A Change of Priority for Abramovich?

 

So, Roman Abramovich is economising and Chelsea are being told to ‘make-do’ with what they’ve got in terms of the squad. Not only that, but there’s been a massive cull of overseas scouts—which to be fair was probably overdue—plus, there’s even talk of the players having to pay for their meals at the training ground.

 

I know, I know, we’ve always been told the plan is for the club to become self-sufficient and this penny pinching is towards that end. And yet there’s something that doesn’t quite make sense to me right now.

 

You see, from the minute Roman started refusing to hand over money, we’ve stopped challenging on the same level we used to. We might still be competing, but our lack of trophies goes hand in hand with our lack of spending. Doesn’t it?

 

Every side needs to freshen up as time passes and yet we’ve never added enough to our Championship winning side to sustain the level we were playing at back then. So how exactly does Abramovich expect his managers to get a silk purse out of a sow’s ear?

 

But what confuses me more than anything else are the latest reports about the Abramovich bankroll, because whilst he’s not putting any money Scolari’s way, he’s apparently quite happy to hand over £3.4 million towards Guus Hiddink’s wages.

 

With the economic crisis no different in his homeland and insufficient funds available to cover the national coach’s salary, the head of Abramovich’s National Football Academy, Sergei Kapkov says, “It is important for us that Guus is calm about his future and the future of the national side.”

 

So what about Scolari’s future and the future of Chelsea then, neither of whom appear to warrant the same level of benevolence right now?