Jose Mourinho will face off against his former club Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday night – and must make changes to a Chelsea side which is floundering in the Premier League. The Blues boss has given out-of-form stars chance after chance which has proved a disastrous tactic so far as they bid to retain their league title but European football represents a chance to break away from that and a chance to try turn things around.
Mourinho is accountable for the poor form and there’s no hiding places for either him or his players. At this time – especially with a worrying lack of leadership within the squad – he needs to recall John Terry for his influence in the back-line, even Terry isn’t the player he was.
On Saturday, Kurt Zouma, young and still learning, was at fault for the first goal shipped against Newcastle but it was an error that could have been avoided had Branislav Ivanovic, captain on the day, opened his mouth and spoken instead of watching the ball.
Why the Frenchman leaves that ball is anyone’s guess but a simple shout of ‘yours’ could have been enough to swerve the embarrassment that ensued.
On Ivanovic, the guy simply isn’t warranting his continued selection. Whether it’s Manchester City or Swansea, Arsenal or Walsall, the Serbian has most looked dreadful and on his best days is bang average. I suspect Baba Rahman has looked so-so defensively in training so Mourinho has been cautious to bring him in and drop Ivanovic, but at this stage he’s such a liability that I’d argue it’s more of a risk to play him.
There are so many players that are not performing at the moment which often suggests a management issue rather than a form one, and you could easily make a case for dropping the entire midfield as Nemanja Matic looks half the man he was over the early part of last season’s campaign, same goes for Cesc Fabregas, Oscar plays in patches and goes AWOL most of the time.
Ramires, John Obi Mikel and Ruben Loftus-Cheek couldn’t do any worse.
Despite not being a fan of the Brazilian in general due to his errant passing and decision making, Ramires must play because of the pace and urgency he injected into the game when introduced against Newcastle.
Eden Hazard – last season’s best player – looks unfit and lazy so should be dropped for Kenedy, who isn’t anywhere near in terms of quality but looks determined, with promise and willing to work.
Loic ‘offside’ Remy shouldn’t be keeping his place in the team either as he didn’t show a lot in either the Walsall – goal aside – nor Newcastle games.
There are so many members of the squad that are playing badly at the moment that the list of those who ought to be given a shot is a short one, unfortunately this hasn’t been the case in Mourinho’s selection policy so far this season. Perhaps the Chelsea manager should opt for a system of meritocracy.
-Metro
