Closed. Over and done with for another season. Nothing you, me or those Irish bookies can do about it and yet, as far as the Chelsea fan is concerned, can I be the only one who thinks we have neglected a certain area of our game by not venturing into the transfer market and making that massive statement of ‘intent’ we never get accused of having? Also, on the back of a double-winning campaign, wasn’t there a golden opportunity to improve the team from that position we are always said to be in, the one of strength, if not downright brute force with a touch of bullying thrown in?
Mere mention of these epithets, forever hanging around the team like an albatross on an ancient mariner‘s neck, will surely provide a big enough clue and point the finger directly at the area in question, if only because it’s been as plain as the umpteenth paragraph in a Patrick Collins piece that we do not really need anybody to improve our lot in the Premiership at the moment. Carlo has had the competition pretty much sussed since arrival with recent results indicating that this season’s opposition are no improvement on last’s, wherever you care to look in the table, and the influx of young talent from the Academy is now bound to be in increasing evidence on the pitch in virtually every domestic competition.
No, I’m referring to European football and the Holy Grail - to give the Champions League just one of several self-indulgent nametags bestowed on it by the Media. Yep, we are back to that annual jumped-up junket and contradiction in terms which someday soon must learn to walk-the-walk and talk-the-talk [organisation-wise] to stop me forever laughing at its inbred amateurism. Alright, I may be in the minority here, but at least this topic goes some way towards explaining why I believe another Chels failure looms large on the horizon, despite the fact that the club has an annual conquering Europe obsession… or does it anymore?
Don’t get me wrong, any Roman plan to revert to a break-the-bank policy in an effort to win this thing will always be abhorrent to me for many reasons, most of them expressed in previous posts, but the time has come to lay our cards on the table and I‘m not sure it‘s being done with any degree of authority so far on this campaign. In short, it is as if the situation has been discussed at boardroom level and our home comforter (the league and cup double) has left us just a little flabby, if not somewhat apathetic, on the European front. My cards tell me, Yossi or no Yossi, we will not win this competition with a strike force of Drogba, Anelka, Kalou, Sturridge and Borini because, with the notable exception of Didier, it’s neither proven in the latter stages of the competition, nor likely to go the distance yellow/red/card or injury-free.
Clearly, the club either do not agree with those findings, or they too are mulling, perhaps even mellowing, over the real need for complete Champions League fulfilment, veering towards a year-on-year policy of boot-filling [with cash] combined with a crossing of fingers to ward off the future Ovrebo’s of this world. The penny may well have dropped in the boardroom and what was once a genuine belief, that another superstar striker could take us that one step further, has now turned to ambivalence and caution. In short, on transfer matters, the fusion between club and old fashioned fan may well be a lot closer to a perfect blend, in both new Premiership and Champions League campaigns, than they could possibly have imagined five years ago.
Whether you are in sync with my perception, as outlined above, probably depends on how you view our approach to the forthcoming CL group stage and the proper stuff that follows - for instance, are you a) optimistic b] under-whelmed or c) a bit of both, but ruing the missed opportunity to buy, say, a big name striker as a real show of strength. If you can easily dismiss c) from your thoughts the choice between the a) and b] camp becomes a simple one and I would contend that’s exactly what the club has done, presenting an optimistic front whilst hiding any under-whelming feelings that may have seeped in and dampened ardour for the CL over the years. The Neymar saga suggested otherwise, but how many of us doubt that, had we really been keen to nail the deal down [to fulfil Champions League ambitions] we would have either got the job done or simply walked away and gone elsewhere, rather than [allegedly] deferring matters for an unspecified length of time?
Citing Citeh’s destabilisation of the market as an excuse for keeping out of any dogfight doesn‘t ring true either because, unless you buy into Fergie’s ’no value’ argument, we have to assume that Carlo, in pursuit of his teenage Brazilian quarry, had already scratched off the names of Aguero, Torres, Pato, et al, from any list of worthwhile additions to the squad, well in advance of preparations for a competition that Roman is reputedly desperate to win and irrespective of the fact that they may never be as [relatively] cheap as they are at present. Those stuck firmly in the b] camp might point out that there also appears to be scant regard given to the improvement in teams such as Barcelona and Real Madrid in the interim and even AC Milan, with Zlatan, Robinho, Pato and Ronaldinho up front, have somehow acquired a level of quality, experience and firepower that, irrespective of views on the individuals concerned, puts them into the ‘dangerous’ category once more.
Not that I’m personally too bothered by all this lack of activity because, unlike others such as Kerry Dixon, Jason Cundy and Gab Marcotti, who know far more about Chelsea’s requirements and have also pinpointed the deficiency in the striker department, I’m more than happy to see us pursue another double win without too many long term distractions. So, perhaps my own fears [that we are but one poor CL ref, or umpteen out of their depth assistant refs, away from going out in the KO stages once again] have also disturbed Roman’s psyche and he’s now getting his priorities sorted along with his finances. Others, gathering in the a) camp as I write, will no doubt say that we are good enough as we are, that this is our year, and Wembley will see a London team take the trophy…
They could be right and, if they are, my money is on us trying to make doubly sure in the January window - it is the Holy Grail, for heaven’s sake! Now, where’s that Aguero thread…
Mere mention of these epithets, forever hanging around the team like an albatross on an ancient mariner‘s neck, will surely provide a big enough clue and point the finger directly at the area in question, if only because it’s been as plain as the umpteenth paragraph in a Patrick Collins piece that we do not really need anybody to improve our lot in the Premiership at the moment. Carlo has had the competition pretty much sussed since arrival with recent results indicating that this season’s opposition are no improvement on last’s, wherever you care to look in the table, and the influx of young talent from the Academy is now bound to be in increasing evidence on the pitch in virtually every domestic competition.
No, I’m referring to European football and the Holy Grail - to give the Champions League just one of several self-indulgent nametags bestowed on it by the Media. Yep, we are back to that annual jumped-up junket and contradiction in terms which someday soon must learn to walk-the-walk and talk-the-talk [organisation-wise] to stop me forever laughing at its inbred amateurism. Alright, I may be in the minority here, but at least this topic goes some way towards explaining why I believe another Chels failure looms large on the horizon, despite the fact that the club has an annual conquering Europe obsession… or does it anymore?
Don’t get me wrong, any Roman plan to revert to a break-the-bank policy in an effort to win this thing will always be abhorrent to me for many reasons, most of them expressed in previous posts, but the time has come to lay our cards on the table and I‘m not sure it‘s being done with any degree of authority so far on this campaign. In short, it is as if the situation has been discussed at boardroom level and our home comforter (the league and cup double) has left us just a little flabby, if not somewhat apathetic, on the European front. My cards tell me, Yossi or no Yossi, we will not win this competition with a strike force of Drogba, Anelka, Kalou, Sturridge and Borini because, with the notable exception of Didier, it’s neither proven in the latter stages of the competition, nor likely to go the distance yellow/red/card or injury-free.
Clearly, the club either do not agree with those findings, or they too are mulling, perhaps even mellowing, over the real need for complete Champions League fulfilment, veering towards a year-on-year policy of boot-filling [with cash] combined with a crossing of fingers to ward off the future Ovrebo’s of this world. The penny may well have dropped in the boardroom and what was once a genuine belief, that another superstar striker could take us that one step further, has now turned to ambivalence and caution. In short, on transfer matters, the fusion between club and old fashioned fan may well be a lot closer to a perfect blend, in both new Premiership and Champions League campaigns, than they could possibly have imagined five years ago.
Whether you are in sync with my perception, as outlined above, probably depends on how you view our approach to the forthcoming CL group stage and the proper stuff that follows - for instance, are you a) optimistic b] under-whelmed or c) a bit of both, but ruing the missed opportunity to buy, say, a big name striker as a real show of strength. If you can easily dismiss c) from your thoughts the choice between the a) and b] camp becomes a simple one and I would contend that’s exactly what the club has done, presenting an optimistic front whilst hiding any under-whelming feelings that may have seeped in and dampened ardour for the CL over the years. The Neymar saga suggested otherwise, but how many of us doubt that, had we really been keen to nail the deal down [to fulfil Champions League ambitions] we would have either got the job done or simply walked away and gone elsewhere, rather than [allegedly] deferring matters for an unspecified length of time?
Citing Citeh’s destabilisation of the market as an excuse for keeping out of any dogfight doesn‘t ring true either because, unless you buy into Fergie’s ’no value’ argument, we have to assume that Carlo, in pursuit of his teenage Brazilian quarry, had already scratched off the names of Aguero, Torres, Pato, et al, from any list of worthwhile additions to the squad, well in advance of preparations for a competition that Roman is reputedly desperate to win and irrespective of the fact that they may never be as [relatively] cheap as they are at present. Those stuck firmly in the b] camp might point out that there also appears to be scant regard given to the improvement in teams such as Barcelona and Real Madrid in the interim and even AC Milan, with Zlatan, Robinho, Pato and Ronaldinho up front, have somehow acquired a level of quality, experience and firepower that, irrespective of views on the individuals concerned, puts them into the ‘dangerous’ category once more.
Not that I’m personally too bothered by all this lack of activity because, unlike others such as Kerry Dixon, Jason Cundy and Gab Marcotti, who know far more about Chelsea’s requirements and have also pinpointed the deficiency in the striker department, I’m more than happy to see us pursue another double win without too many long term distractions. So, perhaps my own fears [that we are but one poor CL ref, or umpteen out of their depth assistant refs, away from going out in the KO stages once again] have also disturbed Roman’s psyche and he’s now getting his priorities sorted along with his finances. Others, gathering in the a) camp as I write, will no doubt say that we are good enough as we are, that this is our year, and Wembley will see a London team take the trophy…
They could be right and, if they are, my money is on us trying to make doubly sure in the January window - it is the Holy Grail, for heaven’s sake! Now, where’s that Aguero thread…
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As soon as I read Sindre's post I knew you would be all over it like a fly on sh*t
