Football: Part 1 - Defensive Blues or Healthy cover?
Chelsea has started the 2010-11season where they ended their last, scoring a staggering 14 goals in 3 games and conceding none - It seems all rosy for Ancelotti’s men.
Many tip Chelsea to win the league this season as well - some even believe that this finally might be the year when the club finally ends its European blues and lands the coveted champions league title to Stamford Bridge. With the final at Wembley come May, it might be fitting that a club from London wins it.
However, if Chelsea are to retain their double or are to get any glory in Europe the team has to stay strong and injury free. But does Chelsea have the bench strength to win in all this season? Seeing John Terry injured in the game against Stoke City makes many staunch fans fear that Chelsea might be in for a tough season.
The North London club has been relatively quiet in this summer’s transfer window, with more players moving out than strengthening the ranks at Stamford Bridge.
Among the players that left, include rather noticeable personnel:
Joe Cole – Free transfer to Merseyside, Liverpool FC.
Michael Ballack – Free transfer to Bundesliga club, Leverkusen.
Deco – Free transfer to Fluminense.
Juliano Balletti – Free transfer to Fluminense.
The club has also lost star defender Ricardo Carvalho to Real Madrid in a deal worth (£8 million).
Chelsea has brought in:
Yossi Benayoun – Free transfer from fellow Premiere League club Liverpool.
Ramires – A £17m signing from Portugese club Benfica.
It is not the loss of Joe Cole or Michael Ballack that will hurt since the club has managed to add Yossi Benayoun and Ramires (like for like), nor is the effective transaction of negative 9M this summer (selling a player for £8 and buying a player at £17M), but the loss of Carvalho that seems hard to digest. The Portuguese defender has been nothing short of an impenetrable wall and his partnership with Terry has been a key to Chelsea’s success - The last 6 years including Chelsea’s first ever League - Cup double, all featured the no nonsense defender. With Carvalho out of the picture and no proper replacement brought in, there may just be a defensive crisis in the making. Alex, a shrewd Chelsea investment is a good backup but he is not the class that his predecessor offered. The double winners admitted:
“Carvalho still has a top future at the top level”
After all it was Carvalho who held the defense together whenever Terry was out of form – The Wayne Bridge incident is reminder of that. With all said and done, Chelsea has a potential superstar in the shape of young, Serbian Branislav Ivanovic, who can play either Right Back or Center back, the latter being his preferred position but has been pushed to the right side of the defense in the absence of Jose Bosingwa (remind you of a certain William Gallas saga?!).
Paulo Ferreira (Right Back) is well past his prime and age is catching up with him. His injuries keep him on the sidelines for months and its tough demanding him to be the first team player he used to be under Jose.
Balletti, signed from Barcelona, was a good squad player for the club and could have easily been slotted in the full-back slot whenever the club needed him. The Brazilian was also versatile enough to feature in the defensive midfield hole. However Balletti, like many other former Chelsea players, is a forgone option.
To top it all off, the club decided to loan out Michael Mancienne to Wolves again - A move that has shocked many. The youngster had a decent season in the West Midlands last summer and was all set to be a part of Chelsea set up.
This leaves Chelsea in a ‘bit’ of a fix.
To be continued…
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