ANCELOTTI HAS FAILED THIS TEAM: REAL MADRID LACK IDEAS AND AN IDENTITY

On Thursday night, it was a familiar tale for Los Blancos against Atletico, Atleti were compact, defended deep and with robust physicality, took their chances and got the job done against their arch rivals. Madrid fans will point to key mistakes at important times during the game. However with this being the 5th meeting between the pair this season and with Real failing to win any, it's more than individual mistakes or psychological problems that has cost them, big fingers have to be pointed at Carlo Ancelotti

 

Yes, he won 4 trophies in the past year, but that should not hide the fact that this Madrid team have a problem that has been there even during the successful period. This team lacks a particular identity and lack ideas when the opponent have played physical and cancelled out their game plan. Madrid look like a team who win matches based on superior quality of players. Admittedly this isn't a bad way to win, as it has proved effective, as the success of the past year will indicate. However, such play can only get you so far. Even a team that has superior players have it's bad day or a situation where the opponent "park the bus". It's in those situations Ancelotti's Madrid have been dire and diabolical. Granted Ancelotti did beat Bayern, Barcelona & Atletico to the Spanish Cup and the champions league last season, the matches against the former 2, were won with tactics out of Mourinho's page with better and improved players. Against Atletico, tiredness on the part of Los Rojiblancos and relentless desire to win the decima brought the coveted trophy to the Bernabeu. If it wasn't for the Ramos 92:48 equalizer, Ancelotti would have avoided criticism as Casillas would have taken the blame for the defeat. Here lies my point, Ancelotti escapes criticism due to the individual mistakes of players, forgetting that if he had better tactics the mistakes would have had little or no effect.

 

 

 

 

 

Last season, most of the possible "banana skin" matches Madrid faced in the league, more often, we slipped(no pun intended). Barca, Atletico, Valencia, Bilbao, Sevilla, Sociedad, Osasuna and Villareal are all "banana skin" matches and out of a possible 48 points, we took 26. With a win percentage of 43.75%. Horrible stats for such a club. In those matches, Ancelotti made some questionable decisions, Starting Bale as a number 9, Ramos as a DM in the Clasico and starting with 3 DMs against Atletico. 

 

 

Luis Enrique to his credit, learnt from the mistakes of his predecessors and found a way against Atletico. He switched play quickly using the full length of the pitch, pressed Atletico, allowed them to come forward to hit them on the counter attack and even nullify their set pieces brilliance. It was a tactical masterclass from Lucho. Why Ancelotti hasn't found a way or even copied such is beyond me. Such problems occur not only against Atletico but also against teams who have little quality. The aforementioned teams have good players and brilliant coaches, a little tactical nous will nullify our players individually and we seem to be lost every time as to what to do when this occurs. It's atrocious. It's unforgivable.

 

All great teams have an identity, Brazil of the 70s had "jogo bonito", Holland had "total football", Pep's Barca had "tiki-taka", what do Ancelotti’s Madrid have? Hard to think of a distinctive way this team plays. Individual brilliance is the closest thing. The best performance of this season came against Barcelona. That game was beautiful, we passed exquisitely almost mimicking Barca and their tiki taka, we countered like the beasts Guardiola said it's impossible to stop once we're in the mood. 

 

Ancelotti is Mr La Decima. He has the experience and I believe the tactical nous to find a way (not the shameful crossing of Thursday night). He has already come out to say he has a plan against Atletico in the league. Madridistas will hope this plan provides the key to defeating the other "problem" teams as well as Atleti. We all are behind the team and are not calling for the head of the coach (not just yet), we can still have a good season. However, things need to change tactically. 

 

 

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FINDING MARCO'S PLACE

It is no secret that Marco Reus’s contract at Dortmund is nearing it’s end. It is also no secret that a release clause in his contract will be activated in 2015. As expected the top teams in Europe will already be scrambling for his signature as he is arguably one of the best and most promising talents in the football universe at the moment. The World Class player has already been linked with Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City, Arsenal and even Man Utd to mention but a few, (obviously there are more but these seem to be the ones grabbing the most media attention). I decided to write this article to talk about what I think Marco should do. This is an analysis of his options to conclude on where we think would be best for him, NOT where he will end up as he might very well end up somewhere else. Marco is a wonderful talent and obviously would deserve to start and grow even more, regardless of where he signs.

First of all Bayern Munich. Bayern are supposedly joint favourites to get his signature at the moment and given their history of stealing players from their rivals, it is hard to ignore the possibility. Bayern like to do business deals like this early from what I’ve seen. They don't wait around for other clubs to make bids and steal targets during the transfer window (just think Gotze and Lewandowski, both deals where agreed and in place before the start of the windows). I think this is a great advantage and if I were a manager I would probably use this tactic a lot for the players I need most. Register interest and open discussions then make it official when the window opens. Bayern however have a lot of talent in their squad. Reus would have to compete with Robben, Ribery, Thiago, Muller, Shaqiri, and Gotze (I imagine he won’t be battling with Alonso and Bastian) he might even be in contention with Lewandowski as a forward. This sort of squad depth seems healthy at first glance, but it can be dangerous as all these players deserve a lot of playing time so who really is going to be sacrificed? Another factor that may hamper this deal would be the players discontent for Bayern as a team. Unlike the other two before him, it has been said that Marco is not keen on switching sides to wear the colours of his fierce rivals, it might take such a large sum to tempt a player who already claims to not be tempted by money.

Real Madrid have also been touted as joint favourites with the powerhouse supposedly preparing to make their team an unstoppable force in Europe. Real Madrid are arguably playing the best football on the planet right now and they don’t look like they are dropping their form anytime soon. Money cannot be an obstacle here so this to me looks even more likely a destination than any other. Marco would join the formidable attacking force that already consists of Benzema, Bale and Cristiano (BBC) as well as golden boys James and Isco (not to forget Jese). Reus would provide adequate depth and could even serve as Benzema’s second striker allowing the latter to rest. His arrival however would mean even less playing time for Jese and Isco. As a matter of fact, only Ronaldo would be safe out of all those mentioned. I don't think Ancelotti would take out Modric or Kroos as those two are forming what will soon be the world’s best centre midfield partnership if not already the best. It would be interesting but scary to watch this devastating prospect take the reigns for a while in Europe and see who can challenge them.

Barcelona to me currently have the smallest chance of signing the player (yes smaller than Liverpool). They have a ban that doesn’t allow them sign players until January 2016, by which time one of these teams would have snapped up Marco. Marco Reus would need to reject every approach (highly unlikely) and then play at Dortmund for another season for this transfer to go through. Frankly this may be quite unwise. However in the event that it does happen, Marco would be joining Neymar, Messi, Suarez and Pedro to compete for one of 3 spots or at worst 4 depending on how Luis Enrique decides to field his team. Like Real Madrid, this would be such a phenomenal prospect but also less playing time for the younger players and possibly even Pedro may be forced to leave to facilitate this move.

Arsenal have been said to fancy the player. Arsene Wenger himself is a fan of his talents and every Arsenal fan I’m sure by now has dreamt of Marco Reus playing in their colours. Imagine it, Reus, Ozil, and Sanchez? no brainer. Arsene would be foolish not to at least consider it (so would every other manager). But then Arsenal have more pressing concerns at the moment. They need a World Class DM and some back up Centre backs at the moment. These must come in January or they won’t even be classified good enough for Reus join come end of season. A deal like this would most likely materialise in the summer. If Arsenal do sign the defensive reinforcements needed. Reus would be the one more signing needed to make them a Consistent European force and not the consistently inconsistent team we have seen so far this season. The trio mentioned above would easily terrorise any team in the world. Arsenal have such a bloated Midfield however, with so many attacking options. A DM would have to start, so that means even one less spot for Wilshere, Ramsey, Carzola, and Chamberlain to fight for. These guys would also be fighting Ozil Reus and Sanchez for the places behind or beside the main striker (depending on the formation). This midfield congestion may spell the end for Rosicky, fan favourite Podolski and even new boy Campbell. This might even be the biggest congestion that Reus would face. However, quite luckily Marco Reus and a number of these players are very versatile. If I was Wenger I would sign Reus and forget about a striker. We all know that Poldi, Walcott, Sanchez, and Reus can all play upfront and still be deadly. The kind of creativity having Reus would add, could increase the number of goals any striker would score (Giroud scores more goals every season by the way.) This case would be like Bayern’s. We should also take into consideration Arsenal’s current injury record, they probably need all the help and depth they can get. Reus is even said to favour a move to England and by the looks of it, the impact he would make at Arsenal would be even more than most other teams. This transfer may be further buoyed by the prospect of Jurgen Klopp taking the reigns after Wenger with all this Wenger In Out Razzle Dazzle going on.

Man City offer a great prospect for Reus. Just take a moment to think about this- Aguero + Silva + Reus + Yaya = Domination (at least in England for sure). This might be the key to further European success for Man City. He would probably receive a high salary here also and Man City’s depth would mean Nasri and/or Navas on the bench. This means even when they need to rest players they still have a great team. Just like Arsenal, Man City offer such a bright prospect or the player to develop and possibly win the Ballon D’or one day in the future. Jurgen Klopp is also being speculated to take over after Pellegrini if the club decide to let go of the Chilean. That being said Man City have also been linked with Isco and some others so they might see some benefit still in letting Reus join another team with a target of theirs.

It would be hard to write Chelsea off in this scramble. Chelsea have something about stealing Targets when they look certain to go somewhere else ( e.g Hazard). They have the money, they have Jose Mourinho who was able to convince Fabregas to join a side he never thought he would play for (although it was also because Wenger said no and no other option was good enough). Chelsea could just steal Reus from right under all our noses. You can imagine Hazard, Oscar and Reus behind Costa and Fabregas also playing behind them with Matic. This is a Chelsea squad that already seems complete. Marco Reus would be a welcome Bonus with Willian and Schurrle more than adequate competition for places as rotation options.

Liverpool and Man Utd are other teams linked with the player. Man Utd’s form last season seemed to signal the end to such a move and so does Liverpool’s current form. If Liverpool don’t finish in the top 4, it will be unlikely that this deal would materialise. Nevertheless he would be a very welcome bonus with Sterling, Lallana, Markovic, Coutinho, Balotelli, Sturridge and Lambert all vying for places to mention but a few. Reus would definitely be the star of the show at Anfield like Suarez was, but then after a while he might seek to move again to a bigger club. With Brendan Rodgers under constant pressure, Jurgen Klopp has emerged again as one of the possible replacements if Brendan gets the sack. Man Utd’s new luck has seen them climb into 3rd spot for now and we wonder how long it will go on for as critics say they have not performed well, but somehow luck is on their side. If Man Utd do secure a top 4 finish, they will be among the main contenders for his signature. It would mean a change of formation however in order to accommodate him with Mata, Di Maria, Januzaj etc. Unlike the other teams with midfield congestion, Man Utd have 3 World Class strikers (2 of which can also play in midfield). This limits the extent to which Marco’s versatility can be utilised. Quite frankly this move won’t be good for United. Arsenal and City would be able to balance their bloated squads but with United? it might be too difficult.

All things being considered, it is hard to pick a destination for Reus. Marco deserves to start wherever he goes and will obviously make a great impact. There will be congestion wherever he goes, it has been made quite obvious. Some players may have to leave permanently or on loan to get playing time. Reus is a young player with a lot of years ahead of him, so honestly he would be a good investment and if it means older players like Ribery and Rosicky have to leave? I would say take the deal. It would be better in the long run when these guys retire or are too old to play at this level. Based on what I’ve looked into, a move to England would be brighter for him. I’m sure EPL fans would want to see the Balon D’or leave Spain for once and see an English team lift the Champions league trophy. Real Madrid still have a strong say in where he will end up and Bayern might just snap up a deal before anyone can make the call. I would say his best options to me to develop as a player and move the team forward are Real Madrid, Arsenal and Man City. The impact he would make in these teams coupled with the playing time he would get and future prospects, make these three the most suitable clubs for him. Feel free to add your own reasons and suggestions below. Where do you think Marco Reus should go? Please leave your views in the comments column. Merry Christmas.

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WHATS HAPPENING AT ARSENAL: MY TAKE ON THINGS

Its been a pretty grim couple of weeks for Arsenal starting from the absolute capitulation against Anderlecht to losing our 15-month unbeaten home record to a severely weakened Manchester United team. There’s also the loss to Swansea sandwiched in between there. These recent awful results coupled with the sheer large number of extremely lacklustre and sometimes diabolical displays we have seen throughout the course of the season seem to have put the club in what is perhaps the deepest hole I have seen it in since I became a fan about 12 years ago. The tension has burrowed its way deep into the fanbase as well unfortunately. Nowadays with anything regarding Arsenal, its about Wenger In or Wenger Out and I think that the level of attention being placed on that subject is fast forming a highly negative cloud over the club as a whole but I think people forget that not just Wenger and the players make up Arsenal Football Club, we the fans are also a big part of the club and everyone has a part to play. Okay, Arsene Wenger made what I feel are grave errors in the summer leaving us light in numbers at the back and not bringing in the World-Class CDM which was so obviously needed (I did a piece on how important that position is in the modern game, please check it out) but I do not feel the fact that Wenger made mistakes means everyone else should. Say what you want about Arsene but I don’t think he enjoys losing. I think this Wenger out bandwagon has made people forget how important supporting the team is. I’ll cite the examples of our last 2 home games. In the 3-3 draw with Anderlecht, when we were 3-0 up, at a point the Emirates was almost silent then Vanden Borre pulled one back for them (albeit he was offside) and suddenly the small number of Anderlecht fans were outsinging the Arsenal fans and in the end drove their team to fight back and equalise. At 3-1, The players needed inspiration to pick themselves up, dust themselves down and graft out the result we needed. They needed the proverbial 12th man but didn’t have it. Same against United except this time, fans were even walking out of the stadium. That game was a really odd one to analyze and honestly in a match like that it was all about scoring and then sitting back then trying for a 2nd on the counter. Unfortunately we were made to rue our missed chances from the 1st half. I saw some people criticize Wenger for this result but honestly, I think his team selection was spot on and even the normal scapegoats (Arteta and Monreal) put in massive shifts today and impressed me, Arteta especially. Being realistic though, it was a loss albeit there were some encouraging signs but I think this game turned on fine margins, Look at the 1st goal we conceded, I don’t think Wenger has anything to do with Gibbs and Sczezsny clashing into one another although the issue with our defensive organization seems to continue along with our susceptibility to being caught out from crosses and counter attacks. In spite of all that, I just feel as fans, we could do a bit more. Look at Liverpool last season then teams like Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munchen whose fans are always loud and positive. Dortmund have struggled this season but the fans have still been amazing. Wenger has been backed into a corner where everything he does is highly scrutinized although arguably that’s through his own fault but I think the team has not needed us fans as bad as they do now for a long while and I think we should oblige. Yes, the season has been highly disappointing but its a strange one in terms of other teams (except Chelsea and Southampton) struggling. A couple of back-to-back wins will do the team a world of good and we need to back the team so they can push on. Yes, there are question marks tactically and in the transfer market but a good mentality and a great feel good factor around the club can do a whole lot of good in football. So forget about Wenger In or Wenger Out and pull together as the one thing we are, Arsenal fans and give the team our backing. If you won’t do it for anyone else, at least do it for Alexis. He has brought us basically all our smiles this season. #COYG

Share your thoughts in the comments below please. Let me know what you think.

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THE DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDER: AN ARTIST

In recent times, it is often said that the art of defending is dying in the modern game, that the obsession with free-flowing attacking football by so many managers in the game today has made defending become secondary and people forget the fact that you might score three or more goals and not win (Like Arsenal showed at Anderlecht) and might even lose, but when you keep a clean sheet, you can’t lose. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am one of the biggest fans of attacking football but to neglect the defensive side of the game is inexcusable. In the modern game, there is a lot of pace and attacking flair on show that even the slightest of tactical and defensive errors are often cruelly exposed and as such, the defensive midfielder has become arguably the most important position in a football team because he starts attacks and stops those of the opposition.

The modern defensive midfielder takes on a number of duties depending on the tactical blueprint of the manager. These duties vary from being able to effectively shield the team’s defence, control the tempo of the game, switch play between flanks of the pitch, become an extra centre back to allow the full backs push on without the team being left exposed and so on. Some teams even go on to play with two defensive midfielders to make sure all those duties are covered so the attacking players in the team can have more freedom to express themselves high up the pitch.

Another thing being thrown around is that defensive midfielders are a dying breed and there aren’t many top class ones around but I strongly disagree. Like Gary Neville said recently “In the modern game, players who would have made perfect midfielders are now centre backs because of the high demand for technical ability all around a team by managers”. I totally agree with that because we have seen players like Javier Mascherano being converted to centre backs in order to promote the philosophy of playing the ball out from the back for which centre backs who are good passers are required. It is fair to mention that Mascherano has exuded quality in that position although in my opinion, it has robbed the team of some height and physicality which is quite key in the centre of defence. We saw Mascherano restored to his natural position as a defensive midfielder for Argentina in the last World Cup in which he was one of the most impressive performers with La Albiceleste marching on to the final of the competition before being foiled by Germany. Mascherano showed great passing ability by keeping the ball moving. He also provided an effective shield in front of his centre backs which allowed the full backs push on to support attacks without fear of being punished by counter attacks. One thing he also exuded in this position was leadership as he always made sure the team was well organized and he also covered almost every blade of grass when he was on the pitch in addition to making crucial tackles and interceptions all while exuding an air of calm. Everything mentioned above refers to the traits of a world class defensive midfielder.

Now, I say the defensive midfielder is an artist but once people hear “defensive midfielder”, there is a stereotype of a tough tackling, physical presence who flies into tackles and accumulates cards and although this may be true, I have been blessed enough to watch some truly magical players play in that position, of which there is arguably none better than Sergio Busquets.

Busquets at his best played crucial roles for both club and country in Champions League, La Liga, Copa Del Rey, Club World Cup, European Championship and World cup victories. Although, it may be said that this was because he was lucky to play alongside some extremely talented players like Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez or Andres Iniesta but Busquets definitely earned his place in history with some extremely remarkable displays. In fact it could be argued that Xavi and Iniesta were lucky to play alongside him as his skill set gave them the freedom to express themselves on the pitch. It was once said that “if you watch the game, you might not see Sergio Busquets but if you watch Sergio Busquets, you will see the whole game”.

I think that statement extends to the many maestros that play in that position now, people like Andrea Pirlo, Xabi Alonso, Bastian Schweinsteiger (to some extent).

These are players who were far more adventurous and attack minded earlier in their careers but have changed positions to make the most of the latter stages of their careers. These players play the position using their experience to cover up their relative lack of mobility and physicality as they take up excellent positions to shield their respective defences effectively, organize the team well and start attacks from deep with their near-immaculate passing. Their experience and what they have achieved in the game allows their teammates draw inspiration from them and they mostly lead by example, they also do their bit of dirty work.

There are players like Nemanja Matic and Danielle De Rossi, who look to have all the necessary attributes in their locker, very athletic, combative, great tacklers, able to more than hold their own in physical tussles, cover every blade of grass on the pitch, pick out great passes and also pose a threat with their long distance shooting ability. They are modern defensive midfielders.

The defensive midfielder is the dovetail between the defence and attack of a team and is what I would describe as the fulcrum of a team. As important as I feel the defensive midfielder is, it is not to say teams haven’t found different ways of playing without a defensive midfielder with some being more successful than others. I mentioned earlier how some say defensive midfielders are a dying breed but I feel the modern game demands a lot from them and as such defensive midfielders have had to evolve from the “pitbull” type players like Roy Keane and Gennaro Gattuso to mention two we have become accustomed to in previous years (it is important to mention we still have central defensive midfielders in this mould with the likes of Nigel De Jong, Cheikh Tiote and others like that) to the more graceful artists who play in that position nowadays.

It’s also important to note that a recent tactical innovation that has come up has been to man-mark the opposing defensive midfielder in order to stifle the opposition attacks at the source and I think that alone underlines the importance of the player in that position. Its a position that can make or break a team and in my opinion deserves far more recognition than it gets at the moment.

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REPLACING THE MAESTRO, DON XABI

When the summer transfer window closed, Real madrid had sold Xabi Alonso & Angel Di maria, two of their main players last season, we knew there would be trouble. Di maria's loss was seen as the biggest at the time by many, but anyone who watches Madrid knows the team isn't the same without Alonso, they'll tell you, he is the biggest loss, arguably the 2nd most important player in the squad. We saw that in the champions league final, we saw that while Alonso was injured earlier on last season. Ancelloti was looking for the "balance", the balance came when Alonso returned from injury.

In the Real madrid squad there are many players who can play in the holding midfield position and also a few who can play the deep lying role. Here we take a look at a number of candidates.

For pure defencive midfielders, there's only Sami Khedira and his presence will add a balance to the squad undoubtedly, but he doesn't have the passing range of Alonso.

Fabio Coentrao is another one who can play as a defencive midfielder. He doesn't have the passing range, but his defensive game makes him good for the defensive midfield role. He performed that as cover for Sami Khedira at the beginning of the 11/12 season. Coentrao can play in the role vacated by Di maria and let Kroos takeover the deep-lying role. This would bring greater balance than with him as a defencive midfielder

With the last example given, Gareth Bale, could replace Coentrao as the other midfielder with Kroos as the deep-lying player. Bale is no longer the "new toy" and can be moved there. With his defensive history, attacking present & rip roaring pace (remember Batra), he could be more devastating than Di maria.

Although this may seem like banter, using Pepe as a defensive midfielder, isn't too much of a bad idea. When calm (a rarity), he can be Claude Makelele. He played there for Portugal before Carvalho's international retirement and played there under Mourinho in 2011 during the Clasico series. He did a good job in those matches and it should be noted that Messi was kept quiet for the first 2 games & could only have an effect after Pepe had been sent off (unfairly). Pepe has this fear factor about him & that could be very useful against opponents.

For deep-lying players, Raphael Varane is a name that has been mentioned by the spanish press. You can see why easily. He has lots of pace for a tall lad, his height would help win aerial duel's in midfield & at set pieces. He has the passing range and the defencive steel. With this, Ancelloti could replace Alonso and stop the discontent growing about the lack of game time Varane gets.

Sergio Ramos is another candidate for that position. He has the defencive steel and the passing range (he completed most passes for Real in the 12/13 season after Alonso) but its highly unlikely Ancelloti would try him in that role especially after the clasico disaster at the camp nou last season.


Toni Kroos is another who can play the deep-lying role. The German was arguably the best midfielder at the world cup. For me the 2nd best player after James. He averaged a pass completion rate of 89% in the entire tournament. Ancelloti has used him in that "deep-lying" role but it hasn't quite worked out and although his best performances have come in an advanced role or a 3-man midfield that doesn't make him a holding or deep lying player (Germany at the world cup), I personally feel he can perform that role with time. He has the passing range for it, but just needs to add defensive stiffness to his game. He has that a little bit, an example was when he dispossessed Fernandinho and immediately assisted Robben at the Etihad against Man city.

Asier Illaramendi was the one bought to replace Xabi Alonso. He was bought for €39m last year. The plan was for "Illara" to learn under Xabi for 2-3 years. With Xabi gone, it means he had 1 season as apprentice to his fellow basque. Ancelloti doesn't have faith in him & its easy to see why. Illara always looked too nervous last season and didn't take control of things when given the opportunity. You can understand the nervousness too. A local Basque boy who had never been away from home coming to the biggest club in the world can never be easy, but he has to step up now. The talent is definitely there, I watched him at Euro u-23 last year & remember calling him an "Alonso-Busquets" hybrid. He has the defencive edge of busquets that Alonso lacks a bit, and also has the passing range of Alonso that Busquets lacks.

When it comes down to who plays and who doesn't, the final decision lies with Carlo. I however would say Ramos as a deep-lying play maker is good, but it would be waste of his centre back qualities, where he has arguably been the best based on form this calender year. Varane as a deep-lying play maker is something I'm salivating over. He reminds me of Madrid legend & assistant coach, Fernando Hierro who played as a defender and deep-lying player. He would be brilliant there. Also Gareth Bale as one of the other midfielders would be great or even better than what we saw last season. It also brings about continuity of the type of 4-3-3 employed, Di maria was converted from winger to centre midfielder, why can't Bale? Illaramendi should however been given a run of games to show his undeniable talent & to prove himself. I criticised him last season, but I can't forget his brilliance of 12/13 season, and that summer's u-23 Euro's.

Alonso left Madrid in a bad spot, by leaving so late in the transfer window. Some have theories that he wanted to weaken us, to win with Bayern. Some say Perez should have stopped him. I believe both are wrong. Alonso is too much of a gentleman to do the former, and you can't keep an unhappy player who "lacks motivation" to remain at the biggest club, it isn't worth it, hence my defence for Perez. However, we have a great manager with experience and just like last season, we will get pass this rocky start and win again.

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PREMIER LEAGUE 2014/2015 EXPERTS PREDICTION

Although the new premier league season has started, our experts decided to wait until the end of the transfer window, to see if some clubs will bring players who will change the season for certain clubs. We have also added some new experts to the team to enhance our already growing reputation. So unto the predictions then

CHAMPIONS

Chike: Chelsea
Uzor: Chelsea
Emma: Chelsea
Obokhai: Chelsea
Ore: Chelsea
Jeremiah: Chelsea
Samad: Chelsea
Tuale: Chelsea

TOP 4
Chike: Liverpool, Man city, Arsenal
Uzor: Man city, Man utd, Liverpool
Emma: Arsenal, Man city, Liverpool
Obokhai: Man city, Arsenal, Liverpool
Ore: Chelsea, Liverpool, Man city
Jeremiah: Arsenal, Man city, Man utd
Samad: Man city, Man utd, Liverpool
Tuale: Liverpool, Man city, Arsenal

EUROPA LEAGUE
Chike: Everton, Tottenham
Uzor: Arsenal, Everton, Tottenham
Emma: Man utd, Everton, Spurs
Obokhai: Man utd, Tottenham, Everton
Ore: Tottenham, Man utd, Everton
Jeremiah: Liverpool, Tottenham, Everton
Samad: Tottenham, Arsenal
Tuale: Everton, Man utd, Tottenham

RELEGATION
Chike: West brom, QPR, West ham
Uzor: Burnley, West brom, QPR
Emma: Leicester City, Crystal Palace, Burnley
Obokhai: West brom, Burnley, QPR
Ore: Crystal Palace, Burnley, West brom
Jeremiah: West brom, QPR, Burnley
Samad: Burnley, Leicester city, QPR
Tuale: West ham, Burnley, West brom

BEST PLAYER
Chike: Diego Costa
Uzor: Angel Di maria
Emma: N/A
Obokhai: Francesc Fabregas
Ore: Eden Hazard
Jeremiah: Francesc Fabregas or Aaron Ramsey
Samad:
Tuale: Francesc Fabregas

BEST YOUNG PLAYER
Chike: Raheem Sterling
Uzor: Raheem Sterling
Emma: Raheem Sterling
Obokhai: Erik Lamela
Ore: Ross Barkley
Jeremiah: Raheem Sterling or Jack Wilshere
Samad: Raheem Sterling or Phillipe Coutinho
Tuale: Raheem Sterling

TOP SCORER
Chike: Diego Costa
Uzor: Diego Costa
Emma: Sergio Aguero or Diego Costa
Obokhai: Diego Costa
Ore: Sergio Aguero or Diego Costa
Jeremiah: Diego Costa
Samad: Diego Costa
Tuale: Daniel Sturridge or Diego Costa

BEST COACH
Chike: Mauricio Pochettino or Gary Monk
Uzor: Gary Monk
Emma: Jose Mourinho or Ronald Koeman
Obokhai: Jose Mourinho
Ore: Jose Mourinho
Jeremiah: Jose Mourinho
Samad: Louis Van Gaal
Tuale: Brendon Rodgers

BEST BUY
Chike: Sigurdsson
Uzor: Sigurdsson or Angel Di maria
Emma: Sigurdsson
Obokhai: Mario Balotelli
Ore: Francesc Fabregas
Jeremiah: Francesc Fabregas or Alexis Sanchez
Samad: N/A
Tuale: Francesc Fabregas or Fernando

WORST BUY
Chike: Shane Long
Uzor: Shane Long
Emma: Rio Ferdinard
Obokhai: Luke Shaw
Ore: Danny Welbeck or Philipe Senderos
Jeremiah: Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera or Brown Ideye
Samad: Enner Valencia or Daley Blind
Tuale: Rio Ferdinard or Luke Shaw

CAPITAL ONE CUP
Chike: Chelsea
Uzor: Man city
Emma: N/A
Obokhai: Liverpool
Ore: N/A
Jeremiah: N/A
Samad: Southampton
Tuale: Chelsea

FA CUP
Chike: Man city or Everton
Uzor: Man utd
Emma: N/A
Obokhai: Man city
Ore: N/A
Jeremiah: N/A
Samad: Man utd
Tuale : Liverpool

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CHELSEA’S PERFECT TRANSFER WINDOW

It’s safe to say that last season was the single most frustrating we as chelsea fans have ever witnessed. Brilliant against the top teams but sluggish and wasteful against the teams at the bottom. The result that summed up our season was the loss to Sunderland at Stanford Bridge. So many chances were wasted and we only sped up our play after they had scored their second goal. Funny enough, we went on to beat Liverpool the very next weekend. This ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ form is shown in the graph below

Culled from Zonal Marking [online]

The graph compares the points per game of a team against the top half and against the bottom half. Only Chelsea and Sunderland have higher points per game against the top half than the bottom half. Funny, isn’t it? From watching any of our matches against the bottom sides, the flaws are obvious. Lack of a clinical striker, sluggish ball movement, full backs who can’t attack particularly well and AMs who were a bit scared of shooting (I’m looking at you, Hazard). Against the top sides this wasn’t a problem as there was a lot of space to work with but against bottom sides who defended deep (aka Park the Bus™), the flaws were evident. The priorities for this window should be a striker, an attacking full back preferably a left back and a creative central midfielder.

INS

The Striker

The signing of Diego Costa and the return of Lukaku should leave us settled in the striker position. As the Chelsea blog ‘Plains of Almeria’ put it, Costa shares Mourinho’s indomitable spirit and as a focal point there are few who lead the line as well. His aggression, movement and power are salient qualities that have been missing from Chelsea’s docile attack. Gianfranco Zola went as far as saying that Costa represented “the missing part of the puzzle”.

The Central Midfielder

This is another area in which Chelsea didn’t waste time to strengthen. Fabregas was signed during the World Cup group stages and I was delighted with the signing. Fabregas is one of the most creative players in the world and he can play attacking and central midfield. I’m still hoping one more midfielder is brought in and that is Pogba. That guy can do it all. He has an eye for a pass, he can tackle, he has very good stamina and exceptional shooting. Plus, with the sale of Luiz (Still don’t know how we got that much money), we have the money required to buy him.

The Full Back

Time and time again, we had to endure the sight of Branislav Ivanovic trying to cross. The decision to play Azpilicueta on the left made our full backs play very flat. This made it easy for teams to defend against us. They just had to double mark Hazard and the right winger. With the departure of Ashley Cole, a new left back will be needed and the obvious choice should be Ricardo Rodriguez as he is one of the best attacking full backs in Europe. But, Chelsea seem to be chasing Filipe Luis who would cost stupid money and is going to be 29 in August. Plus, he’s not attacking enough. Other targets could be Moreno or Blind or even Rojo

OUTS

Ba – He scored some important goals towards the end of last season but lack of minutes on the pitch has led to him asking for a move away. He’s given us a lot of memorable goals but it was either him or Torres (Hint: Have you seen Torres’ salary?)

Moses – He has stagnated a bit since his promising first season and he should be sold or loaned again.

Bertrand – He’s simply too old to be fighting for a place in the team and there is interest from Tottenham and Liverpool so this is a no brainer.

CONCLUSION

This transfer window is pivotal and we can’t have another season of failing at the last hurdle. We’ve already made some good moves and with 2 more signings we would be favourites to win the EPL.

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