"Rafael Benitez has warned Chelsea's senior players that they must face up to the prospect of their inevitable departures from Stamford Bridge." (Source: The Times) Wasn't this the reason Mad Dog got in AVB at Chelsea? And we all saw how that turned out. So, Coco has come out and said he's going to do exactly the same that AVB was instructed to do. Of course, when AVB did it, Terry, Lampard, and Drogba led a dressing-room revolt and got AVB the sack, with cowardly Chelsea fans blaming AVB (the victim in all of the mess), instead of the real culprit - Mad Dog, Terry & Co. Will Coco get the same treatment from the players? With Drogba gone, and Lampard about to depart for United, will Terry have the balls to lead a one-man dressing-room revolt? I very much doubt it. His lay-off has shown both players, manager and fans that Terry simply isn't needed any more at Chelsea, so he'll know only too well that his own days are numbered, and that it won't be long before he'll be told to sling his hook. Does anyone else get the feeling that Coco just might ride out the storm in the boat that AVB built for him? Chelsea fans could never bring themselves to admit that they let a good man go, and that we were gifted the next "Special One" so they'll come up with some bull5hit excuses to explain why failure is different with Coco. "Transition requires that we be patient, etc..." Watch this space!
I think you are right. With Lamps as good as gone and Drogba a distant memory the manager can now perform this clear out. Whether Coco will ride out the Chelsea fan's hatred or the availability for Guardiola is another question though. My guess - Lamps out in jan. Coco out in march. Terry a bit-part whenever he returns
Should an interim manager have this authority? I'm not sure that he should. I don't know if Coco will be there at the beginning of next season so I think that he should keep his mouth shut. Chelsea's new players have been inconsistent ie Hazard and so I don't know who RB thinks he'll replace the old stars with. Pep as a saviour? Ba as a saviour? I'd still like your opinions,should an interim coach have this authority?
Benitez will have as much say in transfers as the others...sod all! the Russian wrongun's policy of 'I buy, you coach' won't change anytime soon.
i would be uncomfortable if an interim coach had that much say at a normal club. But it ain't a normal club so i dunno
There's also Ashley Cole amongst that old guard. He could well be on his bike, too. By Chelsea's standards, this season has already turned out to be a poor one. When it comes to the league, Man United are too far ahead, and just not the sort of club that will drop points allowing others to gain on them. Chelsea's ambitions of winning it are long gone and CL qualification is probably their main objective now. (as well as finishing above us and Arsenal) The CL campaign was absolutely abysmal, they were awful in the world super cup and they now face a very tough encounter in the COC away to swansea with a 2 goal deficit. However, Chelsea always seem to perform well in the FA cup, and for all the stick they seem to be getting I'd say they have a very strong chance of winning it. As I said, by chelsea's standards, it's not their best season and I can see Benitez being shown the door very soon. it's that easy escape route for RA again, especially if he feels that he's being made to look like a mug. Going back to your point about Terry, Hiag, it wouldn't surprise me if he ends up becoming player/manager and see's out the end of the season. I have only seen the goals from last night, but this was the report on my SSN app. "Two horrible Branislav Ivanovic errors gave Swansea a huge advantage in their capital one cup semi final with chelsea after a 2-0 first leg win at Stamford Bridge and put more pressure on Rafa Benitez. The Defender's failure to control a ball on the edge of his won penalty area gave michu the chance to open the scoring in the first half against the run of play. Chelsea who started fernando Torress instead of January signing Demba Ba, dominated but Danny Graham made it 2-0 in injury time when pouncing on Ivanovic's blind backpass. The European champions had a claim for a penalty which saw Ba booked for diving, immediately before Graham's goal in a dramatic conclusion to the game. But interim boss Benitez heard his team booed off at the final whistle and they must now overcome two away goals in the second leg. Chelsea fans spent a large chunk of the match booing benitez for his failure to bring on Ba, who scored twice on debut last weekend, and they also took umbrage with the interim boss' failure to bring on Frank Lampard until the 70th minute. The blues dominated the game, but lacked a killer touch up front and they paid the price in the 39th minute when Ivanovic's blunder gifted Michu the chance to score his 16th goal of the season. David Luiz, by far chelseas best player, went close with two efforts just after the break but the home teams fans continued to vent their anger at benitez for not introducing Ba or Lampard. One fan had to be restrained by stewards as he headed in the direction of the chelsea bench to demonstrate with the former Liverpool boss. Another Fan invaded the pitch to provide the Blues fans with some entertainment. The rest of the home crowd continued to demand Lampard's introduction but the calls fell on deaf ears. Lampard injected life into the chelsea team but torres continued to perform poorly. the striker found space on the edge of the box, but could only head weakly into gerhard tremmel's arms. Ba was sent on in place of Torres in the 81st minute minute and hurtled through in injury time, going down after Tremmel failed to collect the ball in the penalty area, but the referee did not give a penalty and instead booked the former Newcastle united man for diving. Chelsea's night then turned from bad to worse with one minute of added time left. Ivanovic's second terrible back pass allowed Graham to pinch the ball off Turnbull before slotting into an empty net while Ba's later disallowed effort for offside only added to the frustration With Fans reacting like that and the persistent booing of Benitez, surely RA will dispose of him?! It's a bloody circus.
It doesn't matter if Rafa gets the same treatment, those players are still gone, Rafa will still be gone at the end of the season. Rafa is the hatchet man. And then he will be axed himself I reckon. RA got the waiter in to clear the table
I was wondering what Martin Allen had to do with all this but "Mad Dog" is the Russian, right? I think Abramovich is heading the club towards a mess that can't be solved with money and I really hope I'm right, it's frustrating how he can throw big money at other problems until they're solved. Don't get me wrong, I think the money clubs have helped keep things competitive at the very top of the league but I hope Chelsea fall away for a few seasons and let clubs that really deserve their chance to compete at the top get a fair go.
I'm still surprised Chelsea are willing to let Lampard and more importantly Cole go. Lampard, at 34 still finds the net with ease and while he may not have the legs for the full 90 minutes of top flight footy on regular basis, to have on the bench/ rotate is a fantastic option. Cole is still playing like he's in his 20's, he bombs it down the wing quicker than most and so to see the stories that they're open to offers I find mad. Up until this season, I've rated Cole as the best in the world in his position, though I think Jordi Alba and Marcelo have now jumped above him. I think Terry will return to their line up once fit though, he's still got another year or two at least I think and I can't see him ever leaving Chelsea. As for Rafa, I'm surprised he seems so open to talk about the futures of players, I highly doubt he'll be there come next season regardless if he has a successful campaign.
To have got rid of the players in question when AVB was there would have been a struggle; They have since bought well and if the club buys right in this window, (a decent centre half and maybe another striker) they have the resources to consolidate 3rd and have a tilt at the cup. (Cole though, I am loathe to say remains the best LB in Europe and is pretty much irreplaceable.) Saying that,they also have Benitez as manager, and that is either very good or very bad, depending on what day it is. In the medium to long term, however, attracting their management target is going to be the thing that holds them back. Surely Guardiola will not be attracted to a job that will, in all likelihood, not last more than a couple of years?
lets also remember that Guardiola had the best players in the world playing for him. Gary Megson or AlexMcleish could have done a good job with that Barca side! what if he fails at Chelsea? who do they actually get in next, if RA decides to get rid of him too?
When HIAG doesn't like a manager, it comes down to a clown name. Even used it on our manager for a while, but he's relaxed a bit on that one.
This is nothing more or less than a commie purge, Stalin did it now RA is doing it with Chelsea Drogba aint in China, he's buried under RA's garage floor
Correct. It was a term that I coined for him, several months ago, and it seems to be catching. There's even a Chelsea lad who's using it as his Not606 name-tag.
Nah, I never called AVB "Coco" or any other clown-name. I did call him a clown, but that was only for persisting with a 1-5-4 system that simply has never really worked for us. Now that he has reverted us back to a good old 442, I see him far less of a clown. I'm even beginning to have some respect for him. Admitting ones mistakes is the first sign of a great man, and that augers well for AVB.
What I'm saying is that it's highly unlikely that he will go to Chelsea. The mad Russian would get rid of him if he doesn't repeat the form he showed at Barca within 2 years (probably less) with a huge payoff as per usual. Gaurdiola may have had the best players in the world playing for him, so have lots managers at one time or another, but they haven't been as successful at managing them as him. He has effectively written his own ticket and could go to any side he chooses. Why would he choose Chelsea with AR in control? Chelsea's long term future, surely, lays in putting in place a manager who is allowed to complete a medium to long term plan and build something there? Short-termism has been successful but can that go on much longer? I hope so, because if AR twigs this and puts the likes of Guardiola in place with a bullet-proof 5-year contract and huge financial backing, then all bets are off.
Man you can come across like a self important little fellow sometimes although I am sure it is a misconception on my part
