After failing to qualify for the Champions League Tottenham midfielder Luka Modric has decided that he would like to pursue his footballing career in greener pastures, well a Chelsea blue pasture to be more exact.
Modric was rumored to be an object of desire for Manchester United as a replacement for the legendary Paul Scholes. Yet once things shook out Sir Alex decided to spend his money elsewhere. Since then Chelsea has became the main destination for the tiny Croatian midfielder despite Tottenham being adamant that they do not want to sell him.
You would think if that were the case, that the player would not be for sale. However, Modric appears to be hopeful of a move and not ruling out anything. Looking at experiences like this throughout history, that likely means that the Croatian international may soon be on the move.
Yet, does he fit the Chelsea mold? In one word, no. Chelsea haven’t had this as an official motto, but if you watch them play they are, “Bigger, Faster, Stronger.” That’s not to say that Chelsea don’t have skilled players, but to add to that ability their players are physical specimen.
At forward Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Fernando Torres are not only skilled but big, strong, physical and fast. They are able to match-up with the big brutes of the Premiership and hold their own. It also lends the team the ability to be versatile. They can play intricate passes, the long ball and even score of off crosses from out-wide.
In the back they have Cole at left back who is stockily built and about as fast as they come. Then the rest of the line-up back there consists of players such John Terry, David Luiz, Branislav Ivanovic and Alex that’s enough power to bully an entire team much less a bevy of marauding forwards.
Even in the midfield Chelsea has been full of powerhouses. Flourent Malouda comes in at 6′ tall and then you have Michael Essien, Frank Lampard and John Obi Mikel, all of whom would be the most physically imposing midfielder on just about any team in the premiership. The one player who doesn’t fall under this category is Ramires. And, really the swanky Brazilian did not perform in the same manner as he did for Benfica or Brazil where he acted as a quick striking counter attacker. He was once regarded as an up an coming youngster who was rated by many clubs and managers, but how often do you hear people speaking about him now?
This begs the question, “would Modric be as effective whilst in a Chelsea uniform?” Undoubtedly no, while Chelsea could benefit from his intelligent play and intricate passing it is just not how they go about things. Teams like Arsenal struggle with bigger, stronger and more direct teams such as Stoke, but teams like that are much less of a threat to Chelsea.
This isn’t saying that Chelsea are bullies, but they impose their will on teams and then use their skill to finish them off. Could a guy like Modric aid in their rivalry with a team like Manchester United? Yes, but after splashing big money on Juan Mata how much are they willing to pay for another super-sub type player who drastically decreases the teams basic dynamic?
Also, how willing is Modric to sacrifice to play Champions League football? One would dare to argue that he is Tottenham’s most important player, but at Chelsea he would struggle to regularly crack the starting XI.
This may be a match that is bound to happen, but by no means is it a match made in heaven. Modric has proven he can hold his own in the Premiership, but he definitely isn’t the physical type presence that Chelsea have made a staple. Both Modric and Chelsea should be wary of the potential move and the impact it could have on their futures.
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Why write crap like this, the Tottenham Chairman, categorically said 2 months ago, we shall not be entertaining ANY bid from Chelsea for Luka Modric, Story closed! Are you related to the daily mail?
Chelsea are attempting to change the way they play, if you look at the players coming through the academy like Mceachran Kakuta Van Aanholt Bertrand just to name a few, and the players they are buying (with the exception of Lukaku) are players that fit the mould of quick feet, quick passing and high work rate. They have seen Barcelona play incredible football and the only way to really achieve this is through high amounts of possession and then a very strong creative presence in midfield. I think as long as Chelsea don’t use their full backs in order to bomb forward as much as they used to they can keep a big strong back four for the teams like Stoke and allow the forward players to be smaller and more agile.
WTF, have you ever seen Modric play? not only is he skillful, but strong, tenacious and doesn’t stop running for 90 mins
So, Ardiles, Pele, Maradona, Zidane,etc would not get a game at Chelski either.
As a European once said after his first PL game in the north: I am a football player not a rugby one.
Personally I hope he finds his “head” at WHL but although yr article is in keeping with the PL’s reputation in Europe the facet that you describe is freely found in about 90% of PL sides and even physical Chelsea at their best could not win the CL. Just watch Barcelona. Nuff said i think.
Couldn’t disagree more.
Surely this would create a plan B for Chelsea since this is what has been missing for years?? Mata and Modric can bring a fresh approach and something teams will not be prepared for. If we keep to the same type of player, we become one dimensional, and that is what we are heavily criticised for. So this article is pure hypocrisy!
Avb get sneider or kagawa frm dortmund. He is 22yrs.
Malouda is 5’9
Are you a Chelsea fan by any chance Zachariah? Because it seems to me that you are and perhaps making excuses in advance of losing out on Chelsea’s hope of capturing Modric. Lets for a moment analyse what you’ve said about Modric’s size and fitting into Chelsea’s midfield shall we. Arguably the best midfielder Chelsea ever had was one Franco Zola, no bigger than a sparrows kneecap,alongside him was Dennis Wise who was even smaller then there was Deco another midget in the midfield, prior to these guys you had players like Wilkins, before him Hollins all of whom werent the biggest players in the world. Now it is reported that Chelsea are about to sign Mata, another munchkin. All this adds up to your article being baseless. Dont you think that if Chelsea had any chance of wrestling either Messi (I know that he isnt strictly a midfielder but he can play anywhere), Iniesta, Xavi or even Ces Fabirgas, that they wouldn’t do their utmost to try and buy any one of these players? Your article does not make sense but well written nevertheless.
Useless article and a bloody waste of time reading it.
You might as well say that Messi would not fit into the Chelsea team because he is not a physical specimen.
I’m pretty sure the majority of people realise that Chelsea are changing the way they play and taking the evidence of the first two games into account, the ‘old guard’ aren’t the right fit for AVB’s preferred model of play.
Take Lampard as an example, he’s a Chelsea legend but at 33 he’ll need to be replaced and isn’t up to a natural playmaker role. Then there’s Didier Drogba, also approaching the end of his career and we can’t hoof it to Torres.
Our play has been based around the aforementioned for too long and this must change.
Thanks to all that have read and for all of the opinions. No I’m not a Chelsea supporter, I’m just of the belief that they have played a certain style and it has been an advantage for them over the years. I’m sure they would be plenty capable of changing (as is likely the plan under AVB), but that will take time and will likely see a few games result in less points than anticipated. I also believe that Modric is a very class player (although by no means does he fit the category of Messi or Xavi), but to pay the kind of money it would take for Chelsea to make a successful bid for him after Tottenham have came out and made the statement that they don’t wish to lose him seems to be like bad business for Chelsea when a comparable player of an even slightly higher physical stature could be purchased (No, this isn’t saying that physicality overrules technical ability, but a combination of the two definitely doesn’t hurt). For those who say that Chelsea need to change their ways in order to match a team like Barcelona it’s a sticky situation. When looking at Barcelona, there aren’t any teams that play more intricate football than them, succumbing to the way they play leads right into their hands. However, if you are able to match their skill (to an extent) and have some physicality you can gain an advantage. And let’s not forget the physicality of the Premier League, surviving that plays into who you have available for selection when the Champions League comes around. So while I think Modric could do very well at the club, I still maintain that there could be other options and that it would seem that he would enjoy his football more somewhere else.
Also, it’s really a moot point by now (we think) after Modric had talks with Tottenham and all is supposedly settled. Once again, thanks for reading and as always your opinions are appreciated.
P.s. cheers to Demi for pointing out my snafu with the Malouda height, apparently the roster I was reading from had an error. Thanks for the assist!
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