Do Chelsea Need Bastian Schweinsteiger to Bolster Their Midfield Resources?
Jose Mourinho's first stint in charge of Chelsea Football Club saw much upheaval in personnel, much of which happened expensively.
Andriy Shevchenko (£30 million), Michael Essien (£24.4 million), Didier Drogba (£24 million), Shaun Wright-Phillips (£21 million) and Ricardo Carvalho (£19.8 million) alone cost the Blues nearly £120 million of Roman Abramovich's fortune, but one adroit transfer came at the cost of nothing.
In the summer of 2006, Mourinho—after two straight Premier League crowns—needed another midfielder. Essien, Frank Lampard and Claude Makelele had no real respite in the Portuguese's 4-3-3.
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No doubt scouring Europe, Mourinho found Michael Ballack out of contract at FC Bayern Munich and elected to sign him for free.
Winning three of four Bundesliga titles before his west London arrival, Ballack was central to everything positive in Bavaria, and the then-30-year-old's presence for Mourinho was crucial in securing Chelsea's 2006/07 double—winning both domestic cup competitions.
Ballack played 46 times in his first year, scoring seven goals. In total, the former Germany captain played 166 matches for Chelsea—scoring 25 goals, winning five major honours in his four seasons at Stamford Bridge.
Flash forward almost one decade and there may be another world-class Bayern Munich midfielder Mourinho is monitoring.
According to the Daily Express' Anthony Chapman, German international Bastian Schweinsteiger's contract at Bayern ends in summer 2016, and the central midfielder seems unwilling to commit himself past his current deal, telling reporters:
"I am in no hurry to renew. It's not something that bothers me because I have a year before [my contract] expires.
The important thing is that my physical problems and injuries are resolved. The rest will follow.
"
Cue inevitable transfer speculation.
While the similarities between Schweinsteiger and Ballack look somewhat congruous, what differs from 2006 and (what will be) 2016 is need.
Eighteen months from now, Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic will be 29 and 27 respectively; provided Mourinho keeps his preferred 4-2-3-1, there seems little reason to sign a 31-year-old Schweinsteiger—who would turn 32 before anyone kicked a Premier League ball.
The prospective move also denies Chelsea's current U21 stars a first-team position.
Forecasting 18 months, one might expect Nathaniel Chalobah, Lewis Baker and/or Ruben Loftus-Cheek to have secured a first-team place; their long-term development at Stamford Bridge would surely stall, as Schweinsteiger would take precedence over them due to experience and general clout.
Ballack was another 30-something in a team of similar aged superstars. Lampard, Drogba, John Terry and Petr Cech were all at the peak of their powers, so having another like-minded presence/talent in the dressing room created no dramatic difference.
Chelsea do not need older members in their squad. Mourinho has already set free the likes of Essien, Lampard and Ashley Cole in his second west London tenure, so why he would stunt the growth of youthful midfielders—who could serve his club for a decade—in favour of receiving two swan-song years from Schweinsteiger makes no sense whatsoever.
Were the German five years younger and the Blues carrying on the 4-3-3 tradition, then finding a role for him would be simple. Were his contract ending this summer, then the links might seem justified—he is an improvement over John Obi Mikel, for instance—but neither scenario is the case.
After projecting 18 months into the future, Mourinho should take into account Chelsea's long-term vision and reject even the premise of signing Schweinsteiger.
There seems too much talent already on Abramovich's books to consider rocking the proverbial boat.
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase.com where not noted.
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