Bleacher Report - Articles by jack walton

Forget Roman, Chelsea Should Go for Alexandre the Great

jack walton — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:27:53 -0500

Having read more rumours today surrounding Chelsea's endless striker hunt, I felt the need to throw my own candidate into the hat. For those of you who haven't heard, there is word that Chelsea may be interested in signing Spurs' frontman Roman Pavlyuchenko this summer.

This is probably just angry North Londoners further smarting from Sunday's Carling Cup demise, and merely attaching Chelsea's interim boss Guus Hiddink with the forward due to their Russian international connection.

Nonetheless, I thought it wise to cast a Blue opinion on the latest link.

Chelsea has been tarred this season by a rather ageist brush. It's true that the squad primarily consists of a rather creaking spine of Ballack, Lampard, Carvalho, Terry, and others. But what Sir Alex Feguson et al have neglected is that the substitutes dugout at Stamford bridge has had a fountain of youth plumbed in this season—introducing virtual newborns like Franco Di Santo, Miroslav Stoch, Michael Mancienne, and Gael Kakuta.

Surely this would indicate an aim towards a younger team in the future, and rule out signing a 27-year-old utility striker?

The idea that Chelsea are interested in obtaining Pavlyunchenko would inevitably reignite the rumour that the club expect Didier Drogba to not be wearing Royal Blue in August. The choice destination for Drogba would almost certainly be Milan (Inter if Mourinho sticks around, AC if they fail to lure Adebayor).

If AC manage to bag Drogba, then surely that would cast pessimism upon their new boy Alexandre Pato regarding any chance of a starting berth in the team. In this case, Chelsea should jump at the opportunity of snatching the young Brazilian international.

But then again, this is a biased opinion, as I have been following Pato for a year now with great admiration.

For a relatively small striker, Pato is a real handful. He has pace, power, confidence on the ball, good feet, and is very capable in front of goal with any chance that comes his way. He has more than impressed in his first full season at the San Siro.

For Chelsea fans in need of a comparison, he's everything Anelka could have been, with a bit of drive.

It's worth adding that AC Milan is not a dead-cert to reclaim Champions League football for next year, having sunk into a four-way dogfight for the two remaining Serie A places. Perhaps Pato, who has scored 12 times so far this campaign, will have no choice but to ditch his friend Kaka in floundering Milan, and move to the more fashionable Kings Road.

Speaking of Kaka, if Man City can come that close to signing the lovechild of the Rossonieri, Chelsea would have more than a chance should they land Pato in the summer.

As the title suggests, I have forgotten about Roman Pavlyuchenko. The debate just does not add up; Pavlyuchenko—a proven Premiership failure from one of Chelsea's arch rivals—versus a proven goalscorer in Pato, with years of improvement ahead of him.

Scolari Cut: Who's Next in the Fold?

jack walton — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 17:21:16 -0500

While the sporting world reels from a 'shock' Chelsea coaching exit, it must be said that the general consensus among the club's fans has been one of indifference towards the decision to sack Luis Felipe Scolari.

As commented by this reporter upon his arrival, Scolari came into the English game as an unpredictable commodity. With splashes of effective tactics on the pitch and flashes of fisticuffs off it, the Premier league did not know what to expect.

All of this changed, however. Once the results began to form a rather ugly recurring pattern, the outcome became far from uncertain. Blame will supposedly be squared at his apparent inability to motivate world class players and extract wins when expected.

Others will argue that Scolari's departure is symptomatic of deeper problems at Stamford Bridge. With a dwindling transfer budget, a squad packed with out of form talismen and a serious lack of tolerance or direction throughout club ranks, it is no wonder the supporters are frustrated at yet another false dawn. During the bitterly cold stalemate against Hull, fans howled 'you don't know what you're doing'. This would have also given Roman Abramovic and Peter Kenyon a rather resonant chill down their spines.

So who will follow the 'Brazil Nut'? In this writer's opinion, all bets are off. CV's stuffed with World Cup victories do not seem to assure Chelsea success on the pitch.

The real question emerging is whether managing Chelsea is appealing enough anymore to offset the career risk. Take Messrs Grant, Ten Cate and Ranieri. Their notoriety has undoubtedly been boosted despite being jilted by the Blues. But the pressure to achieve what Wenger, Ferguson (and more importantly Benitez) have without time, money or faith from the fans teeters on inhuman. Is the task unreasonable? Will Chelsea ever find anyone to rekindle the fire? Where is the spark?

In the meantime, any Chelsea fans in need of advice on how to follow a big club in the eternal throws of revolution can simply ask the nearest Newcastle supporter.

How Many Referees Does it Take to Change a Game? Time for an Official Review

jack walton — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 07:14:42 -0500

Fads in Football are an unavoidable phenomenon.

Whether its the size of a player's shorts or diamond formations with holding midfielders, there will always be a new idea in football that bounds into the sport, only to fizzle out with a whimper. Its normally discarded as harmless restyling of an already "beautiful game."

But this all changes when officiating comes under the spotlight; punters up and down the country are famous for reacting strongly to notions of rule changes (and rightly so). So what exactly is on the cards for refereeing?

With the successful introduction of technology into sports such as Rugby, Cricket and Tennis, why are football fans so sure that their national past time is doomed whenever progress is mentioned?

Cricket is the prime example of a traditional English sport willing to strive for consistency. First there were video replays, then came Hawkeye, Snikometer and Hot-spot technology. Now, on the eve of England's Tour of the West Indies we can celebrate the beginning of "Challenges" in Test Cricket. A welcome change in this reporter's eyes.

The concept of contesting the powers that be has already been tried and tested in Tennis (despite Roger Federer's disapproval) and more famously in American Football. The system involves each team being endowed a handful of "challenges" whereby they are entitled to have a third party re-review an incident.

This year's Super Bowl featured a touchdown being rescinded as a result of such a challenge, meaning that vindication was swift, the decision was clear and no team could argue being robbed. More importantly, no-one mentioned the word "bias" when 50-50 incidents occurred. In fact the game's officiating was only criticised because there were not enough challenges available to remove human error entirely.

Which brings up the term "indisputable evidence." This has long been available to officials across sport thanks mostly to multi-angled television replays. Only Football referees choose not to acknowledge it during the game, preferring instead to absorb huge amounts of criticism from the viewing public.

Take Frank Lampard's red card on Sunday. This, in hindsight, was not a red card. Had the Chelsea Managing staff had a challenge in their arsenal, the game would not have been decided thirty or so minutes before full time.

It is important to limit these challenges to a minimum, though, to avoid spoiling the sacred flow of the game (which appears to be a stumbling block for most innovation in football refereeing). One incorrect challenge could be given to managers in each game (thus limiting the possibility of tactical usage).

A quick nod to a video replay would take about two minutes, which would normally be wasted diffusing crowds of squabbling players. It would also put some weight back behind the phrase "may the best team win."

But are the supporters ready to change? Is that the real sticking point where progress is concerned? No doubt the importance placed on games has now reached a tipping point, or else change would not be at the forefront of footballing conversation. Surely challenges wouldn't affect the game as much as the offside rule did.

In the meantime let the cricket, the tennis, the rugby, athletics, and American football do the talking.

Chelsea Need to Learn Who's Boss

jack walton — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:29:19 -0500

Since the departure of Jose Mourinho back in 2007, Chelsea have been searching for guidance in all the wrong places.

After coming to grips with the likelihood that they would never experience such managerial chemistry again in their careers, many of the players at Chelsea became despondent. Mourinho's immediate successor Avram Grant was greeted by a knee jerk reaction from players like John Terry and Frank Lampard in response to the ousting of their coach and friend. This came into public view after training ground bust ups with coaching staff and rumours of transfer requests out of the club.

But something turned Chelsea's season around at the start of 2008. Many believe this was due to Grant being a worthy coach who put Chelsea's megastars in their place (a role neglected by Mourinho in favour of an empathetic father-figure). This reporter believes this was not the case, however, as is being proved by the unfolding events in 2009.

But if Grant wasn't responsible for rescuing Chelsea's season, who was?

The Players.

John Terry has admitted in recent months that the players themselves were the main motivational force that season, and Terry in particular took on the role of keeping the players together in the wake of Mourinho's exit from Stamford Bridge. And this clearly worked for the club, reaching the Champions League final, and a close second place in the Premier League.

But this dynamic had to change when the club employed Luis Filipe Scolari. Having previously forged teams of unique players like Ronaldinho, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kaka, Scolari was the obvious choice for a club in need of taming some large personalities.

However, this has not come about straight away. At the beginning of Scolari's reign, a highly motivated (and still somewhat scorned) Chelsea romped to a commanding position in all competitions. But once Terry and others were forced out through injury, the manager was required to maintain those levels of performance. This is proving difficult for Scolari, who is effectively being handed the reins by the players now that a real manager is desperately needed.

The first port of call for the big Brazilian will be the task of picking a first eleven. This means cutting a central midfielder from the team sheet, and also either Drogba or Anelka. Scolari has already hinted in the papers that Anelka has got the nod over his Ivorian counterpart.

The second job will be putting the players in their place. With a definite starting XI comes an inevitable hierarchy within the squad. This is not a bad thing, as it creates more competition for breaking into the team. Bickering tends to only ensue when an unjust selection is made, and no Chelsea player can argue with being dropped after their current performances.

But will this supposed abdication of power from the players to the manager work straight away?

Needless to say the coming few weeks in West London are set to be fascinating.

The Chelsea Transfer Policy: As It Should Be

jack walton — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 01:02:25 -0500

Right. Its January, and that means it's time to do what all Chelsea fans love. Talk about buying and selling players.

I thought I'd go for an upbeat look at the transfer window, and suggest a few ins/outs that would make me smile, personally.

1. Malouda Out

This one has been sounded out among many of us last year at Chelsea. Stamford Bridge over the last few years hasn't been the most understanding of homes for players who take more than a season to show us why we bought them (and rightfully so). And after over a year and a half of dwindling expectations, patience among the fans has worn a little thin. But who would replace him?

2. Drenthe In

I saw this kid in the Euro under 21s just before he became a Chelsea target. Its quite funny that Liverpool bought Ryan Babel shortly after seeing him excel in the competition, when in fact it was Drenthe who deserved more of the plaudits for Holland winning the tournament.

The word assist springs to mind with young Roysten (at least more than with Malouda). I certainly believe that any sniff of him becoming available should be looked into, because I reckon Real Madrid got a bargain for the future (despite hints of "robbenitis" kicking in to his personality!)

3. Arshavin In

Just copy and paste what i said about Drenthe, and replace the word "Babel" with "Pavlyuchenko".

4. Deco Out

As a self-confessed fan of the Blues, don't disregard this as a stereotypical fickle viewpoint. Its not that he's lost his form, but instead i think he's just surplus to requirement. Once Essien, Ballack, Mikel, and Lampard are available, what can Deco offer? Its a question of who would have to warm the bench for him to play.

His arrival has also lead to a real upset in the squad's balance. There is no longer a first eleven that picks itself. For the sake of parity, the little genius should let Lampard get on with his job.

5. Lennon In

Scolari pointed out that Chelsea lack a dribbler (overlooking Joe Cole). This is true, and I agree that Robben could've been as potent in England as Ronaldo has been, if it hadn't been for him being stricken with early onset "Diarra syndrome". But its time to look forward.

Although it would be a gamble to bring in another SWP, I do truly believe that this boy has an actual end product once he reaches the by-line. And to be honest I'd be more than happy to spend the Wayne Bridge money if Lennon went on to shine in West London—especially as it would finally inflict on Spurs what they did to us with Jimmy Greaves.

So there you have it—another fan's take on the turmoil at the Bridge

Let me know what you think regarding additions to this list.