Roman must listen to Chelsea fans
Ditch Torres, keep Lampard
thesun
WE can confidently predict Roman Abramovich will not be interrupting his winter break in the Caribbean for a trip to the Potteries on Saturday.
And judging by the pictures of him and his pregnant wife Dasha at the £5million New Years Eve party on their 70- acre estate in St Barts, the goings-on at Chelsea would not appear to be weighing too heavily on his mind.
In fact, it looks very much as if the Russian billionaire has left the hired hands at Stamford Bridge to get on with the mess he created.
But, if he has a minute, there are two things Abramovich should do.
First, tell the club to finally bring the two-year Fernando Torres saga to a conclusion despite more than three years remaining on his £170,000-a-week contract.
Second, to offer Frank Lampard a new deal if only to keep him out of Alex Fergusons clutches.
The atmosphere at the Bridge on Wednesday night as Chelsea lost 2-0 to Swansea was toxic enough without Blues fans also having to contemplate the arrival of Lampard next season in the red shirt of Manchester United. No Chelsea fan should kid themselves that this is not a distinct possibility.
In fact, the move makes total sense for United and Lampard.
But, first, there is the continuing problem of Torres, who on Wednesday night continued to look not only racked with self-doubt but also consumed by fear.
Every excuse possible has been made for the Spaniards failure in London. First, it was the pressure of that £50m transfer fee.
Then it was the failure of the side to play to his strengths even though it was clear towards the end of his stay at Liverpool Torres was not the player he once was.
Then there was all the talk of how his confidence was affected by having to play in the shadow of the great Didier Drogba.
Finally, we were informed that what Torres really needed was an arm round his shoulder and the whispering of sweet nothings into his shell-like.
To these Abramovich-driven ends, managers were hired and fired, players bought and sold and Torres finally reassured after the Champions League final that the sole striker role was his for all eternity.
Even Drogba was removed from the equation. As was Nicolas Anelka before him. And still nothing has changed.
As Alan Curtis, a fine striker with Swansea and now first-team coach, said yesterday: Torres body language isnt right. His touch looks a bit heavy and the awareness just isnt there at the moment.
Nothings coming naturally. He looks in torment in many ways.
Torres was also shown up by fellow Spaniard Michu, a £2m signing most Chelsea fans would not hesitate in swapping for Torres.
Only a few seasons ago the Swansea striker would not have been mentioned in the same breath as the former Atletico Madrid and Liverpool thoroughbred. Yet the stats show that Michus tally of 13 Premier League goals this season is just one less than Torres in his entire two years at the Bridge. No, Torres was not the only reason Chelsea lost on Wednesday.
Juan Mata and Ramires missed the best of a host of chances while the loyal, usually heroic Branislav Ivanovic sadly made two match-changing errors.
And we wont even go into the selection blunders of caretaker boss Rafa Benitez, who must now surely know he should never have taken the call after Roberto Di Matteo was sacked.
But Torres IS still very much at the heart of the Chelsea problem, one that the recent arrival of Demba Ba will highlight rather than resolve.
Ba did more in his nine minutes on the pitch than Torres did in 81 going close with a header, having a good goal disallowed for offside and being unluckily booked for an alleged dive as he tried to get round the keeper.
Then there are all the by- products of the failure of both Torres and Chelsea to score the goals that have led to successive home defeats by QPR and Swansea.
And so we had the booing of chairman Bruce Buck as he made a pre-match presentation to Petr Cech. And more booing when the team was announced, with Torres starting and Ba, fresh from his two goals against Southampton, on the bench.
And more booing for Torres as he was subbed this a first at Chelsea and for Benitez at the end.
And before that, constant chants for Lampard to enter the fray. Ah, yes, Frank.
Here we have a player, a club legend, regarded it seems as good enough for Manchester United but not good enough for Chelsea.
A player still operating at the highest level despite his 35th birthday looming in June. A player whose Premier League record this season reads: P12, W10, D1, L1.
And a player Ferguson wants to use in filling not only the hole left by Paul Scholes but also in passing on all his huge knowledge to the younger United players.
Lampard believes he has another three years at the top. Yes, he has been linked with Shanghai and Los Angeles. But he will have noted the experiences of Anelka and Drogba in China, while he is far too good to go into Californian semi-retirement. That can come later.
In some ways, he is the fall guy in Abramovichs apparent belief it was the senior players who let down AVB, a coach the Chelsea owner appointed personally.
So, Drogbas gone, Lampard is now in the out-tray along with Ashley Cole. And John Terry will follow in the summer of 2014.
Yes, of course, the team couldnt go on for ever.
But Abramovichs desire to turn Chelsea into a troupe of Brazilian/Spanish samba and flamenco dancers will not happen overnight if at all in the rutted ballroom of the Premier League.
Yes, you can have great flicks, movement and pasodobles when the sun is on your back. But, as Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti understood, you mix that in with some old-fashioned clog dancing when the going gets heavy.
Meanwhile, the party continues in the Caribbean. Sadly, the one in West London would appear to be drawing to a close.
And judging by the pictures of him and his pregnant wife Dasha at the £5million New Years Eve party on their 70- acre estate in St Barts, the goings-on at Chelsea would not appear to be weighing too heavily on his mind.
In fact, it looks very much as if the Russian billionaire has left the hired hands at Stamford Bridge to get on with the mess he created.
But, if he has a minute, there are two things Abramovich should do.
First, tell the club to finally bring the two-year Fernando Torres saga to a conclusion despite more than three years remaining on his £170,000-a-week contract.
Second, to offer Frank Lampard a new deal if only to keep him out of Alex Fergusons clutches.
The atmosphere at the Bridge on Wednesday night as Chelsea lost 2-0 to Swansea was toxic enough without Blues fans also having to contemplate the arrival of Lampard next season in the red shirt of Manchester United. No Chelsea fan should kid themselves that this is not a distinct possibility.
In fact, the move makes total sense for United and Lampard.
But, first, there is the continuing problem of Torres, who on Wednesday night continued to look not only racked with self-doubt but also consumed by fear.
Every excuse possible has been made for the Spaniards failure in London. First, it was the pressure of that £50m transfer fee.
Then it was the failure of the side to play to his strengths even though it was clear towards the end of his stay at Liverpool Torres was not the player he once was.
Then there was all the talk of how his confidence was affected by having to play in the shadow of the great Didier Drogba.
Finally, we were informed that what Torres really needed was an arm round his shoulder and the whispering of sweet nothings into his shell-like.
To these Abramovich-driven ends, managers were hired and fired, players bought and sold and Torres finally reassured after the Champions League final that the sole striker role was his for all eternity.
Even Drogba was removed from the equation. As was Nicolas Anelka before him. And still nothing has changed.
As Alan Curtis, a fine striker with Swansea and now first-team coach, said yesterday: Torres body language isnt right. His touch looks a bit heavy and the awareness just isnt there at the moment.
Nothings coming naturally. He looks in torment in many ways.
Torres was also shown up by fellow Spaniard Michu, a £2m signing most Chelsea fans would not hesitate in swapping for Torres.
Only a few seasons ago the Swansea striker would not have been mentioned in the same breath as the former Atletico Madrid and Liverpool thoroughbred. Yet the stats show that Michus tally of 13 Premier League goals this season is just one less than Torres in his entire two years at the Bridge. No, Torres was not the only reason Chelsea lost on Wednesday.
Juan Mata and Ramires missed the best of a host of chances while the loyal, usually heroic Branislav Ivanovic sadly made two match-changing errors.
And we wont even go into the selection blunders of caretaker boss Rafa Benitez, who must now surely know he should never have taken the call after Roberto Di Matteo was sacked.
But Torres IS still very much at the heart of the Chelsea problem, one that the recent arrival of Demba Ba will highlight rather than resolve.
Ba did more in his nine minutes on the pitch than Torres did in 81 going close with a header, having a good goal disallowed for offside and being unluckily booked for an alleged dive as he tried to get round the keeper.
Then there are all the by- products of the failure of both Torres and Chelsea to score the goals that have led to successive home defeats by QPR and Swansea.
And so we had the booing of chairman Bruce Buck as he made a pre-match presentation to Petr Cech. And more booing when the team was announced, with Torres starting and Ba, fresh from his two goals against Southampton, on the bench.
And more booing for Torres as he was subbed this a first at Chelsea and for Benitez at the end.
And before that, constant chants for Lampard to enter the fray. Ah, yes, Frank.
Here we have a player, a club legend, regarded it seems as good enough for Manchester United but not good enough for Chelsea.
A player still operating at the highest level despite his 35th birthday looming in June. A player whose Premier League record this season reads: P12, W10, D1, L1.
And a player Ferguson wants to use in filling not only the hole left by Paul Scholes but also in passing on all his huge knowledge to the younger United players.
Lampard believes he has another three years at the top. Yes, he has been linked with Shanghai and Los Angeles. But he will have noted the experiences of Anelka and Drogba in China, while he is far too good to go into Californian semi-retirement. That can come later.
In some ways, he is the fall guy in Abramovichs apparent belief it was the senior players who let down AVB, a coach the Chelsea owner appointed personally.
So, Drogbas gone, Lampard is now in the out-tray along with Ashley Cole. And John Terry will follow in the summer of 2014.
Yes, of course, the team couldnt go on for ever.
But Abramovichs desire to turn Chelsea into a troupe of Brazilian/Spanish samba and flamenco dancers will not happen overnight if at all in the rutted ballroom of the Premier League.
Yes, you can have great flicks, movement and pasodobles when the sun is on your back. But, as Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti understood, you mix that in with some old-fashioned clog dancing when the going gets heavy.
Meanwhile, the party continues in the Caribbean. Sadly, the one in West London would appear to be drawing to a close.
