Chelsea FC: 8 Things André Villas-Boas Must Do to Keep Roman Abramovich Happy

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According to guardian.co.uk, Chelsea captain John Terry believes manager André Villas-Boas has already made a big impact at the club. 

Owner Roman Abramovich will be pleased to hear that, though he's already sacked five managers and Villas-Boas could be the sixth if he starts slowly. 

Here are eight things Villas-Boas must do to keep Abramovich happy and ultimately turn Chelsea into a winning club.    

Winning with Style

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In Carlo Ancelotti’s autobiography, Preferisco la Coppa, he revealed how Roman Abramovich voiced his displeasure with the way Chelsea played football under then-manager José Mourinho.

Ancelotti told Abramovich how physical Chelsea were, and that they needed more "quality" in the centre of the pitch. 

Yet Ancelotti then bought Ramires, a physical, hard working, blue-collar and Mourinho-esque midfielder for £17 million. 

Ironically towards the end of Ancelotti's tenure, Chelsea looked more and more like a Mourinho team.

André Villas-Boas has insisted his teams play to entertain and also win. 

This would be music to the ears of Abramovich, who'll be hoping Villas-Boas can bring trophies to Stamford Bridge.   

Give Fernando Torres a Chance to Shine

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André Villas-Boas has to show Roman Abramovich that he has given Fernando Torres a fair run in the team before deciding to relegate him to the bench. 

Abramovich has spent £50 million on Torres and doesn't want him to end up like Andriy Shevchenko, who was guaranteed to fail under José Mourinho.

For the record, Torres will never live up to his absurd transfer fee, and unless he scores at least a 0.75 goals-per-game pace for the rest of his Chelsea career, then he'll be a failure. 

If Torres continues his anemic and inefficient displays for Chelsea after an extended run as a starter, then it will give Villas-Boas a reason to bench El Niño permanently.  

Josh McEachran > John Obi Mikel

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Manchester United dodged a bullet when Chelsea poached John Obi Mikel away from them. Imagine them having both Mikel and Anderson on their books—talk about wasted potential. 

Mikel has been played in the wrong position; he was an attacking midfielder converted into a holding midfielder who can't defend nor consistently produce incisive passes.

Clubs disregarded André Villas-Boas's age and gave him a chance because of his potential, and he needs to show the same faith in Josh McEachran.

McEachran has looked excellent in preseason, and given Mikel's limited play, Villas-Boas must play McEachran over Mikel.  

Move Branislav Ivanović into the Centre and Play David Luiz at Right Back

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It flummoxes me as to how David Luiz was integral at centre back in a Benfica defence that conceded 20 goals in 30 games.

Yet so far, he's looked like a liability in defence for Chelsea, when someone like Branislav Ivanović would be a more sensible option in the centre.

Luiz is too inconsistent, too flamboyant and too easily sucked in for a risky tackle to become a top-notch centre back.

Why not play him at right back where he can exhibit his skills in a position which allows more flexibility when it comes to flair and attack?

As a centre back, Luiz cannot be losing the ball trying to charge out of attack like Martín Demichelis. 

Begin the Process of Cutting the Dead Wood

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OUT: Henrique Hilário, José Bosingwa, Paulo Ferreira, Alex, Yossi Benayoun, Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka 

All the aforementioned players should be moved on with seasons to come, especially with the likes of Hilário and Ferreira, who have been useless to Chelsea's cause. 

Why have a foreign third-choice goalkeeper, when you can have a young Englishmen learning the trade?

André Villas-Boas is a young man, and his outlook for Chelsea should be focused on youth. 

Rotate Youth Players into the Team

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Assuming André Villas-Boas decides to ease Josh McEachran into regular first-team football, then he must always play some meaningful minutes off the bench. 

Same applies to Daniel Sturridge and the enigmatic Lucas Piazón when he's available to play in January. 

The likes of Gaël Kakuta, Ryan Bertrand and Patrick van Aanholt should all be activly involved in the first team to give them experience and confidence so they'll be ready to be rotated in. 

This Chelsea squad is aging and it can't immediately change constantly, so Villas-Boas will have to rotate youngsters into the team. 

Buy Romelu Lukaku and Invest in Other Prodigiously Talented Youngsters

There's so much to like about Romelu Lukaku that the fact he's a Chelsea fan and dreams about being a Chelsea player is a dream come true for Chelsea.

The last thing Chelsea want is to buy an unhappy player who is forced to call Stamford Bridge home because his club needed money. 

Lukaku is a future FIFA Ballon d'Or winner. 

 

Other prospects Chelsea could buy

Alan Dzagoev: CSKA Moscow's 21-year-old Russian attacking midfielder, unlike Yuri Zhirkov, is a legit Russian player that will bring a smile to Roman Abramovich's face.

Georgi Schennikov: CSKA Moscow's 20-year-old Russian left back is a potential long-term replacement for Ashley Cole.

The only problem with the two Russian transfers is that surely there must be a gentlemen's agreement between Abramovich and CSKA Moscow, because why else haven't Chelsea tapped up two of Russia's best young talents?

Eden Hazard: Lille's 20-year-old Belgian midfielder can play as an attacking midfielder or on the wings, but he has excelled for Lille as a left-sided forward in their 4-3-3. 

 

Jack Rodwell: Everton's 20-year-old utility player would come as a premium, but he can be a box-to-box threat or be John Terry's long-term replacement. 

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: You know your club isn't friendly to youth when father of Southampton's 17-year-old English winger believes it's beneficial for his son to join a club like Arsenal.    

Avoid Signing Players Whose Contract Clauses Do Not Benefit Chelsea

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For a man who is a billionaire, Roman Abramovich sure enjoys getting ripped off in the footballing world.

Why did Chelsea allow Barcelona to insert a contract clause that allowed Barcelona to buy back Oriol Romeu?

Essentially if Chelsea develops Romeu into a world-class player, Barcelona could buy him back for just €10-15 million.

What's the point in Chelsea developing him then?

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