One thing that seems to be somewhat of a positive from Villas-Boas’ reign at Chelsea, however long it may be, is that he’s giving the youngsters a chance to shine through. For too long now, Chelsea have been reliant on the same system involving what is now referred to as their “old guard”; the three lynchpins of their team in Drogba, Lampard and Terry. Whilst these three have been reliable in their positions for the last eight or so years, and undoubtedly been key to bringing success to the club, efforts must be done to find suitable replacements. Terry is going to prove to be the one most difficult to replace; whilst the guy lives and breathes Chelsea, he’s fallen into the Rio Ferdinand situation of being more of a liability than he’s worth. David Luiz, for all his qualities is not the man to replace him; his heavy footedness and ability to put himself hilariously out of position have been a contributing factor in Chelsea’s hiccups this season.
Don’t worry Chelsea fans, I can sympathise being a fan of Leeds United and watching Patrick Kisnorbo week after week heading into tackles with all the grace and guile of Jade Goody when she run that marathon that one time. Josh McEachran will prove in time that he is Lampard’s replacement; the flashes that I’ve seen from him show a great deal of promise, and he’s still only seventeen years old. Strikers come and go, and I’m sure it won’t take long for Chelsea to find a decent replacement for Drogba.
Hell, someone might coax Torres out of his self imposed exile and inspire him to score again; Abramovich could hold his family hostage and threaten to send bits of them in the mail unless he starts scoring, although that might be a touch in the extreme region. Whatever they do, they need to get doing it fast; the old guard isn’t getting younger, and young sprites like City and Spurs will quickly overtake if Chelsea don’t do anything.
Overall, it’s a nervy time for Blues fans; it’s getting to that time of year again when the manager is more than likely going to be given a pledge of support in December then heavy heartedly parting company come January. There’s no reason why Chelsea can’t refresh what they have in their reserves and continue with their success of the past few years. What it does take however, is less input from Russia, more freedom with the manager and a serious sort out of the playing staff. In the meantime though, I’m quite fancying my two pound bet at the bookies for Villas-Boas to finally go in January.
I’d also like to take this opportunity to express my shock and disbelief at what happened over the weekend regarding Gary Speed. I never got the chance to see him in a Leeds shirt; by the time I had my season ticket he had already moved on to Everton, where he would become a legend with an entirely new set of fans, but I understood his importance to the team, and how integral he was to the Leeds side that won the last First Division title before the Premier League was founded. As I got older, and attended the same high school as he did (I’m local to the Mancot area in which he grew up) I got the opportunity to meet him in person when he paid a visit and found him to be a gentleman of the highest order; taking time out for everybody who was there, and engaging in genuine conversation with everybody who spoke to him, rather than a few fleeting words.
I’m making my first trip up to Elland Road in over seven years this Saturday and expect there to be a sombre, yet celebratory atmosphere for one of Leeds’ greatest servants of the last twenty years. My thoughts are with his family at this time and I hope the outpouring of support and respect shown by football fans all over England may help sooth some of the pain in what must be a horrific week for his family and friends. Rest in peace Speedo, the world has lost a great in you.
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