Posted April 22, 201114 yr For the skeptics among us who question the ability of Mikel I recommend the following article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/chelsea/8130025/John-Obi-Mikel-reborn-as-Chelseas-undisputed-pass-master.html
April 22, 201114 yr He played well against Birmingham because he was given space in midfield. But when he plays against top teams, his space is crampt and he crumbles. For example, he got booked within the first 5 minutes against L'pool and looked shakey for the rest of the match. Also, for an anchorman he isn't very expansive, whenever the ball is fed back to him, instead of spraying the ball out wide, he plays a short pass which is just frustrating to watch.
April 22, 201114 yr Author "You are lost." ? Sorry. It's an excellent article by Duncan White and well worth a read.
April 22, 201114 yr Randy, your link doesn't work - I think the story you're after is here The thing about Mikel is that he is either under or over rated depending on who you talk to, I don't think many people give him the exact right amount of credit. The fact of the matter is that he's not as good as Makalele was and he's never going to be somebody to change a game single handedly. However, I do believe that he adds another dimension to our midfield because it's not his natural instinct to get forward. Having a player that is prepared to hang back is a good asset to have against the counter attack. People often suggest that Essien can play that role, however, he will naturally tend to drift forward and is (in my opinion) wasted in this position. The other thing I think people forget about Mikel is his ability to play a long through ball over the top of the defenders for somebody to run onto. I think Torres especially could benefit from this type of play.
April 22, 201114 yr Author Randy, your link doesn't work - I think the story you're after is here The thing about Mikel is that he is either under or over rated depending on who you talk to, I don't think many people give him the exact right amount of credit. The fact of the matter is that he's not as good as Makalele was and he's never going to be somebody to change a game single handedly. However, I do believe that he adds another dimension to our midfield because it's not his natural instinct to get forward. Having a player that is prepared to hang back is a good asset to have against the counter attack. People often suggest that Essien can play that role, however, he will naturally tend to drift forward and is (in my opinion) wasted in this position. The other thing I think people forget about Mikel is his ability to play a long through ball over the top of the defenders for somebody to run onto. I think Torres especially could benefit from this type of play. Thanks for the help. I agree with you that Essien is wasted in the role of DM. He's a box to box midfielder.
April 22, 201114 yr Let's not do this again... Mikel is fine against lesser opposition. I'll leave it at that.
April 22, 201114 yr While I was hoping he'd be further along by now, he is still very young, and as such, I hope we keep him around if there is a squad overhaul.
April 22, 201114 yr Not hard to pass 5yards sideways or backwards. Has been better since he came back in the team, but not as good as Ramires. Essien should be the one worrying for his place.
April 22, 201114 yr Let's not do this again... Mikel is fine against lesser opposition. I'll leave it at that. I do agree with that, but are you sure thats such a bad thing? We have some players who struggle against the lesser sides also. In the modern era of large squads and rotation having mikel to play in these sort of games makes sense to me.
April 22, 201114 yr Not hard to pass 5yards sideways or backwards. Has been better since he came back in the team, but not as good as Ramires. Essien should be the one worrying for his place. You really believe thats all he does? We were told tgats all ballack did, thats all maka did etc. Yet we missed them when not playing. We have few midfielders who can control a game, mikel is one of them.
April 22, 201114 yr Author It's a pity some folks don't give Mikel the credit he deserves. He's an outstanding physical presence in the DM role. He reads the game very well, is an excellent passer of the ball, rated on of the best in the Premiership. He is dominant in the air and his discipline has really improved over the last few seasons. Lampard's return to form is linked to Mikel and the 4-3-3 formation. The two other midfielders enjoy more freedom when Mikel is used in the holdingb role.
April 22, 201114 yr Not hard to pass 5yards sideways or backwards. Has been better since he came back in the team, but not as good as Ramires. Essien should be the one worrying for his place. You are the definition of the supporter without any knowledge of the game at all. Seriously. You would need to have a littlebit of understanding of the game to appriciate what players like Mikel, Busquets etc brings to their team. Barcelona would not be the same team without Busquets and we would not be as good without Mikel aswell. Those kind of players are extremely important for any team, and it`s a shame that certain people don`t appriciate it. Not even going to explain what he brings to our team because you, bjd and a few others probably wouldn`t understanding anything of it. It`s not a coincidence that everything went downhill when Essien occupied his spot for a few months...
April 22, 201114 yr Ok, no need to insult my intellegence thank you very much. I'm very aware of what Mikel 'brings' to the team. With this being an internet forum and all people do have the right to have an opinion on a player, and if it differs from yours get over it and don't resort to questioning peoples intelligence. I'm not going to do this again (though it seems I already am!), my post history is full of it if someone wants my feelings on Mikel. They havent changed in 5 seasons and I don't see any developments in his game that will see those opinions alter anytime soon. He'll do fine tommorow no doubt, that'll be 3 good games in a row. Can't argue there. Then we'll get the over the top eulogising. But in a few weeks at Old Trafford with Giggs, Nani, Scholes or Park hovering and Rooney dropping back will he cut it ? History suggests not. He's great as a squad player, but as a crucial totem of our team in the big matches against the top teams? I'm sorry , but there is no proof he is good enough or is going to develop to be good enough either. And let's not compare him to Busquets who in more ways than one is in a different league. I said I wasn't going to do this didn't I.... Edited April 22, 201114 yr by bjd
April 22, 201114 yr So in saying that, would you be happy for him to stay at the club bjd, to be used in games against the lesser teams?
April 22, 201114 yr Yeah why not. f**k it , let's make him captain tommorow. Seriously, if a good bid came in for him we'd be mad not to take it. Looking at what he beings to the team when he plays, he is extremely replaceable IMO, and to find somebody to do what he does wont be hard, or expensive. Edited April 22, 201114 yr by bjd
April 22, 201114 yr Yeah why not. f**k it , let's make him captain tommorow. Seriously, if a good bid came in for him we'd be mad not to take it. Looking at what he beings to the team when he plays, he is extremely replaceable IMO, and to find somebody to do what he does wont be hard, or expensive. Suggestions?
April 22, 201114 yr Yeah why not. f**k it , let's make him captain tommorow. Seriously, if a good bid came in for him we'd be mad not to take it. Looking at what he beings to the team when he plays, he is extremely replaceable IMO, and to find somebody to do what he does wont be hard, or expensive. No need to be arsey, it was just a f**king question.
April 22, 201114 yr Might as well being Joka back... What's the point of naming names, after all I don't understand football do I? Perhaps if I, like you, start throwing insults at loyal, successful players you'd accept me a bit more?
April 22, 201114 yr No need to be arsey, it was just a f**king question. Whoa! Where was I arsey? It was a j for joke mate! Apologies to all - I seemed to have turned this thread on it's head a little bit...
April 22, 201114 yr Mikel is a must start player. One of few on our team that MUST get a spot in the starting 11. He makes everyone else's job easier.
April 22, 201114 yr Whoa! Where was I arsey? It was a j for joke mate! Apologies to all - I seemed to have turned this thread on it's head a little bit... Fair enough, took it out of context. the thing thats bothering me though is we seem intent on getting rid of squad players, players who are still of value to our club even though they 1`st choice for every game. a player like Mikel is very valuable for certain games, as you freely admit. So if he is happy with this situation why get rid? Same goes for players like Kalou and Ferreira. We need players like this to bring in when we have suspensions and injuries. Letting Ballack go last season was our biggest mistake.
April 22, 201114 yr Author There has been a lot of Mikel bashing going on. I remember when we were told that once Mourinho left Stamford Bridge, Mikel would become history. We were also told once Essien got back from injury Mikel would be forgotten. Isn't it amazing how he has survived? Mikel is a holding midfielder, Essien box to box. Mikel understands his role and has really improved since Mourinho's days with the club. There is no one else in the squad who can play the holding role more successfully. Mikel is young and will continue to improve under the watchful eyes of Carlo!
April 22, 201114 yr You really believe thats all he does? We were told tgats all ballack did, thats all maka did etc. Yet we missed them when not playing. We have few midfielders who can control a game, mikel is one of them. Maka was class, anybody could see that. Mikel does have good patches of form, but never for more than a month or so, i'm happy for him as a squad player (but was a hefty investment for just that).
April 22, 201114 yr Might as well being Joka back... What's the point of naming names, after all I don't understand football do I? Perhaps if I, like you, start throwing insults at loyal, successful players you'd accept me a bit more? No you don't but i would still be pretty interesting to see who you think could do a better job than Mikel in his position. We can already erase Essien from that list as everything went to hell when Ancelotti tried it. So who is it? My "insults" towards Ferreira in the heat of the moment is nothing anyone else than you seems to keep nagging on about...
