Month: February 2016

Chelsea’s interim manager Guus Hiddink has said that he thinks people put too much stock into possession stats.

Chelsea played Manchester United over the weekend and the two clubs shared the possession of the ball reasonably evenly: The Blues had 49% possession compared to United’s 51%. Prior to that game, however, the Manchester club had enjoyed plenty of possession in their matches without creating many chances.

Their possession-based football drew criticism from the team’s shirt sponsor Adidas, but Hiddink felt it was unfair. He said, “You must not overrate the amount of possession. Most teams want the ball. What do you do with it? Say we had 65, 67 and 70% possession, but our opponents said, ‘We don’t care how much possession you have, we have the score on our side’. Do you secure your way of playing? Or do you go as soon as possible into the attack? I prefer the latter option. The first thought must be vertical”.

The possession stats weren’t the only thing that were shared on the day with both clubs also taking a share of the spoils in a 1-1 draw.

John Terry spoke to the press after the club’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United over the weekend and admitted that there’s still been ‘no communication’ between him and the club’s hierarchy over the possibility of a new contract.

Terry announced two weeks ago that he has not been offered a new contract for when his current one expires at the end of the current season, admitting that he’ll leave Chelsea and explore the possibility of a career abroad. He has been linked with clubs in Qatar and America as well as the chance of a lucrative move to the ever-expanding Chinese Super League.

After Terry’s announcement Guus Hiddink, the club’s interim manager, suggested that Chelsea could yet find ways to keep the captain at the club beyond the end of the season. Terry, meanwhile, said that nothing had changed ‘from [his] point of view’.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game Terry said, “I made it very clear I wanted to stay. It’s a difficult one. The club is the most important thing. There is no communication between me and the club at the moment. I’ll never forget my memories here and they will live with me forever”.

Terry’s frustration has grown as he’s watched other players, such as Branislav Ivanovic, get offered new contracts whilst he hasn’t been. The 35 year old has enjoyed a stellar career at the West London club, winning Premier Leagues, FA Cups, League Cups and the Champions League. His time at the Blues hasn’t been without controversy, however. Terry was stripped of the captaincy on two occasions; once when he had an affair with the partner of his former team-mate Wayne Bridge and once when he was found guilty by the Football Association of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand.

Chelsea’s 35-year-old captain John Terry will not sign a new contract at the club and will leave in the summer, according to reports.

Terry joined Chelsea as a 14-year-old and has so far played 696 games for the West London club, winning the Premier League four times, the FA Cup five times and the Champion’s League once. Much like with his former team-mate Frank Lampard, though, he’s decided to call time on his Chelsea career, saying, “Ideally, I would have loved to stay, but the club’s moving in a different direction”.

There does seem to be some confusion over the matter, however, with the club themselves suggesting an agreement could yet be reached to keep their captain at the club. A spokesman for Chelsea said, “John was advised that while no new deal was currently on the table, that situation could change in the coming months. The club has the utmost respect for John and everything he has helped us achieve to date. He is a fantastic servant of Chelsea and a superb captain. As such, the club will keep the channels of dialogue open”.

Terry, though, seems convinced that he’ll be moving on, saying, “It’s a ‘no’ at the minute. The club will move on. No player is ever bigger than the club. No doubt they’ll sign one or two great centre-backs. I feel as though I’m in great nick, I’m playing great and I’ve got a couple of years to go”.

Several people agree with Terry, including his current centre-back partner Kurt Zouma who said, “I think he can play for another one or two years. For me, he can play many more times. He is still at a top level. He has been playing very well since I arrived at Chelsea. His performances have been consistent. Since I have been at the club, I haven’t seen him play badly. That’s the truth.

Chris Sutton, who played for Chelsea in the 1999-2000 season, said it was ‘disappointing’ that Chelsea were willing to allow Terry to leave. He told BBC Radio 5 live, “Clubs don’t show enough loyalty to players. John Terry’s been a tremendous servant, he’s been outstanding for the last 15 or 20 years for Chelsea and he deserves better”.

The chair of the Chelsea Supporters Group, Trizia Fiorellino, confirmed that Chelsea fans feel similarly disappointed by the news, saying, “He played every minute of every league game last season and we won the title. I think the club owe us an explanation”.

Terry is certain that if he does leave the club then it won’t be for another English team. He said, “It will be elsewhere for sure. I couldn’t play for another Premier League club. It’s not going to be a fairytale ending. I’m not going to retire at Chelsea, which it took me a couple of days to get over”.

Terry has played more games for a single club than anyone other than Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. He has notched up 477 leagues games for the defending Premier League champions and has captained the team during their most successful ever spell. He is also the highest-scoring defender ever in the Premier League with 40 goals to his name.

Terry saw his game time limited under Jose Mourinho at the start of this season, with the Portuguese boss even substituting him at half-time during Chelsea’s loss to Manchester City at The Etihad in August. The self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ was sacked by Chelsea’s owner, Roman Abramovich, at the end of last year and Guus Hiddink came in to replace him on an interim basis. Hiddink has restored Terry to the Blues’ starting line-up since his arrival.

Though the Chelsea defender’s career has been littered with numerous successes, he’s also suffered his fair share of problems during his time at the club. In the 2008 Champions League final he missed the penalty that saw Manchester United lift the cup, whilst in 2010 he was temporarily stripped of the club’s captaincy after it emerged that he had had an affair with his former team-mate Wayne Bridge’s partner. He was also stripped of the captaincy in 2012 and banned for four matches after he was found guilty of racially abusing Queen’s Park Rangers’s defender Anton Ferdinand by the Football Association.

The communication between the players at Chelsea is better since the arrival of interim manager Guus Hiddink, according to their midfielder John Obi Mikel.

Hiddink was brought in by Chelsea’s owner Roman Abramovich when the Russian billionaire decided to sack Jose Mourinho for the second time at the end of last year. Chelsea endured their worst start since the late 1960s under the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’, with the Blues losing nine times in the league under the Portuguese manager.

The defending Premier League champions haven’t lost since the Dutchman took over at the helm, however, and Mikel believes that that is down to the improved communication in the ranks under their interim boss. He said, “It’s the way he communicates with the players and maybe that’s what the players felt they didn’t get from the previous manager”.

Mikel also felt that Jose Mourinho often froze players out if they weren’t in the first-team. He said, “Sometimes players – not just because they’re not playing – you need to communicate with them. You need to speak to them and don’t just ignore them because players like to be communicated to. This is what he has brought into the football club. In some ways you barely know he is in there, he is that calm and relaxed”.

Mikel was rumoured to be the subject of numerous bids last summer, but the Portuguese manager refused to sanction his departure from London. The Nigerian rarely started under Mourinho this term, however, only featuring regularly once Hiddink arrived as the club’s interim manager.

This is the second time that Hiddink has come into the West London club as their interim manager. He was also brought in in 2009 when Abramovich decided to sack Luis Felipe Scolari after the Brazilian failed to replicate his international form at club level in the Premier League. He led them to the FA Cup that season, something that could yet be replicated in this campaign.

The defending Premier League champions have been drawn to face Manchester City in the next round of the FA Cup, sponsored by Emirates.

Chelsea beat Milton Keynes Dons by 5 goals to 1 in the fourth round of the competition, meaning that they entered the draw for the next round. The ties will take place on the weekend of the 19th through to the 22nd of February.

Though there are some juicy ties to look out for, including the lowest-ranked team remaining in the competition, League One’s Shrewsbury Side, playing host the Manchester United, it is undoubtedly the match-up between the two most recent Premier League champions that has caught the eye.

It will be Manchester City’s third tie away from home against Premier League opposition in the competition so far and Chelsea’s interim manager, Guus Hiddink, thinks it will be a ‘huge game’. When asked about the draw he said, “It’s already a final!”.