A LOT of Chelsea fans were upset about the sacking of Frank Lampard, somehow assuming his status in the history books would make him immune to usual practice at one of the most ruthless clubs in Europe. Those that consider the appointment of Thomas Tuchel a foolhardy step that lacks ambition are allowing their heart to […]
THERE WILL be no shortage of sympathy for Frank Lampard as he goes the same way as a dozen or so other Chelsea managers. Eighteen months might not seem like a long time, even by Chelsea’s standards, but this was an appointment that went into the same category as AVB and RDM. In other words, […]
ASTON Villa may have been beaten by Manchester City this past week but their most fielded 11 players have accounted for 86.9% of their playing minutes this season, the highest figure in European football. Villa have certainly had a stable line-up in 2020-21 and they’ve enjoyed some success, notably their 7-2 victory over Premier League […]
LIFE is never dull at Chelsea since they became a super club. As the Blues unveiled their latest financial figures, other statistics were being pored over, those that indicate Frank Lampard, club legend and all-round good fellow, could be losing his way at the moment. There has been paper talk that some players are confused […]
HOW do you sack managers like Pep Guardiola, or replace parts of the furniture like Frank Lampard? There’s an assumption that clubs will not fire people who are football luminaries or club “legends”. But it would be wrong to believe Lampard and Guardiola are untouchable, at best they will be left in a room and […]
REMEMBER Pierluigi Casiraghi, the Italian international signed by Chelsea in May 1998 for £ 5.4 million? Not many people do, for his 10 Premier League appearances cost around half a million a piece. Luckless Casiraghi sustained a bad injury in November of that year and was never seen again. Historically, big price tags haven’t weighed […]
CHELSEA and Bayern Munich are supposed to be in transition, two teams in reconstruction mode. Of the two, on the evidence of their UEFA Champions League meeting at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea look a long way off moulding a team capable of living up to the heights of the Abramovich era, while Bayern look to be […]
AJAX charmed Europe in 2018-19 season and players like Donny van de Beek, Frenkie De Jong and Matthijs de Ligt all won rave reviews for their performances in the UEFA Champions League. But the Dutch side’s success was also owed to the presence of Hakim Ziyech, a 26 year-old Morocco international whose virtuosity and creative […]
WITH seven minutes remaining at the Emirates stadium, Chelsea must have been getting their chequebook ready for action, but two goals later, the shortcomings of the first hour of the game were brushed aside. Recent Chelsea performances have shown that they are very short of experienced talent. The energy and enthusiasm of their young players […]
