Well, just the other day I tweeted that this was the worse transfer window ever. Bent and Dzeko aside, not much has happened. And then, on Friday, we got some action.
To me, something seemed fishy. Chelsea allegedly had bid £52m for Atheltico Madrid pair Aguero and Godin, and nothing had come of it. Then, £22m or so for Benfica's Brzailian defender David Luiz. Off and on, now seemingly dead. Then, most surprising of all, a reported £35m bid for Fernando Torres. This coming just as Liverpool were in the process of sealing the signature of Luis Suarez, who would appear to be the ideal compliment to Torres in Liverpool's attack. My suspicion is that Chelsea were merely flashing money around to make it seem like they were taking action to arrest what has been an alarming decline, but weren't really serious about signing anybody. However, the news that Torres has in fact handed in a transfer request makes me think that there may be some substance to this bid for the Spaniard.
Anyway, let's just assume that Chelsea are serious about signing Torres. What would he add? Well, surely he is the best natural finisher in the Premier League, if not in world football. However, he wouldn't really have changed the shape of the Sunderland or Arsenal games in the past few months. And, he probably wouldn't have prevented Louis Saha's header in this afternoon's FA Cup tie. Still, he would surely provide more of a cutting edge than Anelka, and could have made the difference against the likes of Wolves and Birmingham, games Chelsea have lost 1-0 in recent times. And, Chelsea are a team that don't tend to create an abundance of chances-Torres is just the man to exploit such limited opportunities.
But how would Chelsea line up with the mercurial Spaniard on board? Surely they wouldn't persist with the 4-3-3? The most likely scenario to me is a 4-1-2-1-2, aka the 'Diamond' with Essien deep, Ramires and Malouda right and left respectively, Lampard 'in the hole' and Drogba and Torres up front. Surely they would not ask Torres to play the same type of position as Anelka? That formation doesn't really work for me, as Essien needs to be allowed to surge forward to get the most out of him. The alternative would be to play Essien on the right and Mikel as the anchor, but how can you leave out the ever improving Ramires? (I'm assuming that Lampard is 'untouchable, although I would argue he is the odd man out in a balanced midfield quartet at Chelsea these days).
All moot points until any transfer is confirmed, which is still far from likely at this point. The situation seems to mirror that which Man Utd faced with Wayne Rooney earlier this year, and we know how that has worked out. If Liverpool do manage to keep Torres, they will be hoping for a great return than 2 goals, which is what Man Utd have got from Rooney since he committed his future to the red half of Manchester.
Why exactly has Torres handed in this request now, just as Liverpool have signed what could prove to be a player of real class and have started making some forward progress under Kenny Dalglish, and, have American owners who appear committed to the club and appreciative of its heritage. At the same time, Chelsea appear to be a team in decline. Their chances of retaining their Premier League title appear remote. While they have a favourable draw in he Champions League, it's hard to see them beating the likes of Barcelona or Inter Milan should they progress past FC Copenhagen. And, their place in next season's Champions League is far from certain at this point. I can only think that(a) he has been offered (unofficially) a ridiculous wage; (B) is not enamoured with Dalglish; (c) is tired of having his house robbed and worried at the thought of his children growing up to sound like John Aldridge.
It's interesting as well that Torres waited until now. If money was the issue, then surely he should have been making noises earlier in January, when Man City were shopping for Edin Dzeko. It's hard to believe that money would be an issue for City now, even with the money spent on Dzeko, and so I wouldn't be surprised if we hear from them before close of business on Monday.
Right now, all that is certain is that Liverpool fans face an anxious wait for the next 48 or so hours. For Chelsea, the signing of Torres could be the spark the team needs this season if they are to complete an unlikely turnaround.
Saturday 29 January 2011
Saturday 15 January 2011
Far from 7th Heaven
7-0 victories over Championship strugglers don't count for much. Especially when the striker that got 2 of the goals will likely revert to the bench for this afternoon's Premier League game away to Blackburn. Especially when Didier Drogba will probably lead the line again today, despite seeming a shadow of his former self since his bout of malaria. Especially when Roy the Boy wasn't around-otherwise it would have been much sweeter to savour. Since I last blogged, when the wheels were just beginning to come off Chelsea's season, things have been much worse than I ever could have imagined. The only bright spot in the past 2 months was the postponement of the Christmas clash with Manchester United, which surely would have been a United win (possibly by a big score), and, (trying to stay positive,) has given Chelsea the chance to take 6 points off the new favourites in the final quarter of the season.
It seems like the tide has shifted permanently in Man Utd's favour. Chelsea haven't played well enough to deserve more than they've got in fairness, but United aren't setting the world on fire either-witness their recent league game with West Brom-they should have been dead and buried at half-time, but hung around long enough for West Brom to miss a penalty, lose another centre back and forget to mark Chicarito from a corner. Chelsea meantime have missed a last minute penalty at Spurs, stormed back to take the lead late against Villa, only to lose in injury time, and contrived to lose to Wolves through a Jose Bosingwa own goal. Add to that a flat and pathetic performance at the Emirates and Chelsea now find themselves out of the Champions League qualifying places, and 9 points behind United, having played a game more than the league leaders.
What exactly is wrong at Chelsea is hard to say. Lack of interest/motivation? Perhaps, although the celebrations after the 3rd goal against Villa seemed genuine. Thin squad? Almost certainly-Kakuta, Kalou and Sturridge don't look good enough most of the time, although Kakuta and Sturridge need to see more game time. McEachran has looked really good in very limited action, but where does he fit in a 4-3-3 assuming Frank Lampard has to play. Ferreira? Not good enough, and Ancellotti's infuriating habit of using both right full backs in a game is a waste of a substitution. Injuries too have played a part-Alex, Zhirkov and Benayoun have missed significant time, as have Lapmard and Drogba, who have started slowly on their return to the 1st team. On the coaching front, it does look like the rug was pulled from under Ancellotti-the interaction between Ray Wilkins' replacement (Michael Emenalo)is non-existent during games. What exactly he contributes on the training ground is a moot point. Whatever is wrong, it needs to be fixed, and that needs to start today against Blackburn Rovers, who go into the game without Ronaldinho, but can welcome back Roque Santa Cruz from the free spending blue half of Manchester. A telling stat from the excellent Infostrada-Chelsea have picked up 7 points from a possible 27 in their last 9 Premier League matches. Only Villa (5) and West Brom (6) have picked up fewer in the same period.
For Man Utd, it's hard to say what is behind their form. Resiliance is the key I suppose. Rooney is nowhere near the player he was when fit last season, Berbatov is brilliant one game, boorish the next. Their defence has tend to bend rather than break, with injuries and mistakes leading them to concede goals to average opposition, although it has been somewhat better of late. Tip of the cap to Sir Alex, he's probably won another league title, and I wouldn't rule them out for the double after last Sunday's win.
Arsenal's win over Chelsea was seen as a 'pivotal moment' and signified 'men becoming boys'. 3 days later, Arsenal went out and drew 2-2 with 10 man Wigan. 2 steps forward, 2 steps back. In reality, anyone with an objective view of the Arsenal v Chelsea game would have seen a poor game of football, settled by the side that made the most of the opporunities gifted to it by their opponent. Without Cesc Faberas in midfield, Arsenal were rudderles, and it was only when he was moved there did they begin to tick. Like Drogba at Chelsea, and possibly Rooney, Arsenal's best player seems to be short of the sort of fitness and sharpness that allows him to be an elite difference maker. Arsenal still lack the consistency and need a little luck with injuries before they can really contend. Right now, they are still too patchy for my liking, but have the most talented squad.
Of the others-Man City will hang in there, but play too grim a brand of football to win the league-unlike Mourinho's teams, they seem more interest in containing the opposition rather than taking all 3 points. Spurs are still around, but looking to bring in David Beckham and the circus that goes with him shows that 'Arry just can't resist wheeling and dealing.
In breaking news today, it seems that Avram Grant is yet again a dead man walking, and that he will be replaced as West Ham manager by Martin O'Neil after today's game with Arsenal. Avram seems to doom any club he is involved with, I would be surprised if we see him in the Premier League again. On the Martin O'Neill story, it seems strange that he would take on such a difficult task when the Liverpool job is likely to be available in the summer...
It seems like the tide has shifted permanently in Man Utd's favour. Chelsea haven't played well enough to deserve more than they've got in fairness, but United aren't setting the world on fire either-witness their recent league game with West Brom-they should have been dead and buried at half-time, but hung around long enough for West Brom to miss a penalty, lose another centre back and forget to mark Chicarito from a corner. Chelsea meantime have missed a last minute penalty at Spurs, stormed back to take the lead late against Villa, only to lose in injury time, and contrived to lose to Wolves through a Jose Bosingwa own goal. Add to that a flat and pathetic performance at the Emirates and Chelsea now find themselves out of the Champions League qualifying places, and 9 points behind United, having played a game more than the league leaders.
What exactly is wrong at Chelsea is hard to say. Lack of interest/motivation? Perhaps, although the celebrations after the 3rd goal against Villa seemed genuine. Thin squad? Almost certainly-Kakuta, Kalou and Sturridge don't look good enough most of the time, although Kakuta and Sturridge need to see more game time. McEachran has looked really good in very limited action, but where does he fit in a 4-3-3 assuming Frank Lampard has to play. Ferreira? Not good enough, and Ancellotti's infuriating habit of using both right full backs in a game is a waste of a substitution. Injuries too have played a part-Alex, Zhirkov and Benayoun have missed significant time, as have Lapmard and Drogba, who have started slowly on their return to the 1st team. On the coaching front, it does look like the rug was pulled from under Ancellotti-the interaction between Ray Wilkins' replacement (Michael Emenalo)is non-existent during games. What exactly he contributes on the training ground is a moot point. Whatever is wrong, it needs to be fixed, and that needs to start today against Blackburn Rovers, who go into the game without Ronaldinho, but can welcome back Roque Santa Cruz from the free spending blue half of Manchester. A telling stat from the excellent Infostrada-Chelsea have picked up 7 points from a possible 27 in their last 9 Premier League matches. Only Villa (5) and West Brom (6) have picked up fewer in the same period.
For Man Utd, it's hard to say what is behind their form. Resiliance is the key I suppose. Rooney is nowhere near the player he was when fit last season, Berbatov is brilliant one game, boorish the next. Their defence has tend to bend rather than break, with injuries and mistakes leading them to concede goals to average opposition, although it has been somewhat better of late. Tip of the cap to Sir Alex, he's probably won another league title, and I wouldn't rule them out for the double after last Sunday's win.
Arsenal's win over Chelsea was seen as a 'pivotal moment' and signified 'men becoming boys'. 3 days later, Arsenal went out and drew 2-2 with 10 man Wigan. 2 steps forward, 2 steps back. In reality, anyone with an objective view of the Arsenal v Chelsea game would have seen a poor game of football, settled by the side that made the most of the opporunities gifted to it by their opponent. Without Cesc Faberas in midfield, Arsenal were rudderles, and it was only when he was moved there did they begin to tick. Like Drogba at Chelsea, and possibly Rooney, Arsenal's best player seems to be short of the sort of fitness and sharpness that allows him to be an elite difference maker. Arsenal still lack the consistency and need a little luck with injuries before they can really contend. Right now, they are still too patchy for my liking, but have the most talented squad.
Of the others-Man City will hang in there, but play too grim a brand of football to win the league-unlike Mourinho's teams, they seem more interest in containing the opposition rather than taking all 3 points. Spurs are still around, but looking to bring in David Beckham and the circus that goes with him shows that 'Arry just can't resist wheeling and dealing.
In breaking news today, it seems that Avram Grant is yet again a dead man walking, and that he will be replaced as West Ham manager by Martin O'Neil after today's game with Arsenal. Avram seems to doom any club he is involved with, I would be surprised if we see him in the Premier League again. On the Martin O'Neill story, it seems strange that he would take on such a difficult task when the Liverpool job is likely to be available in the summer...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
