Chelsea FC: Does Jose Mourinho Have New Drogba, Lampard Duo in Costa, Fabregas?
A popular misquote from George Santayana's Reason in Common Sense reads: "Those who fail to learn history are doomed to repeat it." Though a faulty translation, the sentence still possesses heady logic.
Suppose, however, one knows history but is willing to reapply for mirrored treatment: Perhaps Jose Mourinho could lend his usually adept silver tongue to past-and-present proceedings in SW6.
Having managed against Olympique de Marseille (l'OM) in the 2003/04 UEFA Champions League group stage, the then-FC Porto boss discovered Ivorian forward Didier Drogba.
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The powerhouse striker was utterly dominant with l'OM—scoring 32 goals in 55 games in his lone season at the Stade Velodrome—en route to winning Ligue 1's 2003/04 Player of the Year award.
Appointed manager of Roman Abramovich's endlessly funded west London side in the summer of 2004, Mourinho's first port of call was capturing the striker he thought would bring Chelsea instance success.
He settled on £24 million-man Drogba.
Three Premier League crowns, four FA Cups successes, two League Cup triumphs and one Champions League winner's medal later—the Portuguese manager was resoundingly correct in his estimation of the now-Blues legend.
This synopsis would make Drogba's prime run in Chelsea blue seem rather omnipotent, as if the African "No. 9" was pillaging through Premier League defences unassisted, unaided: Not quite. Rarely playing with a strike partner, many of Drogba's interactions were dictated by arguably the greatest midfielder in Premier League history, one Frank Lampard.
Bought from West Ham United in 2001, the Englishman waited three seasons for his partner in crime. Both aged 26 at the start of the 2004/05 campaign, Drogba and Lampard, over the next eight seasons—under a plethora of managers—established one of the more lethal tandems in English football.
Flashforward and Drogba, maintaining his west London status, may now be in the presence of a similar duo, but one in which he plays no part.
Returning to Chelsea after six years, Mourinho needed once again to find his striker. Using Fernando Torres, Demba Ba and Samuel Eto'o in 2013/14, the Portuguese found the installed firepower inadequate and resorted to old tricks.
Diego Costa, as Drogba did a decade previous, terrorised his domestic league. The Brazilian-born Spanish international scored 36 goals in 52 appearances with Atletico Madrid last season, eventually securing a £32 million move to Stamford Bridge in July.
Finding his would-be "Drogba," combined with the 36-year-old Lampard leaving, Mourinho sought another purchase to bolster his central midfield depth: Barcelona obliged the Chelsea boss, departing with Spanish visionary Cesc Fabregas for £27 million, per Mirror's Ben Curtis.
There was endless debate as to where the former Arsenal product would be positioned in Mourinho's setup; not known to be a pivot player, Fabregas has taken to Chelsea's system like a fish to water. Altering the team with his attacking prowess, the Blues—with Fabregas—are more apt to scoring goals than keeping them out: Representing elegant music to the ears of Costa and Stamford Bridge faithful alike.
With an average age of 26 at the beginning of the 2014/15 season, Fabregas and Costa are of similar age to Drogba and Lampard at the start of their partnership—possessing like characteristics and the same architect in Mourinho.
"Cesc Fàbregas in an exceptional cook, and Diego Costa is simply a beast. Great comic. #CFC #Cheslea pic.twitter.com/fbaLbQC5lC
— chelseaTALK (@_chelseaTALK) October 6, 2014"
Chelsea's Ivorian legend managed 100 Premier League goals with Lampard at the controls; but known equally for his prodigious goalscoring prowess, the central midfielder—who scored 105 Premier League goals alongside Drogba—skews stats.
Lampard's 24 assists to Drogba is the most common assist-to-goalscorer combination in Premier League history, but after just two months in west London Fabregas has assisted Costa four times. The Spanish midfielder currently has 78 EPL assists, Chelsea's former midfield domineer has amassed 95 EPL assists, but played in 362 more matches.
Should Mourinho further detach himself from pragmatism—something his first tenure was widely known for—the newer partnership certainly can better what the original version compiled statistically. From early evidence, you would be smarter to bet with the Spanish duo than against.
Whether Costa and Fabregas can equal the amount of silverware Drogba and Lampard helped place in Stamford Bridge's trophy cabinet, however, is another argument altogether.
*Stats via statbunker.com; transfer fees via soccerbase.com where not noted.
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