The manager had pinned his hopes on Lukaku leading the line and the striker’s imminent move to Manchester United raises questions about whether Chelsea have again taken their eye off the ball after winning the titleThe first thing to acknowledge is that there is time for Chelsea to make a success of this transfer window. It is the first week in July, not the last in August. Those within the club’s recruitment department can justifiably point to the late arrivals of David Luiz and Marcos Alonso last year, and the impact both players had on the team’s title success, as evidence that significant additions can be plucked from the ether right up to the cut-off.And yet, not for the first...
Premier League sides have struggled to impose themselves in Europe in recent years because the domestic competition is seen as an obstacle to successNext season, assuming Liverpool can negotiate the play-off round, there will be five English clubs in the Champions League. That is a large number, though it does not necessarily follow that a greater representation will lead to a better chance of English success. Premier League sides have been struggling to impose themselves in Europe in recent years. From a position a decade ago when finals were being reached on a regular basis and Uefa had genuine concerns when two English clubs faced each other in Moscow in 2008, the strength of the Premier League now seems to...
Manchester City and Chelsea continue to produce and stockpile English players, but neither club seems keen to see the job through and select themWhen Ron Greenwood remarked, while responding to criticism for dropping the young Glenn Hoddle from his England team in 1979, that “disappointment is part of football”, he was widely derided for appearing to stifle the expression of creativity. But Greenwood knew what he was talking about, even if he chose the wrong words at the wrong time. Beneath them lay a truth that comes closer to the surface as the rewards for success in English football grow ever more outrageous.It’s a sad fact that young footballers sometimes have to gamble with their lives if they want to...
Despite Chelsea steamrollering their way to the title with a 3-4-3 formation, Antonio Conte is unlikely to rest on his laurels and will strive to improve team tactics next season and develop his squad for a Champions League challengeChelsea’s domestic campaign ended on a sour note, with last Saturday’s 2-1 FA Cup final defeat to Arsenal denying Antonio Conte the double in his first campaign at Stamford Bridge. But it is Conte who has been Chelsea’s superstar this season and his decision to switch from 4-3-3 to 3-4-3 in autumn should be considered among the most decisive tactical moves in the 25-year history of the Premier League. After changing to that system, Chelsea steamrollered their way to the title and...
Uncertainty over the future of Arsène Wenger persists but Arsenal put those troubles behind them as they beat Chelsea 2-1 in the FA Cup finalAt the final whistle on a hot, fun, slightly wild afternoon at Wembley, Arsène Wenger crouched on the touchline and roared, not quite with abandon, but with a genuine sense of release, and even of anger. Cuffs still crisply buttoned, wasp-waisted in black slacks, Wenger eventually sank into a familiar double fist-pump, knees bent, like a man at a wedding performing a slow, heartfelt air-maracas solo.Twenty minutes later he was there again climbing the Wembley steps with his players to face the royal party and the coyly gleaming trophy. Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat of Chelsea means Wenger...