Former Chelsea player George Graham blames Blues players for poor season, defends Carlo Ancelotti
Former Chelsea player George Graham said the reason for the Blues decline was the lack of work rate this season. The previous season was a success for the Blues, having won the English Premier League and the FA Cup double during Carlo Ancelotti’s first season
at the club and they continued with their success at the start of the current campaign.
However, not even past the mid-season mark and the London side suffered their worst slump in over 15 years. They not only gave up their lead at the top of the Premier League but suffered early exits from the Carling Cup and the FA Cup. Recently, they were
eliminated from the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals by Manchester United resulting in an unsuccessful, trophy less season.
While many have chosen Ancelotti as a scapegoat, Graham insisted the players were more to blame for their poor form this season. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Chelsea-c38786 owner Roman Abramovich is already understood to be on the lookout for a possible replacement for the Italian manager,
whom he holds responsible for the lack of silverware this season.
Graham said while speaking to reporters, “I’ve looked at Chelsea a lot this season. I think the way they started was phenomenal, they just carried on from last season, scoring lots of goals and stuff. Then all of a sudden I saw nearly half the team's body
language was completely wrong. For me, that’s the first thing managers and coaches see. The work ethic has not been there with a lot of the players.”
The Scotsman has played for top Premier League sides like Aston Villa, Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea during his footballing career. He has also gone on to manage Arsenal, Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur. Having had experience as a footballer
and a manager, Graham’s assessment on the situation can be trusted.
The former Scotland international revealed he sympathized with Ancelotti, who he believed had had a very tough second season at Chelsea. A few months into the season and assistant manager Ray Wilkins was suddenly sacked with the Italian manager having no
previous knowledge of the entire affair. According to Graham, Wilkins’ sudden dismissal also played a part in Chelsea’s demise this season.
Graham revealed the former AC Milan did not have someone he could confide in at Stamford Bridge, which had compromised his coaching abilities. He continued, “Who does Ancelotti talk to? Who does he tell his secrets to, the things he wants to keep quiet even
from the directors? You’ve got to have somebody you can confide in and discuss things.”
With seven games remaining, the Blues will try their best to finish in the top four to guarantee a place for next season’s Champions League. Chelsea travel to West Brom Albion over the weekend and as they try to put their Champions League misery behind them.
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