Torres - A career in question at Bridge!

In Roman Abramovich's regime in Chelsea, the immediate objective of any new manager is the Champions League. Surprisingly, it is not so for Chelsea FC's new manager Andre Villas Boas. Rather it is to rebuild the team and change the style of play. On trying to achieve that, he hadn't got into the business of buying expensive stars. He realized that the squad already has stars who are not in form. One such player is Fernando Torres. Villas Boas understood that Torres will have to play a key role in the upcoming years considering the age of the star strikers Anelka and Drogba. He didn't want to waste the 50 million dollars spent on the once deadly striker in the world. Instead he tried to transform Torres back to what he was once. 

How could Villas Boas achieve that? First thing that he did was to take the limelight out of El Nino who was pressured by the Media. Media pressed on the fact that Torres had scored just one goal in last season and increased the pressure on him to score goals as such. It wasn't their business anyways. The role of the press is some times supportive and some times destructive. And here it is latter role that was taken. Even in the case of Andriy Shevchenko, this happened. They were continuously blaming Mourinho for not using him. Now, when Torres is extensively used, they blame about his form. Media needs sensational news and they do that. No one can change it. So, it is better to change the player's perspective on Media. That is exactly what Villas Boas did. He may not by 100% successful. But he has done his part.

Next thing is the support for Torres from the team. Torres hadn't settled comfortably in the team. For this he brought two midfielders, Juan Mata from Valencia and Raul Meireles from Liverpool. The former could play a bigger role in bringing Torres back to form as he is his National compatriot and he could also aid in providing the Chelsea midfield, the much sought after creativity. Raul Meireles  could feed the strikers through his long balls regularly and is extensively required. Increasing the pace of midfield is the main focus for Villas Boas and he has achieved it. It can only be better from here. 

Then the prime focus is to give Torres enough chance. There is a big problem. Given the form of Didier Drogba, it is tough to make him sit in the bench. Whoever does that stands out and Villas Boas did that. In the process, no one could notice any regrets from Drogba as well. That is a welcome thing. Given the time and freedom to Torres, he now feels Chelsea as his home. The fans are completely behind him and that is very crucial. He hasn't started performing to his 100%. But there were glimpses of the positioning and instinctive moves noticed out of him which are just the indicators of his return. 

Given the progress he has made recently, he could help Villas Boas in re-building the club better. Soon we can see a completely new squad of Chelsea which would compete in all the competitions strongly as it did during Mourinho's regime. And Villas Boas will be remembered as the Special One was remembered. There is of course one difference that will emerge: Villas Boas would have utilized the expensive striker signed much better than what Mourinho did.

Chelsea FC summer 2011 transfers

The first major signing of Chelsea FC this season is the manager Andre Villas Boas. He is just 33 years old and there is a lot of suspicion over whether he could win over the confidence of Chelsea FC dressing room. With the senior players like Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard who are almost around the same age, it will be a tough task for him. But given the fact that Villas Boas is very good in man management, it shouldn't be much of a problem for him.

The real problem will come in reinventing the team's strength. During the era of Mourinho in Chelsea, the midfield used to be very strong and solid. After the Special One left, it was never the same. (And there were no chances for any manager to do so as well) So, creating a strong midfield is an uphill task for him. Defensively, the current team is good. But it would be wise to invest for the future with both, John Terry and Alex, going into their 30s. At the same time, with three world class strikers, Anelka, Torres and Drogba, it is tough to create equal opportunities for all of them to make them happy with the club.  It would be wise to play one of them in the midfield, preferably Anelka, so that all three of them could be accommodated for many matches. 

Creating a good Plan-B is very essential. This is what Carlo Ancelotti lacked. During his entire period there were not any instances of a Plan-B being implemented. An option to switch between 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 is always available. With the availability of a good squad, implementation will not be very tough.

Thibaut Courtois The signing of the 19 year old Belgian Goal Keeper from Genk is a very wise decision as the club needs to invest a lot more money if they are to buy a goal keeper to replace Cech at a later stage. The earlier the better. He is a natural successor to Cech. He will not get enough first team appearances till Cech is in Chelsea. So, he was sent to Athletico Madrid on an year long loan. His reflex abilities and positioning are comparable to that of world class goal keepers. In the years to come, we will see him solidly commanding between the sticks at Stamford Bridge.

Oriol Romeu The signing of the 19 year old defensive midfielder, from Barcelona is a necessary signing because Chelsea needs a versatile midfielder to let the manger work on restructuring it. His performances in the Spain U-21 is has caught the eyes of everyone. Currently the link between the defenders and the attackers is not good in Chelsea. With his addition he could provide the much required link to enable the attackers invade the opponents. His allegiance to Barcelona might in future lead to a "Cesc-pursuit" like saga, but that might happen only after 5 to 7 years. It might be the least worry for the manager. 

Romelu Lukaku Signing a person who has a lot of passion towards the club is what a club really needs. That is what Chelsea has done in signing Romelu Lukaku from Anderlecht. He is known for his prolific scoring in the Belgian league. Though it is a small league, the accomplishments cannot be discounted. He is also physically strong which would help him survive in English Premier League. He has a lot to learn from the three world class strikers of Chelsea FC. He has already shown a lot of interest to learn from Drogba which is a welcome sign. He has time in his favour as he is just 18 years old.

Juan Manuel Mata A signing which was gifted by Arsenal and Spurs for the identification part. He is a product of Real Madrid's youth academy. He can deliver one thing (i.e., creativity) which Chelsea desperately needs in the midfield. Throughout his career he has played for Spain national teams and he can help the manager in redefining the style of Chelsea's play. The change of Chelsea's playing style is also on the manager's plate. If utilised properly, he could get the maximum out of him in achieving the target. Mata is of the right age (23 years) to attain a peak in his career at Chelsea. All he needs is more support from the fellow Chelsea players to make him accustom to the English culture and the physical nature of the league.

The signings of Chelsea FC all seemed quite well planned for the future. The signings are not intended just to showcase that Chelsea has money from the Russian owner's oil fields, but for the betterment of the squad and the playing style. The support from the owner is the major force here. He needs to provide the manager with enough freedom and limited targets to build the team. Once the team along with the manager are provided the time that they require, they can challenge for the domestic and European titles in the upcoming years. And that can only let Chelsea touch the much wanted Champions League.