Chelsea

How Chelsea can become champions again

First off, they were FA Cup winners, came in 3rd in the EPL, arguably should have been in (and possibly won) the Champions League, and are full of depth, if not a bloated salary scale. Nevertheless, they have lost the coach that came in, took over with the ingredients he had, and won. He won a lot, mind you.
Guus is gone now and Carlo is a brilliant replacement. He has shown signs that he want s a change of personnel, though, and we’ll start from the back.
Cech is fantastic. Still a top 5 ‘keeper in the world, I don’t even know why I mention his name.
Assuming Ancelotti elects to play four at the back, there is really no reason to make any changes here. Ashley Cole, John Terry, Alex & Bosingwa are excellent. There is depth, even after their sale of Carvalho. If for some reason they decide that Douglas Maicon (Inter) is important then they should sell off Bosingwa. But he’s young, shows promise, and isn’t really worth giving up on. Then again, it’s Chelsea, and they have money, and want the best right now, not later. Best to replace Carvalho with a strong bench player who doesn’t require a starting role – like Alex did 2 seasons ago.
The midfield is still a delightful mess of overabundance. My mom has a lot of pretty things in her home, but when you put them all together it’s just not right. That’s what Chelsea’s midfield always reminds me of. Essien & Lampard must remain your core central midfield. Obi Mikel is a fantastic young holding midfielder. Joe Cole & Malouda make for excellent wingers, and Malouda came on strong in his second season in the Premier league. Just as Drogba did. So they have a solid 4 across the mid. If healthy. Which is a problem since Cole & Essien had major knee injuries this season. The problem is their quality of depth, then – it is not lacking, but clashing, because little of it is on the wings. Yes, it is great to have the captain of Germany on the bench, but he doesn’t want to sit! Same for Deco. Too much winning personality just doesn’t work. I don’t know why, sometimes, since there are so many matches to play, but players want to play every match, or close to it, and this squad has too much talent playing the same position to allow that to happen.
Best is to bring in another winger. Kalou has not shown any crossing ability, so he’ll have to remain up front as a speedy back-up. This is where they should be going crazy hard after Ribery, or paying a little more than ManU for Valencia. It’s also where losing out on Robinho last year proved to be devastating. He was the necessary left foot to replace Robben (who they made out on, mind you, at £36 million). Ribery is a star. He’s hard-working. He’s unassuming. He is not glitz or glamour, just like the rest of the team. But he’s obviously special, and that is what Chelsea need. Malouda off the bench, and Ribery & Cole can play either side well.
After that you have two of the most impressive physical specimens who are extremely skilled up front. Drogba & Anelka, year 2.5. I think they’ll work well together. And if not, just put Kalou in and let him run around at high velocity and play off each other.

Out: Deco, Carvalho. £13 total.

In: Ribery (or Valencia if they don’t want to spend “crazy” money, per Bayern’s wishes). £50 million
Maybe: Sell Bosingwa (£12M, loss of £4M) after buying Maicon (£25M, possibly)
Total outlay: £50 million. I don’t know if they have this in their kitty. Going after Ribery keeps it under £40M, possibly

Squad: 4-4-2
. Drogba --- Anelka
. Ribery --- Essien --- Lampard --- Cole
. Cole --- Terry --- Alex --- Bosingwa
. Cech
Subs: Belletti, Ferreira, Obi Mikel, Kalou, Malouda

This team can play for and win the title. The’re a little more streamlined. They’ll need to make some changes for the future (Drogba needs to be appeased and be happy or sold, at some point, bringing in Aguero, Pato, or Benzema) as they continue to age, and one hopes that their luck/health return. Coming in 3rd after a terrible start and the losses of Joe Cole and Essien shows just what a fantastic squad they’ve got.