After such a promising and exciting start to the season, has this season become one of the worst we've had as a club in a long time.

 

1). We sacked RDM in terrible circumstances, when it should never have happened in the first place. Yes we had a few issues with form, but the sacking wasn't justifiable. It's obvious that Roman never wanted RDM as manager permanently and he was put under duress to re-sign him because of the FA Cup and Champions League success at the end of last season.

 

2). The appointment of Rafa Benitez would have to be one of the worst appointments in world football. Benitez has proven to be a good manager at times, but also proven to be a disaster and an overrated tactician as well. What made the appointment worse is the fact that Benitez is universally disliked by Chelsea fans, so the fans/manager relationship was never going to work out, even if Benitez produces great results on the pitch.

 

3). Losing to QPR at home. This would have to be one of the most humiliating and painful defeats I've witnessed as a Chelsea supporter. How can you explain that we smashed Aston Villa 8-0 a few weeks ago, and that we've beaten Arsenal, Tottenham and Everton all away from home, yet we couldn't beat bottom-placed QPR at home. We can say that Mata and Hazard should never have been rested, but even we had too much quality without them against QPR. It was clear that we went into the game complete with arrogance. The loss today just confirmed my fears that we are not the invincible team we once were, especially at home. 

 

4). Lampard not being offered a new contract. He may be 34 years old and he may not be the same player he was a few years ago, but he's still an asset to the side. The Everton game on Sunday proved that. Roman and the board would be idiots to get rid of Lampard. He's a club legend, well-respected by the Chelsea fans and most importantly he still has a role to play at Chelsea. I agree, he'll probably need to take a small pay cut and realise that his playing time is not guarenteened, but nevertheless Frank and the board need to sit down and reach a compromise.

 

5). Losing in the Community Shield, Euro Super Cup and World Club Cup Final. After our success in the Champions League last season, I was really looking forward to play in extra competitions this season, including the Super Cup and the World Club Cup, but what a let down it was. The Euro Super Cup was awful and it just demonstrated to us how good Falcao is as opposed to Torres.

 

6). First team to be eliminated after winning the Champions League the season before. We did have a tough group and arguably have two teams that were better than us in the competition, but the first game against Juventus proved to be very costly and it resulted in us missing out in the end. By the way, we missed out on the stupid away goals rule, not because our goal difference sucked. It was a real insult to be eliminated in that manner.

 

7). The Man Utd game and Clattenburg incident. The Man Utd game proved to be the turning point of our season. After such a promising start to the season, this game changed our season for the worse. It was the beginning of the end for RDM, the refereeing was nothing short of a disgrace and the racial allegations made against Clattenburg were turned back on us.

 

8). We have one of the most out of form strikers in the league. I've always been a big supporter of Fernando Torres, but now has come the point where Torres will never fit into Chelsea and he will never regain the form that made him one of the most feared strikers at Liverpool. I think it's time to sell him in the summer, not in the winter because we don't have enough strikers to cover Demba Ba presuming he signs as expected. 

 

9). Roman and the board are running our club into the ground. Yes Roman does provide the money that ultimately allows us to buy the best players in the world, but has this come at a cost. We have no stability when it comes to having a manager, he has complete control and we the fans have no say on the important issues of the club, and the likes of Gourlay and Buck have proven to be fools who don't care about our club. I want them gone as I believe Roman heavily relies on these two to make the hard decisions. 

 

Anyway, this season isn't over yet as we could win the FA Cup, League Cup and the Europa League, but I haven't enjoyed the season. Too many negatives have occurred. 

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by Jezz

In terms of one that promised so much (making the champions league by the thinnest of margins, a great start to the league season, the signings of Hazard and Oscar, Robbie getting to keep the job, having 2 finals already set up and being two wins away from being World Champions) and looks to be delivering so little, is hard to argue against it.

For me it hurts football wise that we did nt get to defend the european cup make us look quite weak, Off the field board level wise I have never felt so out of touch with the club.

It's been a bad one that's for sure. I cannot believe with how last season ended and with the players we got in this season that we are in the position we are in now. I can't see this season improving, with the way we are right now i wouldn't be surprised if we lost to Swansea in the Semi's of the Capital one cup. I can't trust the club right now, we just don't seem to be able to do anything right. I just want this season done, i'm frustrated with it already and it's only January.

 

The problem is i can see these things repeating themselves in the future. There are to many people involved with the club that don't have a clue what they are doing, and until they go i can't see this club gaining any kind of stability. We can't go on like this, the club is really going to suffer if things don't change.

I share the same feelings Scott Harris. This season has been one thing after another and after I feel like we're back on track, it's back to square one once again. The season was a write-off from the moment RDM got sacked.

 

We need to initiate a long-term plan and build a dynasty. We can't splash out cash for short-term fixes, we need to build a long-term plan.

 

The best teams in the world such as Barcelona and Dortumund have initiated long-term plans and have stability in the club. Chelsea on the other hand have none of that. 

It wouldn't surprise me if we smash Swansea and then lose in the final to Bradford after giving Arsenal fans a lot of stick.

I share the same feelings Scott Harris. This season has been one thing after another and after I feel like we're back on track, it's back to square one once again. The season was a write-off from the moment RDM got sacked.

 

We need to initiate a long-term plan and build a dynasty. We can't splash out cash for short-term fixes, we need to build a long-term plan.

 

The best teams in the world such as Barcelona and Dortumund have initiated long-term plans and have stability in the club. Chelsea on the other hand have none of that. 

 

Exactly, we were in good form, the club were quite and not making any of the usual stupid decisions then all of a sudden, bang, out of nowhere we lose 1-0 to QPR Everytime the fans get relaxed and start to feel a bit more confident it all blows up in our faces. It just seems like everytime we start looking forward something crushes our confidence. It's exhausting.

It wouldn't surprise me if we smash Swansea and then lose in the final to Bradford after giving Arsenal fans a lot of stick.

 

Yep it wouldn't surprise me either. I just don't know what to expect anymore.

We finally got those players we've wanted for quite a while - the players that would make us world class - but it's hardly been the success we expected. 

And with our leader JT out as well as losing our scorer of big goals, Drogba, we've looked rather weak.

 

I don't think Robbie was the man to lead us. I like him, but I don't see him as a great manager, and he really didn't have the backing of Roman, which any manager need here.

 

I don't think Rafa is the answer either.

We need a world class manager who knows both how to deal with the players and how to use them in a way that makes everyone better.

And of course a striker who can be our lethal weapon, even when the team has a bad day. Torres might have been that one time, but not any longer. I like him, but I don't see him as the guy who pops up in a game to hand us the winning goal.

Some teams can do without a big goalscorer - we are not one of them.

Not the worst season in a long time, yet (but as it's not finished), who knows!.A bit of a let down after the superb highs of last season that's for sure.

 

I miss the style of football Robbie had us playing,some superb stuff that's for sure & also listening to his pre/post press chats.

 

Certainly its turning out to be the most eye-opening for a long time,at least for me anyhow.

 

These lastest set of shannagans puts the spotlight on Roman more so than any other time since he brought the club back in 2003.

 

Whatever you're opinion of Ancelotti's abilities,to sack a double winning,record breaking manager in the tunnel of a scouse pit,(not even at the clubs Cobham H.Q.) reflects very badly on the character of Roman himself.

 

Treating the Chelsea Pitch Owners (some of our most loyal supporters) like mugs, set a few alarm bells ringing for me to be honest.

 

Not hearing outpourings of bullsh*t from a self publicist owner made a refreshing & welcome change at first as well,but,after all these years of off the pitch rambles and still not hearing qoutes from RA,I have now come to accept the fact that he just doesn't give a toss.

 

And I ask myself, if he never fancied Robbie for the job,why the hell did he apoint him after sacking AVB?,hasn't fsw been kicking is heels for nearly 2 years?.

 

All these 'incidents' have happend within the last few years and to a backdrop of first class success & performances from the Chelsea team.

 

So why has RA acted like such a bellend lately?,what's changed?.

 

Only a bold (& contrite) managerial change will 'revitalise' this season,but as RA won't care to listen,I guess will just have to 'hold fast' & hope for the best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whatever really & whoever is in charge, as always.....................Come on Chels.

Edited January 3, 201313 yr by alan'82

Need to win that Swansea tie badly. Remember the Scolari year, that was a limp end to his days yet Hiddink rescued the campaign and if it wasn't for that bald twat Ovrebo we might have had the European Cup three years before we actually had it. If we get to Wembley and beat Villa (assuming they win) then at least we've salvaged something out of the season (with another two cups to play for after it)

 

As much as Roman's been responsible for our success in many ways, he should have shown Robbie more support.

Depends what you define as a long time? 5 years? 10?

 

Personally it's the most disillusioned I've ever felt as a fan. There was a time where I'd have felt anger and anguish losing at home to the likes of QPR or worse being pumped at West Ham but I was over it within an hour or so.

 

The treatment of RDM, Lampard, Cole, JT, Wilkins, Langley and most importantly the fans.. for me has been too much.

 

There was a time where I'd have defended this club to the hilt in the heat of debate, to the point of almost delusion but not anymore. When asked by Arsenal cousins if I thought Guardiola should take the job my simple response was "No, I wouldn't go anywhere near it". 

 

This is a club I will always love, but I can't say I like it very much at the moment.

 

On the pitch it's by no means our worst although we've got an average manager at the helm who we all hate. No season where we beat Spurs, Arsenal and Leeds all away and are in a cup semi will rank as a poor season in my eyes.

Edited January 3, 201313 yr by Myles_91

Will see come May

as long as Fatty is manager it is not only the worst season in a long time but the worst season ever

 

the man is making a travesty of Chelsea FC, he needs to GO & quickly

Depends what you define as a long time? 5 years? 10?

 

Personally it's the most disillusioned I've ever felt as a fan. There was a time where I'd have felt anger and anguish losing at home to the likes of QPR or worse being pumped at West Ham but I was over it within an hour or so.

 

The treatment of RDM, Lampard, Cole, JT, Wilkins, Langley and most importantly the fans.. for me has been too much.

 

There was a time where I'd have defended this club to the hilt in the heat of debate, to the point of almost delusion but not anymore. When asked by Arsenal cousins if I thought Guardiola should take the job my simple response was "No, I wouldn't go anywhere near it". 

 

This is a club I will always love, but I can't say I like it very much at the moment.

 

On the pitch it's by no means our worst although we've got an average manager at the helm who we all hate. No season where we beat Spurs, Arsenal and Leeds all away and are in a cup semi will rank as a poor season in my eyes.

15-20 years. There were seasons before Roman joined where it was still enjoyable and we were a solid outfit. I just haven't enjoyed what this season has dished up. We have a board who will never listen to the fans and we have a manager we universally despise. 

IMO this is our real season of transition, with one or two signings in the summer, say, falcao and fellaini and add to that Pep Guardiola arriving next season could be our best ever !

 

This was always on the cards. when you change your style of play so dramatically with alot of players who are used to playing in a much more solid and defensive way. I just wish RDM was given the freedom to manage without the constraints of TOTAL football and just winning football matches.

I would say its our worst season under Roman, without a doubt.

Yes, there have been unfairly sacked managers before and yes we have struggled in the league with bad form. But never since the start of the last decade have things felt so hopeless.

I'm not talking about the annual cyclical joke of hire and sack, hire and sack, year after year. What I see now is a club and owner whose bad decisions are really starting to come to roost. I see a club that is making drastic, unpopular moves simply because they dont know what else to do. They are becoming desperate and Benitez's hire is desperation in the extreme. Needless desperation.

They are (over)reacting, and every time they do, Chelsea winds up a little worse. The brand is sullied just a little more. The pool of good managers who will come here gets a little thinner. Add to that ignoring the will of the fans and appointing a manager whose presence grates on them. For Roman its not just enough that Chelsea are unpopular, slated in the media, disliked by rival managers, targeted by officials, and lampooned for ridiculous personnel moves, he also has to alienate the people (like myles said) who are backing the club through thick and thin.

Its gotten to the point where the results dont matter to me at all. I would have been crushed about losing at home to those jokers today, but I just found myself thinking that we have bigger problems and maybe an embarrassing loss will get them addressed quicker.

Just a sorry state of affairs right now.

Edited January 3, 201313 yr by TheWestwayWonder

This time last season we were in a far worse position and it ended up being the greatest season ever, we're still 3rd in the league and not too far off 2nd, we've got a good chance of winning the League Cup, we got a good Europa draw and the FA Cup is still there for us.

 

We've finally got a new striker coming in that should boost us significantly, I think it's way way too early to be writing this season off yet.

I wish they would sack Rafa and just give the job to JT and Frank for the rest of the season. They wont make the mistake of taking games lightly. Rafa doesnt care if we win or lose, he knows he wont be here next season.

This gos down as the worst season ever for me and I don't need to wait until May to make sure of it.

 

If we win every game we play until then it will still go down as the worst for me and the disrespect the owner/board have shown to another good Manager, a Manager that saved last season and made this season something to get excited about with the new players he attracted by winning the Champions League, the Champions league that up until he won it was Abramovics holy grail, the one title that would see a Manager valued by the owner and hopefully with the passion for Barca style football allowed time to bring his new players and the rest of the squad through transition into the style craved by him only to see him again unceremoniously sacked has left a bad taste in my mouth.

 

Again people come out with the usual list of Trophies to show the owner in his wisdom has done whats best as if that is some prrof that leaving a good Manager in the Job wouldn't have had a bigger return, hes sacked another Manager, this time a loyal ex player who understands the rivalries, knows a lot of the boys and gets on well with them, is impeccable on the touchline and celebrates like a player, laughs and crys with us at results, conducts himself with dignity in every interview and has proven himself with the best trophy haul in what looked like becoming the worst season under Abramovics reign.

 

There are people saying he wasn't a good Manager...after what he achieved we have Sofa Managers telling us he wasn't a good Manager? a man who took over from Andre Villa Boas (above us in the league now in his new Job) and proved to be light years ahead of him with tactics and motivation, a Man that showed his defensive nous by beating the likes of Barcalona with ten men, a Man who used a weakened squad of players to target two cup competetions while juggling the squad and won them both, a man who was given instrustions (IMO) to not only play Barca style but to do it without dropping a missfiring striker and all through bans and injuries to key players and Refereeing decisions that make Ovrebo fade from the memory.

 

To add insult to injury, with the pain and disbelief of Robbies dismissal still raw the next move can for me best be described as a direct two finger salute to those of us that valued and appreciated Robbies achievements, those of us who have lived with the rivalries and loved Chelsea and hated their main rivals in equal measure, those of us who have hated Liverpool, Tottenham, Leeds, West Ham, QPR and the rest and understand the rivalries, those of us who watched through the Mourinho era can't brush under the carpet, when Liverpool actually had some good players and a Manger whos defensive style made them a horrible team to watch or play against with a Manager who was not only an unlikeable Man in the way opposition managers because of normal rivalries usually are but because his "mind games" or "wind ups" went further than the usual Fergie/Mourinho style, they went further than even his own spat with Ferguson (where he showd himself to be a total arse) they went too far.

This Man after openly criticising the Club, openly saying Chelsea had bought Trophies and telling us that Chelsea fans had no passion and needed silly plastic flags to show any passion, the Man who came out and said he would NEVER work for this club was then Hired.

 

We now have a split fanbase and a detestable Man in charge, his defensive style that has got goals against the worst team I've ever seen in the CL and  a terrible Villa side, scraped a win at Norwich, scraped a win at Everton, won at Sunderland won a game against Monterray? won at Leeds, failed to score in three home games drawing with an out of form City, a Dire Fulham side, losing to Corinthians in the final of the Club World Cup, a competition Robbie got us to that needed only wins against  two ordinary teams to give us this trophy on our only opportunity and losing at home to QPR, and away to West Ham...thats two London Derbys to bitter rivals.

 

These results are being hailed by the Media and some on this forum, some being our own fans and some trolls pretending to be, as an improvemet, the facts tell us a different story, a story that shows we would have to win the next four league games for the interims points haul to be up there with RDMs and a story that shows the calibre of opposition to have been a lot weaker since the interim took over compared to the earlier games under RDM even with the Referees farce against UTD.

 

Proof enough that not only was the sacking of Roberto Di Matteo wrong in every way but the Hiring of Benitez not only with the benefit of the team having played to gether as a unit with new players being integrated (something Robbie played through and had us sitting third) but with the added benefit of being allowed to drop the attacking style and play as balanced or as defensive as he felt best, a benefit I fell Robbie was starved of.

 

For me this is the worst seaon because my eroding respect for the clubs hierarchy, my gradual disdain towards the game and my decreasing enjoyment from what has been a main interest in my life for fourty odd years has hit an all time low.

 

This is down to a rich owner who is either so far detatched from the fans of the club he owns, so ill advised by people who work at the club or just so up his self that he doesn't care and again I will say that for me I would take a lot less trophies, a lot less boasting rights (no I don't mean I want the interim to stay) and a lot more mediocrity in exchange for an owner with the thoughts of the fans at heart and a bit more respect for people.

Edited January 3, 201313 yr by Chippy

Even the press have stopped pretending there's been improvement, that is of course until what the teams needed all season (a striker) comes in and results get unfairly compared again.

 

James Lawton: Rafael Benitez still struggles to bridge the gap between player and manager

 

 

 

Off night: three days after being the hero at Everton, Frank Lampard is hauled off by Rafael Benitez as the Blues lose.

 

04 January 2013

 

There may be less uplifting circumstances in football than the ones that took Rafa Benitez by the throat at ­Stamford Bridge this week but forgive me if they do not come immediately to mind.

Poor Rafa, you might say after his defeat by a Queens Park Rangers side almost everyone but Harry Redknapp had consigned to damnation and fresh evidence that praise for the miraculous achievement of persuading Fernando Torres to pick up his bed and run was at the very least premature.

Also extremely uncomfortable was that his first major flirtation with rotation at Chelsea meant that the four-point Premier League deficit he inherited from the fallen Roberto di Matteo had stretched to 14.

Nor did it help that when he was asked about the progress of negotiations with Demba Ba’s army of agents he pointed out that all of his attention had been concentrated on the challenge of beating a team who, only three days earlier, had been dismantled on their own ground by his former club, Liverpool.

That last statement certainly ­recreated an ancient echo. It was when the chairman of Crystal Palace, having invested much hope in the brilliance of the late Malcolm Allison, embraced the club’s saviour after a thrashing by Notts County in the season opener and said: “Don’t worry, Mal, I know how much hard work went into that defeat.â€

We also know how much work Benitez puts in at the training ground and on the touchline. However, it is hard to believe that Roman Abramovich is in any mood to issue a jocular endorsement of the man who, just days ago, had supposedly gone a huge stride towards removing the word interim from his job title.

Such conjecture was, understandably enough, not likely to be discouraged by Benitez but then he can scarcely complain now if some believe the odds facing such an ambition have once again become mountainous.

Random defeat is, of course, an occupational hazard but some are more devastating than others. What this one did more than anything, let’s be honest, was resurrect doubts about his working style that became relentless in the years after his remarkable ­Champions League triumph with ­Liverpool in 2005.

When he arrived in the wake of Di Matteo, his biggest cachet was that he had supervised the most brilliant days of Torres. This rather ignored the fact that at the time fashioning the game and ambitions of El Nino was indeed pretty much on a par with harnessing the wind. More significant, some would argue, was his total failure to build ­rapport with another compatriot, Xabi Alonso.

The ramrod of Real Madrid, and a magnificent servant of Liverpool, has made little attempt to disguise the root cause of his defection from Anfield. It was that there was an unbridgeable gulf been the player and the coach.

Until Wednesday night Benitez had won high marks for his feisty refusal to be intimidated by the hostile noises on the terraces, the sense that he had brought order to defence and that he had done good work in restoring the confidence of Torres. Yet when we trawl back through the brief record how much of a sea change do we really see in the side that so recently battled to the Champions League title, the FA Cup and went some way into this season as by far the most serious threat to the might of Manchester?

The outstanding performance by some distance was not the annihilation of a pitiful Aston Villa but the overcoming of Everton at Goodison Park last weekend, which owed so much to the departing Frank Lampard. It is also true that Everton, despite the absence of their most influential player, Marouane Fellaini, were desperately unlucky not to glean at least a point.

Of course, this is not to bury Benitez in the ground of one disastrous result. It is simply to suggest that the nature of his appointment, and not least the timing of it, was essentially absurd.

If the selection of Di Matteo was an interim provision that turned out to be inspired, that of Benitez was never imbued with the same advantages of his predecessor’s loyalty to the cause and sympathy with the situation of players who had become so ­- disaffected by the regime of Andre Villas-Boas.

Di Matteo rescued somebody else’s project. It demanded a modesty of spirit which has yet to surface notably in the personality of the man who prowls the touchline with such unbounded belief in his own ­authority. Maybe the mercenary Ba will help ­create some fresh momentum, drag his new team-mates away from the abyss into which they fell this week. Perhaps Benitez will find a way to pick up the pieces but in the meantime we should perhaps not be too shy of speculating on what might have ­happened if Chelsea’s reported ­interest in another potential caretaker, the ‘resting’ Redknapp, had come to pass.

One thing is certain. It would have been an investment in a man who understands quite implicitly the interim nature of all of football. From such an understanding, there is generally one valuable priority. It is the belief that nothing is more important than finding a reason to make players feel good about themselves. It is a knack that overwhelmed Stamford Bridge this week. Benitez can only hope that the consequences will prove less than fatal.

It seems that the press is gradually coming round to what people have been saying on here for over a month. I'm very much of the opinion that the written press is irrelevant in the modern world.

Sorry for the pessimism guys, but I did post this when we just lost to QPR, so I was furious at the time, but I do stand by my points I made in my opening post, but maybe I exaggerated the term "long time" from some people's point of view.

I've been a big advocator for rebuilding the squad as soon as the first cracks appeared in Ancelotti's second season as coach, but a lot of people were in denial about it at the time. I think for us to be a success in the future we need to acknowledge our current problems, instead of initiating a 'short-term fix'. I'm glad we've been selling quite a few liabilities these days and signing a lot of young players, but I understand that this will take time. I also believe we need to have a nice blend of youth and experience. That's why I strongly oppose selling Frank Lampard or John Terry for that matter. They are leaders of our club and they can guide our young players for the time being. 

At the moment, we are the not invincible team we once were between 2004-2007. I feel like our invincibility diminished when Mourinho left, and we've never able to find it since. 

The main issue that needs to be addressed is the board and the managerial merry-go-round. For too long we've been sacking managers like it's second nature. We need to have a manager that will be there for the long haul, and the board has faith in, but at the same time a lot of our managerial departures have been a result of too much interference from the board. We lost Mourinho due to conflicts within the board. 

If we ever wanted a top class manager like Mourinho, Guardiola or Klopp to coach us for the long-term, the board needs to give them complete control of what happens on the pitch and which players they want transferred in and out of the team. The board should have no say on the transfers, apart from funding for it. Too much board interference has potentially made us look like fools when it comes to transfers. Does anyone Andriy Shevchenko?

 

This season is a catch 22.

 

One on hand we could win a few trophies with the risk of FSW staying..

 

On the other we could lose the champions league spot (again) and potentially be worse off next year.. 

At the moment, we are the not invincible team we once were between 2004-2007. I feel like our invincibility diminished when Mourinho left, and we've never able to find it since. 

 

You're right, were not the invincible force of Mourinho era but also got slated at the time for playing "boring" clinical football. 

 

Robbie had us playing exciting football but we were way too open at times.  And over-reliant on same players (remember the moans at the time). Imo once others got the measure of us I think we were in for freefall if we continued with with this style and obviously some players were not defending as they should have been.  I still think this was borne of fear on Robbie's part and trying to second guess the owner in his perceived wanting of exciting football.

 

It was always going to be a difficult season imo after the high of winning the CL - where do you go from there for ffs. It's new for us. 

 

FSW in charge is an issue. We are looking stronger, overall, but we all also know his manageral weaknesses.  So his time will be nigh in the long run.

 

The buck does stop with Roman and i'm hoping he and the Board will learn from their mistakes and make the improvements needed in the long run. 

 

The seasons not over for me, I will be overlooking FSW, the team is my focus and nothing is more important than that. I want to see us forge forward and win the FA Cup, the Capital One Cup with some good scalps and exciting games in the process, and challenge for second spot, ultimately securing CL football next term.

 

Loving Ba btw.

 

I'm sure for some others the sky will continue to cave in