The Return of a Boas...

From the managerial wunderkid to a naive failure. The journey was swift for a young Andre Villas-Boas. A year ago, he was the most coveted man in European football; with all the big clubs showing interest, after that incredible treble with Porto. Yet the gasps were audible when a move to Stamford Bridge materialized. No one had ever paid 13 million pounds before to secure a manager. Not even Roman Abramovich or Sheikh Mansour.

Yet here he stands now, as the newly-named boss of Tottenham, just four months after the unceremonious sacking at Chelsea, where his tenure lasted merely 256 days. Yes, Andre Villas-Boas is back in English football. Perhaps not amidst so  much fanfare this time, but certainly with even more resolve to succeed. His decision to take the reigns at Spurs is indeed a bold one, considering many would've shied away from such a fast return after a nightmarish experience.

We have already been subjected to lots of discussions on whether he can succeed at White Hart Lane, or what are the issues he'll need to handle immediately; from serious tactical debates to amateurish "Get Modric to stay, Sign a big striker and everything will be rosy" types. Let's not get into all that again. Villas-Boas' rise on the footballing circuit has certainly been fascinating. Did he try to get big too fast? Should he have waited another year, like his predecessor Mourinho, before making the big move? The discussions have been endless. And yet, a man as shrewd as Levy chose to put his faith in him ahead of an experienced Englishman highly popular at Spurs. That should tell us something.

Villas-Boas certainly has an interesting persona, although the media didn't exactly do him justice. The confidence was soon labelled as "arrogance" once he took them head-on, and results started dwindling. He came to Chelsea with a clear vision for the future, but the actual implementation was far more difficult. The plan was to play the beautiful passing game, with an extremely high back-line to press heavily (Yeah, we have heard tons about that!). Trouble began when Chelsea's Old Guard struggled to adjust to the new system. You could say Villas-Boas's reaction wasn't exactly diplomatic. Even that could work at some of the clubs, but not at a club where player-power is so rampant.

A few would deny the young Portuguese is an astute tactician; in fact, some would say he's too much of that. His attention to details is immense, inherited from his days as the Opposition Scout. It's said that some of the Chelsea's players didn't take it too well, when AVB tried to dictate even their smallest movements. He was a workaholic, poring over massive amounts of technical data about his players. In the end he became so engrossed with damage-control work, that he'd even sleep at the Cobham training center. Despite having a family home in Chelsea Harbour. People could call him naive, arrogant and loads of other things; but no one could fault his burning desire to make things work at Chelsea.

Some say Villas-Boas was too obsessed with the tactical data, than his own players.

To make things clear, this writer is a die-hard Chelsea fan, so any urge to see as bitter rivals as Tottenham fail should be almost obligatory. One would think that desire would be even more intense against someone who went there from the Stamford Bridge itself. And yet, I just can't bring myself to not like the man, who was willing to sleep on the training grounds, just to make things right at Chelsea.

Some of Villas-Boas' mistakes were glaring. The insistence on high-line with ageing defenders was always highlighted. Although his signing of Gary Cahill showed he understood the issue. No one had better stats last season in catching opponents offside as the last man in defense than the English Centre-back. He wasn't helped by the troubles in Chelsea's striking department, despite the abundance of talent. His success at Porto was built majorly on two phenomenal forwards, Falcao and Hulk. The two scored an incredible 74 goals together in Porto's treble-winning heroics. At Chelsea, neither Drogba nor Torres hit the ground running. Suspensions suffered at crucial junctures didn't help the cause either.

And yet, perhaps the biggest mistake was isolating Nicolas Anelka and Alex, once they handed in transfer request. Maybe a decision too professional for players' liking. These were 2 experienced footballers who had won championships with Chelsea and had greatly successful careers; most of the team felt a strong bond with them that Villas-Boas didn't share. The public humiliation of taking away their first-team privileges didn't go down well with the rest of the team.

Ever since that, Villas-Boas must have known he was on borrowed time. Chelsea looked like a broken team, as if they didn't even want to play under him. The sacking was almost inevitable, but Roman Abramovich did blame his players for the poor performances. Villas-Boas didn't play the blame-games; he fought audaciously  till the inevitable end came. They say Spurs are taking a huge gamble by hiring him. Only time will tell us if it backfires. But for now, the man who once laid claims to title of the "Next Special One" is back in English Football. And the Premier League is going to get a lot more interesting.

The Burning Boats...

There's an awe-inspiring story of the famed explorer Hernando Cortez that I can never forget. He reached the shores of Mexico in 1519. Wanted to conquer the land for the Spanish empire. But the hurdles were too big. A  mighty empire of Aztecs as enemies, deadly diseases, and scarce resources in a totally foreign land. As he marched with his army for the battle, he sent one of his captains back to the shore with a single order, "Burn our Boats." I love that attitude.

When Chelsea's famous Old Guard marched on to the Stamford Bridge turf on Wednesday night, they perfectly knew what future awaited them. They knew that, their boats were burning, and that there was no way back. Fight for survival, or die in the war.Simple. And they delivered. Sometimes, it's better to be under pressure, rather than coasting through everything.

John Terry said before the game it could be one of their greatest nights, and spot on he was. This was a performance that defined what Chelsea are all about. Simply refusing to die, refusing to give up on their long cherished dream of conquering Europe. Chelsea's golden generation knew this would be their last chance, a final onslaught in their quest for the Holy Grail, that is the Champions League. And they fought heroically, for the whole of those astonishing 120 minutes. John Terry, Mr Chelsea as he most certainly is, would lead the way majestically, miraculously just 3 weeks after a surgery on what had looked like a serious knee injury. Didier Drogba, who turned 34 days ago, battled like a monster for the whole of two hours, never allowing a moment's peace to all 3 defenders who formed Napoli's rearguard.

Let's give Napoli the credit they are due, though, for making this tie a memorable one. Any Italian team would try to sit on the two-goal lead they brought from Naples. But then, Napoli hardly play like an old-fashioned Italian team. They aren't afraid of the giants, and rightfully so. Their "Holy Trinity" is one of the best forward-lines in Europe, bettered perhaps only by Messi and Co. Napoli are quite an exceptional team, they move at a breakneck speed, they make the game thrilling, without doubt they went down fighting.

Walter Mazzari was right with his philosophy, despite the defeat. They knew they could score in London, leaving Chelsea to score atleast three. What he would not have thought, was that Chelsea would be up for the challenge. This was the Chelsea radically different from the one that fell lamely in Naples. Fired up for the occasion, ever since Terry put them ahead on aggregate, you could sense there would be no stopping them. Gokhan Inler's brilliantly taken goal, even though easily the finest of the night, merely delayed the inevitable. Chelsea would not be beaten on the night. There was far too much determination in them to be knocked out.

These are the nights that make football fans' lives worth living for. These are the nights that make Football the "Beatiful Game" that it is. Every club has their own, and this one perhaps, was Chelsea's greatest. There's far too much work yet to be done, all the hullabaloo will count for nothing if Chelsea can't get their faltering season back on track at the end. But this was a night, that galvanized the club, which days ago, looked a broken unit. Stamford Bridge erupted like never before, and it's likely to keep roaring again. The writing on the wall is there for all to see. Chelsea's Golden Generation are out on their final assault. They might not be around for long now, but they're far from finished. Not by a long way.

Is this the start of a revival for the Men from the Bridge?

Bilbao’s supremacy or United’s frailties?

After a hiatus for more than 2 months, Football Freaks finally returns.. Akash Nair takes a look back at the hugely entertaining clash between Manchester United and Athletic Bilbao two days ago, as he praises the project Marcelo Bielsa has undertaken at the Basque club....

I will confess now and here that I am a fan of Marcelo Bielsa. This is not a consequence of Athletic Club de Bilbao’s triumph over my beloved United, but a gradual appreciation from the time I first saw him manage a side – Chile against Spain at the world cup, the only match where Spain was threatened.

Now coming to the original question – was it Bilbao’s supremacy or United’s frailties? The answer in my opinion is a combination of both.  Disagree? Agree? In any case read on !!

Athletic club de Bilbao and ‘Vertical Football’:

Believe it or not, Athletic club de Bilbao under Marcelo Bielsa is not your typical Spanish team, it’s an English team with technically good players. How many times do you see a muscular tall centre forward in a Spanish team? They don’t strut around with their tiki-taka and don’t obsess over possession of the ball. They follow a philosophy called "Vertical Football". Many of you may be familiar with it. There is tremendous importance attached to winning the ball high up the pitch (a tactic employed by Pep Guardiola and  AVB) and then launching quick attacks, either through the middle or with the help of galloping fullbacks who occupy the space left by the inverted wingers.

Bielsa’s start at Bilbao wasn’t a great one, but whose is? He has created a team which suits his tactical methodologies to the hilt. Nimble-footed young players with great stamina who never stop running. His training routines are arduous and revolutionary with a maddening attention to detail. Enough drooling over Bielsa and Bilbao! So what did they do when they played at old Trafford? Simple, they pressed hard....Really hard. Fernando Llorente closed down both Smalling and Evans with effective ease. At times, you could see Evans or Smalling high up the pitch. The reason was a single striker left one free defender who could move ahead with the ball. The same happened at the other end. But the problem for United was Hernandez and Rooney aren't habituated to the pressing game Bilbao play. Rooney drops deep and hence his marker is usually the CDM of the opposing team, whereas Hernandez sometimes just can't keep himself outside the offside zone, let alone pressurizing defenders (oh Tevez .. I remember thou!). Welbeck would have been a better choice since he had done the closing down job well at Anfield and in many other games this season.

This left a Centre-back free and on top of that, Rooney’s tracking back was pathetic in the first half, which left their deep-lying midfielder free to roam ahead into the United half. Bilbao kept it simple, played at high tempo, didn’t give United centre-backs and midfielders any time on the ball and United quite evidently struggled. Bilbao’s system though, has certain chinks in the armor. All it needs to exploit Bilbao is a midfielder who is adept at dribbling (Modric), leave one or two of their players in the lurch and find vast amounts of space behind their defenders and a pacey striker to latch onto them.  Unfortunately in Giggs and Jones, we didn't have a specialist midfield pairing and their positional naivety was exposed very badly.

Do United miss a certain Portuguese?

Okay. Most of you know Manchester United’s midfield conundrum like multiplication tables. What I would like to focus is the change affected by the introduction of Carrick and Anderson in midfield. Anderson's energy helped us launch 3 counter attacks while Carrick's passing range nullified Bilbao’s pressing threat. Those counters were expertly bottled by Chicharito who should have scored at least one.

SAF favors the 4-5-1 or 4-4-2 . the problem with a midfield two is that when you play against a midfield 3,  you are outnumbered. Add to that, 3 young ones hunting you down like a pack of wolves .. you are in for a nightmare. United’s midfield 2 consists of a runner and a passer. At present united have 2 passers (Carrick, Scholes) while our runners are absent ( Cleverly, Anderson, Fletcher ). One of the best examples  of a perfect 2 is Modric(passer) and Parker(runner). So now you know the present predicament at Manchester United.

Coming to title of this section. The Portuguese we are missing badly as most have guessed is not Cristiano Ronaldo, but the mercurial Carlos Queiroz. SAF, I will have to concede was never tactically brilliant in Europe. We have many occasions that this has come to the fore .. most notably the 2 finals against Barcelona ,  semifinal against Milan and matches against Real Madrid. Ferguson, combined with the tactical acumen of Queiroz then adopted a shape which loosely resembled that of Juventus of Marcelo Lippi. With Scholes playing as the regista(deep lying playmaker .. like Pirlo) with a midfield destroyer along with him (Hargreaves). Sadly we don’t have such players around and nor do we have Carlos Queiroz around.

What United need to do is play a 3 in Europe till we get the perfect combination, but again we rarely adopt such a shape in the league. We did play a midfield 3 against Bayern in quarters, but that is the only match which lingers in recent memory.

Concluding my piece, it would be interesting to see what Ferguson does at St. James' next week. With an away trip to Wolves looming, I don’t see him playing a strong side. I wouldn't want us to compromise the league in any case. Manchester United are in a transitional period. The sooner we come out of it, the better for us. As for Athletic club de Bilbao, I hope Biesla holds onto his stars. The legendary club’s rise will do a world of good to the Spanish league and Europe in general.  

Catalonia Log: The Fabregas Effect

Enough has already been written on the el classico that took place last week. We all talked about Messi's brilliance again, along with Ronaldo's flop show and Jose's failed bid to open up a massive lead at the top of the La Liga. Barcelona were supposedly looking weaker this season, and it was said Madrid were ready to finally overthrow their reign. So after the the game, Barca fans did take their chances to boast their superiority again, but puzzlingly, there have been too few discussions about the radical change in Barca's tactics this season.

People talked about Barcelona not looking as great as they have been last three seasons at the start of the campaign. But, the changes that Pep Guardiola has implemented are finally showing their fruit. People have just talked in awe about the 3-defenders system Pep utilised, but there's a lot of tactical thinking behind it.Yes, Lionel Messi continues to dazzle the world with his trickery and inhuman goal-scoring rate. But, one of the biggest factors for the La Blagurana has been the return of their prodigal son.

The Front-Three :
Even with Messi playing in the "False 9" role since Ibrahimovic's departure, Barcelona's front three have been a bit rigid. Messi would drop deep for the possession at times, but Pedro and David Villa always played from the flanks, trying to cut inside. But, with now Cesc Fabregas, naturally an attacking mid-fielder, introduced in that trio, there's suddenly a lot more flexibility. Well, or even more than that was pre-existing!

Messi roams anywhere with the ball, allowing Fabregas to make the forays forward

As you can see, with Fabregas willing to play between the lines, rather than either a conventional forward or midfielder, Messi can now roam literally anywhere on the field again. People had talked a lot about Dani Alves just not being able to defend. So, Pep decided to do the clever thing. He just relieved him of his defensive duties, offering him a much more advanced role. This allows Messi and Fabregas to keep changing their positions all the time, causing all kinds of havoc. And this has clearly been seen in both players' stats. While people have long stopped feeling any more surprised about Messi's monstrous goal-scoring record, the former Gunners captain's haul of 10 goals already, does show his immense importance to that system.

Even though Barcelona brought Cesc home more for his creative skills, you wonder Guardiola had this role planned for him all along. Of course, that doesn't mean he's stopped creating chances the way he did at Arsenal. Often he drops deep into the centre of the park, picking out his trademark through-balls, allowing Dani Alves to almost operate as an advanced winger.

Barcelona Set-up with Fabregas in deep-lying role

One of the biggest tactical master-stroke from Guardiola though, was turning Mascherano into a ball-playing defender in the absence of Pique. It was the biggest change, that allowed Barcelona to ease into this system. It took them a bit of time to get accustomed to it, the draw Bilbao and defeat to Getafe stand as proof. But it's commendable how quickly Pep's team have passed through this transition. The difference seems so much starker, when compared to the current re-building attempts at Manchester United and Chelsea.

"At the height of success, 'break' your business", said the former Motorola CEO, Ed Zander. Find any similarities? Barcelona have been on top of the footballing world now for 3 years. And yet, Pep has innovated relentlessly, always bringing out something new and even more beautiful. We often talk about the astute tactical game-plans by Fergusons and Mourinhos, indirectly assuming Barca's magical play is just because of their superstars. Yet, some of the most fantastic innovations in recent times have come from the former Barcelona Number 4. Playing Messi in the "False 9" role after the departures of Eto'o and Ibrahimovic, using David Villa on the left-flank to cut inside, and now this nearly un-'man-markable' system.

Let Real Madrid fans say they don't care about about losing to Barcelona as long as they win the league.They still lead the table despite that that classico defeat. But deep inside, they will know that, for them to succeed, the mighty Catalans must be beaten. Jose Mourinho will be desperate for that. He has beaten them with Chelsea and Inter already. But, Barcelona still stand pretty on top of the tree. He knows himself, that to end the catalan reign, he must build one of the greatest club-teams, one that can go close to the might of the legendary Real Madrid of 50s and 60s. His track record and determination suggests he might achieve that one day. But for all the current attempts from the club from the Capital, the team from Catalonia still hold the advantage.

10 Best Summer Transfers: 2011

With nearly a one-third of the season gone, one would think it's about time to see how the new summer recruits are faring at their new clubs. There have been many of them, as usual, some expensive flops, some bargain deals, and they have probably had time to settle down. Here's a look back.

10. Javier Pastore (Palermo to PSG, 43m Euros)
Even Chelsea and Manchester City balked at the price tag. But, PSG's new Qatari owners chose him as the poster-boy for their revolution. And Pastore hasn't disappointed. PSG currently sit 2nd in the French League, ahead of the likes of Lyon and Marseille, and Pastore has contributed with 6 goals and 4 assists in all competitions already.  Still only 22, the lanky Argentine can certainly develop into one of the best attacking midfielders.


9. Michel Vorm ( FC Utrecht to Swansea City, 1.5m Pounds)

Michel Vorm has been outstanding in goal for Swansea this season...
                                                           Picture Courtsey: Vincent Teeuwen

Who would've predicted that a Dutch goalkeeper joining Swansea would feature in such lists, when there were deals for the likes of Aguero, Mata, Nasri and Fabregas? But, Michel Vorm has been nothing short of sensational for the Swans this season. He has the highest number of clean sheets so far in a league, where Reina, Hart and Cech also ply their trade. Swansea are the joint lowest scorers in the league, and arguably, Vorm is the only reason they're still comfortably out of relegation places. What more you can get for 1.5 million Pounds?

8. Manuel Neuer (Schalke 04 to Bayern Munich, 22m Euros)

One of the best goalkeepers in the world, possibly the best, he still faced hostilities from a few Bayern fans for being a former Schalke player. But his performances have done more than enough to erase all that. Right at the start of his Bayern career, Neuer broke the Bayern Munich record for most competitive clean sheets in a row, having gone 1000 minutes without conceding a goal. That's pretty impressive, even for someone Bayern have chosen to succeed the legendary Oliver Kahn.


7. Arturo Vidal ( Bayer Leverkusen to Juventus, 12.5m Euros)

Not the most attractive among Juve's summer signings, but possibly the most solid one. Vidal joined the Bianconeris after an impressive season with Bayer Leverkusen in which they finished 2nd in the league, and an excellent Copa America. He has been fairly impressive so far for Juve, forging a good partnership with Pirlo and Marchisio. Essentially a defensive midfielder, the Chilean is also capable of playing in a box-to-box role, and he already looks an integral part of Antonio Conte's new look Old Lady.


6. Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid to Manchester City, 35m Pounds)

To be honest, I haven't been that impressed with him, although the sheer number of goals he has scored forces his inclusion here. 12 goals this season already, 10 of them in the league, but let's not forget 5 of them have come in 2 home games against Swansea and Wigan. We would have earlier expected even more from a 35-million-pounds signing. But all of us seemed to have lowered the expectations a bit, after the January deals for Torres and Carroll. While David Silva has had a lion's share in City's magnificent start to this campaign, aged only 23, Aguero has loads of time to turn into one of the most lethal forwards of the game.


5. Santi Cazorla ( Villareal to Malaga, 21m Euros)

One of the biggest coup Malaga's new owners managed. Technically sound, Cazorla is a versatile winger who can play on both flanks. With 4 goals and 2 assists, he's currently Malaga's best goal-scorer and assist-provider this season. It's pretty clear that this guy will havbe to carry Malaga's lofty ambitions on his shoulders this season, if they are to upstage Villareal and surprise-package Levante for Champions League qualification.


4. Juan Mata ( Valencia to Chelsea, 22m Pounds)

In a Chelsea team that has looked stale and clue-less at times, Mata has been the lone shining light. In fact, with most other big names under-performing, you'd have to wonder where would Chelsea be, if they hadn't secured the creative talent of Mata. The diminutive Spaniard already has 4 goals and 6 assists so far, and his instant settling-down in EPL suggests he's well on his way to turning into one of the best play-makers of the current generation.


3. Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal to Barcelona, 34m Euros)

Cesc Fabgrgas: No more a Gunner....
                                                                     Picture Courtsey: Wonker

It was one of the longest drawn transfer sagas in recent times, and it finally ended this summer. Fabregas finally got the move back to his parent club Barcelona, and if there were doubts about him not having a place in the already star-studded line-up, he has quickly removed all of them. Already having accumulated 7 goals and 6 assists this season, Cesc has quickly established himself in Barcelona's already mighty line-up. With the La Blagurana not exactly performing to their dazzling best currently, the return of theier Prodigal Son might just prove to be a vital move.


2. Phil Jones (Blackburn to Manchester United, 16.5m Pounds)

He's just 19, he's already a regular into the Manchester United starting-11, and is already being touted as the future England captain. That should tell you something about him. A brilliant defender, Jones is well capable of bullying people of the ball, and can driver forward with equal ease from the back. In fact, I'm surprised he's yet to score a goal (at the right end, that is!) for Red Devils, seeing his boundless energy on the field. If someone threatens Rio Ferdiand's place in defense at the age of 19, you just know he's destined for big things.

1. Scott Parker (West Ham United to Tottenham, 6m Pounds)

Scoring goals hasn't been an issue for Spurs under Harry Redknapp, with the abundance of attacking talent at their disposal. The problem was always the cheap goals leaked at vital times. Enter Scott Parker, and Spurs are suddenly looking a transformed unit. It's surely not a co-incidence that Spurs haven't lost a league game since his arrival, winning 7 out of the 8 games he has played. Having been named PFA Player of the Year last season, Parker has continued his majestic form in the holding-midfielder's role. Not just a great tackler, he easily controls the tempo of the game, leaving the likes of Van der Vaart and Bale to bomb forward fearlessly. And then, how many have managed to overpower Spain's magical midfield, even in a friendly?

AVB: The Fledgling Genius?

The last time Chelsea lost back-to-back home games was in 2002. Roman Abramovich hadn't yet appeared on the horizon, and many Chelsea fans would've been content to see their team 5th in the league table. But defeats against Arsenal and Liverpool now, and suddenly there appears to be a full-blown crisis at Stamford Bridge. The Blues currently lie fifth in the league table, and even the very thought of finishing outside the Champions League places is a nightmare for the Chelsea faithful.

It all appeared to be so promising at the start. A dashing new manager, who cost a world-record transfer fee. Andre Villas-Boas promised to bring the revolution that Chelsea fans have been waiting so long, ever since the Blues' infamous collapse at the Bridge versus Sunderland. So, what has suddenly gone wrong? While it's outright rubbish on some fans' part to demand AVB's sacking, what is it exactly that's ailing Chelsea right now?

The Lampard-Drogba-Malouda Conundrum:

Chelsea's Golden Generation seems to be on the way down...
Picture Courtsey: Audrey Pilato

Frank Lampard went on a scoring spree recently, and suddenly it was all about shutting the critics up. Yes, he has been sparkling at times, but why we keep forgetting that He's 33 now. Isn't it simply too much to expect him to play every single game, and still be on top of it? Just have a look at Manchester United. Ryan Giggs does have legendary status there, like Lampard has at Chelsea. But does Ferguson give him starts day-in-day-out simply because he was brilliant in one game? It's imperative for Chelsea to realise Lampard and Drogba will have to be used sparingly, even when in form. Taking the risk of stating the obvious, Drogba is a pale shadow of the monster, that could bully the World's best defenders into submission.
But for me, the biggest disappointment is Florent Malouda. The Frenchman was Chelsea's most inspirational player couple of seasons ago, when Chelsea stormed to the Double (And I say it, despite the bucket-load of goals Drogba and Lampard scored that season! ) But this season, he's simply looked...terrible. Too selfish on the ball at times, no more the clever reader of the game, add that dreadful back-pass against Arsenal, Florent Malouda should simply play no part in AVB's attempted revolution.

The Makelele Void:

Very few may have noticed it, but Chelsea have hardly been the impregnable defensive unit they once were, ever since Claude Makelele left the club. The French destroyer was not just the ever-present shield in front of Chelsea's back-line, but he also quickly released the ball to his attackers, never allowing the opposition to close down the spaces and pressurize. Essien did a commendable job at that position, but his fitness is always an issue.John Obi Mikel does try his best in that role, but so far, he hasn't simply been good enough.
If AVB wants Chelsea to play a fast-passing game, Mikel is always going to be a liability. He's a good passer of the ball, agreed.But, he's too slow to make the passes, to get the ball out of the defense and to the pacey frontmen. It was precisely this reason that Liverpool got their first goal this Sunday. Would Oriol Romeu, a player brought up in Barcelona's tiki-taka style take that much time on the ball? Never. And if he's considered too young to handle the pressure, there's always Raul Meireles who is an excellent passer of the ball.
Of course, it's not just Mikel's fault. He was more of an advanced midfielder before coming to Chelsea, having been touted as one of the most exciting young prospects in 2005 FIFA World Youth Championships.  Even now, he does produce some great long balls out of nowhere, but that's a rarity because of his deep-lying role. When he arrived at Chelsea, Claude Makelele was on the wane, and Mikel was a strong,physical guy. So, Jose Mourinho added one and one as two, and started grooming Mikel as Makelele's successor. As it's clear, it hasn't worked out. Carlo Ancelotti talked about using Mikel as a deep-lying play-maker. But, it never materialized. Sadly now, he simply doesn't fit into AVB's system any more. Chelsea need a player who can move the ball quickly from deep, otherwise the opposition can close down the spaces, put the pressure and force mistakes. We all saw a live example last Sunday.

The High-defensive Line:

The problems Chelsea's high defensive line faces: Long balls across the defense

Okay, loads of stuff has been said about this already. I won't bore you with more. It's just that, the fault doesn't lie just with the system, but also with the personnel. Chelsea could've pulled it off, if John Terry was 26 instead of 31, and he had a reliable defensive partner like Ricardo Carvalho. This Chelsea team lacks on both counts. Luiz is many things as a footballer, but reliable is not one of them. In fact, it's the spontaneity in his game, that makes him special. Ivanovic has been Chelsea's most reliable defender so far, either at Right-back or at Centre-back. The problem is, he can only play in one position at a time. John Terry is still a terrific defender, but he doesn't have the same pace to match the pacey runs off his shoulder anymore. And that's the exact reason Chelsea's high defensive-line is on a break-point, every time there's a long ball across the defence.

Same Old-Same Old Story:

There were talks about revitalising the current Chelsea squad with dazzling new talents. We all got excited as Sturridge started banging in goals, and some of the hottest young prospects were arriving at Chelsea. Three months into the season, and what's the reality? England's supposed new superstar, Josh McEachran is yet to start a league game, so are Oriol Romeu and Romelu Lukaku. Sturridge may have established himself in the team, but too much tinkering with forwards isn't helping much. Villas Boas needs to make his picks now. For all the great things he has done for Chelsea, Didier Drogba can no more carry them on his shoulders week-in week-out. Sturridge and Lukaku are the future of the team.And for all the ridicule he has received, Fernando Torres is the present of Chelsea Football Club. Chelsea need to build around him, there's no point playing him with Malouda and Anelka, and expect him to score tons of goals without any service. AVB knows it very well. But he simply has no one apart from Mata, who can play the creative role. Signing Jovetic or De Bruyne in January may not be a bad idea at all.

It has to remembered that there's massive re-building work to be done at Chelsea. There was only one great Chelsea team built in the Abramovich era, by Jose Mourinho. It was just patched up at times by different managers, but the core remained the same. Even Hiddink, if ever to be called again, would do some more patching-up to coax a bit more out of the team. But make no mistakes, unless Chelsea can somehow lure the master re-builder Sir Alex Ferguson, Andre Villas Boas is their best hope for a revolution!

Those Mundane Weekends...

What was the last time we watched a Premier League game, then? Scratch your heads, go deep in your memory, refer the history books, and we might just get a clue. There have been countless moments in-between, when I sat on a sofa, just gazing at the ceiling haplessly on a Saturday evening of all times in a week. It's been happening quite frequently these days though, thanks to these so-called international commitments. Why do they happen in first place, I wonder? Only so that the reigning World Champions can get a break form the fiercely contested domestic tournaments, and have a nice walk in the park?  That's what they did last Saturday anyways vs England! The English may bang their drums as much they want about a "Triumph over the World Champions", but really, How much did the game matter to Spain? Taking off Xavi, David Silva and Iker Casillas at half-time when the game is at 0-0, that tells you something about it.

Picture Courtsey (David Dixon) / CC BY-SA 2.0

Okay, Chelsea fans must have felt nice to see Lampard leading his team to victory over the World Champions, and the Manchester United guys will have taken their chances to boast about Jones' versatility too, not to mention Suarez's 4-goal heroics. But honestly, wouldn't we all have preferred to rather watch Tottenham versus Aston Villa a week earlier? Would have made a better sight than watching Gareth Barry captain England at the final whistle, anyways.

But like all good things in life, after a long period of never-ending suffering, the European club action resumes tonight, and there are some seriously big fights to witness. But the biggest battle is likely to be between Liverpool's ability to hit the goal-posts rather than the net, and Chelsea's allergy at keeping a clean-sheet. Of course, a Chelsea own-goal is an option that can help both teams preserve their principles this season. Branislav Ivanovic nearly did that out of humanity for Blackburn, but that of course, was ages ago, if  you are able to recall. I know I'm wandering into nowhere now, but you'll surely excuse that from someone deprived of proper football for 2 whole weeks!

While we're at it, Luis Suarez was formally charged by FA for racism against Patrice Evra. What surprised me is no one has even suggested so far about banning him from the national team, or locking him up in jail, or condemning him at least. No comments on his being guilty or not guilty, but I do recall the outcry when similar accusations were hurled at... well, you-know-who. Half the media had already branded his reputation as "tarnished forever and irreparable". So much for the thought of "Innocent till Proven Guilty"!

Anyways, let these things not dampen our spirits. It's been a long time, and these are the moments, when we feel delighted even at the pretty sight of Gervinho, simply because he's in an Arsenal shirt. So get ready for action again, but all the while, don't underestimate these mundane weekends either. They are the ones which show us, why even a Bolton vs Stoke football match is counted as  the "Beautiful Game".