1 win in 9 games, doesn't sound like a team who won the Premier League and FA Cup last season does it, so where have Chelsea gone wrong. Well everyone is saying everything and maybe that's where the problem is, there is so many problems where do you start from.
By the end of this blog I hope to have found all the problems and found a way to solve them or simple throw them to one side like we all do in today's world.
Problem 1) Backroom staff It's no secret that most people think the start of Chelsea's collapse began when Ray Wilkins was sacked as assistant manager and then a week later Frank Arnesen announced he was leaving as well. This has many problems, Wilkins leaving for Ancelotti was a disaster, losing your number 2 man is like your girlfriend leaving you. You have no one to turn to for advice and no one to help you. Wilkins was also the one then players could approach with a problem if Ancelotti wasn't there or 'something he wouldn't understand' Wilkins was a Chelsea legend and worked well with the youth team. Taking someone away like that has forced Abramovich to shoot himself in the foot.
Frank Arnesen has left at a difficult time as well, when Abramovich first came to Chelsea, he wanted to build a youth system like Barcelona had developed, Arnesen was part of that project and came from Tottenham, he left at a time when youth was struggling to come through and if it was, it was struggling to break into the first team. Players which has great talent such as Di Santo, Sahar and Sinclair were wasted and loaned out and eventually sold, players who are on the brink such as Kakuta and McEachron are on the verge which is the silver lining. Him leaving has questioned a) where is the next talent coming from and b) Has something happen which has made the youth talent dry up and Arnesen to move on
Problem 2) Complacency I always thought as a youngster that if you win something, the hunger for more will always be there no matter what. It took me a while to realise that isn't the case. When I won the league 3 times in a row with my local team, I simply took easy street, didn't bother turning up for training half the time and hope we would simply win. That wasn't the case and we soon lost the league.
I recently read Roy Keane's and Alex Higgins Autobiographies, both legends of their games and they both admitted to complacency after winning titles. Roy Keane admitted the treble was the best and worse thing that could have happen to united, he wrote it signalled the end of Dwight Yorke's career as he couldn't care less what else he did in his career.
After Chelsea won the double last year I didn't think it would happen but it has, beating teams at the end of last season and start of this season by massive goal margins didn't help neither, it makes you think every week will be a rollover but once the s*it hits the fans, things get serious and it's difficult to come back.
Problem 3: Manager Once results go against you, the finger is straight away pointed at the manager and this is no different, Ancelotti is a terrific manager and I personally would hate to see him leave.
He has been labelled by journo's as 'the nicest person to interview' and you can see why. He received massive praise at AC Milan by big names such as Madini and Shevchenko and you don't get praise like that unless your rubbish. I feel he has come to Chelsea at a time when all the other managers have had money to spend and he now has nothing and has to make do, Abramovich wants youth to be developed but Ancelotti needs a squad he can build on. Push comes to shove, both camps can't win. I agree with both camps, I want to see youth being pushed through but at the same time I want Chelsea to be challenging.
I don't want Ancelotti to be sacked and if he does, there isn't many other people out there who are good enough for the job, only a few names such as Rijkaard and Deschamps come to mind so hopefully he doesn't go just yet.
Problem 4) Age Everyone keeps going on about the age of the squad, it's a fact that can't be hidden, some of the deadwood was thrown out last season (Ballack, Deco, Beletti) and noone was brought in to replace them, some people thought Anelka was finished at 31, Drogba was finished at 32 and Lampard finished at 32. I felt they still have a good 2 seasons left in them although at the moment it doesn't show. The age problem doesn't help when you don't show the quality of players you have to back them up but for the time being I don't think this is a big problem, but will be if it isn't addressed soon.
Problem 5) Squad Depth This was a problem that came up at the start of the season when injuries came into the picture, I hoped that all our players would come back and we would be ok......how wrong I was. The situation just got worse and worse.
When Mourinho was at the club, he made sure there was 2 players for every position, problem with that is obviously players wanna play and not everyone got to, players had to come and go, it now got to the point where Abramovich
I enjoy seeing our youth on the bench and players like Bruma look good, he already has a cap for the dutch squad and i'm sure will go on to bigger and better things. I just hope this situation will be resolved one way or the other.
Evaluation:
They are probably many other reasons why Chelsea are in a problem such as form, lack of goals etc. but the above 5 are what I feel are the main one's.
I personally hope Ancelotti doesn't get the sack, I feel Chelsea have a great set up going and if it means us sacrificing the Premier League for youth, I would happily accept that. not many teams did what the Man Utd team did back in the 90's when Beckham, Giggs and the Neville's all came through from the youth and sparkled. I just hope this problem is solved sooner rather then later as I don't know how much more of this I can take as a Chelsea fan.
