so far.

Lille will be desperate for a win themselves though as a defeat would leave them on zero points after three games and essentially out of the competition.

Key clash: Mathieu Debuchy v Arjen Robben

 

BATE Borisov v Valencia

Arguably more than any other team in the competition, BATE Borisov have shocked many by their performances in the Champions League. With a team that is very similar to that of the Belarusian national team, BATE have won both of their Champions League games so far by three goals to one, firstly against Lille then even more impressively against Bayern.

Valencia currently sit on three points after losing 2-1 away in Munich, but winning 2-0 against Lille at the Mestalla. A win for BATE would put them on nine points and excitingly close to progressing to the knockout stages.

Valencia are always dangerous however, so it won’t be easy.

Key clash: Alexander Hleb v Fernando Gago

 

Group G

Barcelona v Celtic

Although both clubs are amongst the most famous and recognisable in world football, many people are fearing for Celtic as they travel to Spain to face the Catalan giants. If they are to take something from the game, Celtic will need to take advantage of a shaky Barcelona defence which conceded 4 in a 5-4 victory away at Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday.

Barcelona are expected to win, and win emphatically but Celtic should not be underestimated after their 3-2 win against Spartak Moscow in match day 2.

Key clash: Cesc Fabregas v Victor Wanyama

 

Spartak Moscow v Benfica

Neither of these two sides have had the best of starts to their Champions League campaigns but for different reasons. Spartak Moscow lost to both Celtic and Barcelona 3-2, showing evidence of a leaky defence.

On the other hand, Benfica are yet to score in the Champions League, and they were beaten comfortably 2-0 by Barcelona last time out.

 

Group H

Manchester United v Braga

Although they are one of only seven sides to have won both of their champions league fixtures so far, Manchester United are yet to have hit their best form in Europe this season. The visit of Braga on Tuesday will represent a tough challenge for the Red Devils, as it did for Galatasaray three weeks ago, when Braga won 2-0 thanks to goals by Ruben Micael and Alan.

As United will remember from last year’s horrible champions league campaign: underestimating lesser opposition could cost teams dear.

Key clash: Jonny Evans v Éder

 

Galatasaray v CFR Cluj

Galatasaray have had a disappointing start to their Champions League campaign, losing both of their two games played so far, 1-0 to Manchester United and more surprisingly 2-0 at home to Braga.

Romanian side Cluj have had a decent start, however, winning 2-0 away at Braga and giving Manchester United a very difficult game in what turned out to be a 2-1 loss.

For Galatasaray, a loss would be disastrous, and a win is needed. After their last Champions League away result, Cluj will be full of confidence, but can they thrive in the immensely intimidating Türk Telecom arena?

Key clash: Aldin Yilmaz v Ivo Pirlo

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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Chelsea: The Defensive Conundrum

  By O-Posts Team | October 9, 2012 - 18:40 | ,
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Cahill and Luiz

With Chelsea’s great start to the season and the fantastic attacking displays of the likes of Hazard and Mata, it’s inevitable that some ‘muppet’ such as myself will bore on about the defence.

Chelsea’s three main centre backs consist of John Terry, Gary Cahill and David Luiz. My preference for the centre back partnership would be John Terry and Gary Cahill. However, injuries and off-field incidents will mean that Luiz will partner Cahill in future games.

Personally, I believe that David Luiz would be more effective in a holding midfield role. His positional play is lacking and he has been exposed several times this season. This breeds a sense of nervousness to the rest of the back four and causes problems. Tackling is not the Brazilians strongest quality either. He has been guilty of going off his feet and making rash challenges. I would question his temperament; opposition players have been able to wind him up leading to such mentioned rash tackles in retaliation.

Gary Cahill is good with the ball at his feet, can pass it well out of defence, is great in the air in both boxes and chips in with goals every so often; a more solid, reliable option albeit with less interesting hair than his Brazilian team mate.

John Terry is the leader of this Chelsea team and his presence is missed when he is not playing. He organises his back four and is a great communicator. However, he does lack pace, this is where Cahill’s pace helps the former England skipper out.

Ivanovic is another central defensive option should injuries occur and arguably a more reliable at the back than Luiz. However, Chelsea would miss his dynamic play on the right flank where he has also contributed with a few goals.

The importance of Mikel or Ramires to protect their defence is key. They need to keep hold of possession and nick the ball back off the opposition when they don’t have it. Mikel was guilty of not doing this early on in the season but recently he has been assured on the ball and been more authoritative.

Chelsea’s more attacking philosophy this season will ultimately lead to them leaking a few more goals and the European Champions seem quite limited in terms of defensive options. This is definitely an area that Di Matteo may wish to strengthen in January.

No doubt the new attitude at Stamford Bridge is that ‘attack is the best form of defence’. Despite this Di Matteo will want to find the right balance to maintain a title challenge this season.

 

Written by Khiam Barry

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Eden Hazard: A Review of his start to life at Chelsea

  By O-Posts Team | October 8, 2012 - 17:55 | , ,
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Eden Hazard

Arguably the most exciting transfer saga of the summer was the one involving Eden Hazard. In the end, Hazard told the world via social networking site Twitter that he had chosen to join the European champions, Chelsea. So now, three months into the season, it is time to evaluate the Belgian’s start to life at Stamford Bridge.

In his Premier League debut away at Wigan, Hazard excelled. Seeing plenty of the ball, and looking in great form, Hazard was a constant threat and found himself being fouled regularly by the Wigan’s defence who appeared to be unsure of how to defend against Chelsea’s new signing. The game ended in a 2-0 win for Chelsea and many of the headlines went to Hazard.

Hazard’s next two games both also proved to be positive ones for both Chelsea and the club’s new star. Against Reading and Newcastle respectively, Hazard dazzled again and even managed to score his first goal for his new club via a penalty against Newcastle. Chelsea won both games, 4-2 against Reading, and 2-0 against Newcastle.

Hazard was nowhere near as effective in his next two games however as Chelsea drew against both QPR and Juventus. The trip to Loftus Road must have been extremely frustrating for Hazard as he struggled to find space in the highly compact pitch at Loftus Road while against Juventus, the ‘’Old Lady’’ produced some excellent defending.

However, against Arsenal, Hazard displayed some of the form that led to Chelsea paying Lille a reported £32 million for him. Playing alongside Juan Mata and Oscar in an attacking midfield three, Arsenal’s defence struggled to contain Hazard as the Belgian helped Chelsea to an important 2-1 win.

Hazard took his Chelsea goalscoring tally to two after a classy finish in a comprehensive 4-1 win over Norwich with Oscar and Mata accompanying him in the midfield three once again.

 

Conclusion

Although Hazard has adapted to the Premier League better than many other players from central Europe have in recent years, as mentioned earlier, it hasn’t been entirely plain sailing for the Belgian. At times he has lacked ideas as shown against QPR and during parts of the game against Stoke.

However, generally speaking Hazard has coped with the pressure bought on by the transfer fee excellently. Hazard has looked almost permanently confident and difficult for the opposition to deal with. At times, his play on and off the ball have been superb while his deliveries have been second-to-none.

Fernando Torres is scoring more regularly too, with the Spaniard having scored 6 in 12 so far this season.

I have every confidence that we have not yet seen the best of Hazard , but if this attacking midfield three of Hazard, Oscar and Mata continues to improve it could very well lead to Premier League and even Champions League glory for Chelsea at the end of this season.

 

Hazard’s start with Chelsea: 8/10

 

Written by Joshua Sodergren

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