Love's Lost... Love is Gone?

I sound like a broken record regarding Benitez and Chelsea on the pitch so I won't even talk about another tepid display at Man City by which City barely had to flex their muscles.

Chelsea have now become the club that many feared - soulless. That's right, Chelsea Football Club is soulless, not only soulless but classless as demonstrated by the complete removal of Di Matteo's pictures from our CL win and even the very acknowledgement of his existence, this isn't a recent phenomenon, it's happened gradually since the removal of Jose Mourinho but even moreso since the axe was cruelly wielded upon Carlo Ancelotti.

Non-Chelsea fans will never understand it, despite all the ups and downs, Chelsea always had an identity, it always stood for something, be it Ted Drake's title winning team in 1955, or the "great entertainers" of the 60s containing flamboyant flair players like Peter Osgood, Charlie Cooke, Peter Houseman and the feared Chopper Harris. Or Pat Nevin and Kerry Dixon of the 80s, or Dennis Wise, Roberto Di Matteo, Gianfranco Zola and Gianluca Vialli of the 90s and John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba of now. There is a willing assumption from the press to pin all of our recent problems solely on the owner but I people around him are also partially to blame. The fact is the press don't like Chelsea, that isn't a conspiracy, it's a fact that can be proved based on years of evidence and even admittance from high profile sports journalists on live television. They would rather see an Abramovich-less Chelsea, one that can't compete with England's best. Contrary to media myth, Abramovich is not as involved in the day to day running of Chelsea Football Club as the press would have people believe, Chelsea do not occupy his thoughts 24/7, he has other business ventures elsewhere. When I hear of Abramovich going out on a limb to keep Zola at the club roughly 10 years ago to the day,going out of his way to meet and talk to Chelsea fans about on-goings at the club prior to the City home game in November and allegedly giving all of the gate receipts from the FA Cup tie to Brentford he doesn't strike me as the totally ruthless man he is made out to be, for all his criticism in the British press he still has good relations and a good friendship with at least 3 ex-Chelsea managers. Abramovich built many bridges with the fans including ticket price freezes and change of club after the much maligned "Millwall" badge came under heavy criticism.

Today, I look at the Chelsea team and ask, what do we stand for? Where has our identity gone? Fans being charged through nose for tickets yet treated poorly by the board, this is something synonymous not just with Chelsea but other clubs too, take Arsenal for example - a club with a large and loyal fanbase paying the highest prices in the country but selling off the most valuable assets to the club every season. Arsenal are a club I grew up hating pathologically but they were also the club I had a begrudging respect for and up until recently always were the benchmark for all London clubs, the name meant something, now Arsenal have become somewhat of a laughing stock having sold off key players to rival clubs and gone so long without a trophy, Chelsea are in a similar boat, we are just as much of a circus, as are QPR - a small, but closely knit family club now forking out expensive tickets for players that seemingly couldn't give a toss and a board that want to pander to Asian Tourists in an attempt to become a "global brand". The identity of these football clubs has been stripped by the board, these clubs are losing their soul. Fans enjoying Arsenal and Chelsea's plight shouldn't be, because it might be your club next. In a season where we have seen mass protests/discontent from fans of big football clubs such as Chelsea, Arsenal and Leeds it begs the question of "When will enough be enough?". As a fan of football I can't help but feel saddened when I see fans of clubs like Chelsea, Leeds, Forest and Arsenal being completely shafted by the clubs they love. The Premier League has become a corporate cesspit whereby clubs begin to lose themselves and forget their roots, Swansea and West Brom have been recent exceptions to the rule and got the balance right.

Football is fast losing it's appeal for me, rarely do I sit down and watch entire games of football and devote my full attention to it, I don't get particularly excited about going to games nor watching it on TV. Watching football has just become a thing I do. I might feel differently soon, but when I see men found not-guilty in a court of law left hung out to dry by the media and FA, men publicly vilified for (accidentally) kicking a ball at another fellow professional, Broadcasters like Sky and ESPN being given free reign to disrupt fixtures in favour of certain teams *cough* Manchester United, men face public persecution for kicking a ball from underneath a ballboy who was deliberately trying to stop him from doing his job and then first and foremost men with no connection/feelings to football clubs involved in their day to day running I then fail see the point in getting angry or worked up about football anymore. I can deal with the diving and conning referees and other politics on pitches but off it... Bates at Leeds, Benitez/Emanelo/Campbell at Chelsea, Glazers at United, Kroenke/Hill-Wood/Gazidids at Arsenal, Venky's at Blackburn and the ongoing mess at Forest and even Allardyce at West Ham. At what stage will clubs stop abandoning their principles and alienating their fans? As football fans we'll always keep on coming back for more, unlike any owner it runs in our blood and communities but it's no longer a sport I can say I "love" or even enjoy watching.

Keep Calm.... and Panic

I'm largely apathetic to what happens on the pitch this season such is my disillusion with ongoings at the club now but today is a day which brings a mixture of relief and concern. It's become quite apparent since day one that Benitez has had the media onside, and they've managed to create an us (Chelsea fans) against them (Benitez and everybody else) mentality. Everything from injuries to Chelsea fans/ACON is to blame for the current form. When we beat Villa and Everton, Benitez was heralded as a tactical genius who had 'proved the fans wrong' and improved the team since 'tactically inept' RDM left, however many simply saw cracks papered over. Villa were quite frankly awful and Everton extremely unlucky, If truth be told only profligacy in front of goal prevented them from being 3 or even 4 goals up on the half hour mark. In the latter stages Chelsea were clinging on, just as they were at home to Arsenal, Benitez was aided by the stroke of luck that got him to a Champions League and FA Cup Final (which again he fluked), Jon Walters conveniently finding the net twice for Chelsea in a game whereby the scoreline flattered us. The rest of the games have all been drawn or lost to relegation fodder by enlarge (City the only exception).

It's easy to assess a team by its body language, this is something that can't always be assessed on TV but can be my fans that are able to go to games. I no longer go to games regularly due to a number of reasons one of which is disillusionment. I was present for RDM' first and last wins as Chelsea manager and there has been a remarkable change in body language since he left and Benitez arrived. A Di Matteo team was the kind of Chelsea team we have come to know since Mourinho or even Ranieri, a side that never gave in and fought tooth and nail. There was a purpose and a sense of belief. At current Petr Cech, Juan Mata, David Luiz and Frank Lampard are the only players that are playing at a similar level or better than they were when RDM was in charge. The decline of players such Ramires, Ivanovic, Cahill, Oscar and even Ashley Cole has been startling. Oscar, a player that made Pirlo look Sunday League and scored a goal that was technically the best I have seen at Stamford Bridge (v Juventus) is now nothing but a bit part "left winger". I would liken his decline to that of Ryan Babel at Liverpool, also another player that Benitez killed, a player that was once likened to Thierry Henry and showed flashes of brilliance.

We are now on the verge of finishing outside of the top 4, as I type, Benitez is still in a job but there are reasons why Chelsea fans should be optimistic about our recent demise, to do that we need to be as cynical as the Chelsea board. What we have established is the board care first and foremost about money, customers, brand image and their own ego's. The only thing that is keeping this club out of the red is money generated through Champions League Football, the competition most in English football now covet and value most, so here are the risks of missing out on top 4:

- Financial figures for 2012/13 will inevitably show us running at a loss, which again looks bad on them and affects their brand image. The only way to make that figure up is by charging more for ticket prices. Reality is from what I've read on social networking and Chelsea fans I know in person/go to games with there is a feeling of disillusion across the fanbase. Tickets aren't shifting as quickly as they were and for once, it has nothing to do with price. Chelsea of course, don't care who buys their tickets, or about the loyal fans who have stuck through the club thick and thin and have support/ties to this club stretching back generations, however we'll see how many tourists or fancy businessmen on 6/7 figure salaries fancy going to see Chelsea play the likes of Sparta Prague or Metalist Kharkiv at home on a cold Thursday Night. Tickets now are still readily available in their thousands despite weeks of sale.

- The next manager - Going back to a previous point the next manager. This board does not accept second best and Benitez has been given more chances than any other manager during Roman's tenure partly due to Emanelo - Benitez's close friend. Benitez stays and the fans/players walk. I am deadly serious about the players, even with CL football it will be difficult to keep Hazard and Oscar away from the clutches of Barca or Real (if they reach their potential) but without it chances are slim to none, and reality is we'd have to sell to balance the books. Benitez doesn't stay then you look to the next manager. Which manager is going to want to inherit this mess of a club WITHOUT CL football (the one trophy the board covet most)?

- Players to strengthen - Whether we want to admit it or not, if Arsenal and Spurs get Champions League football at our expense (which looks increasingly likely) then that makes them more attractive propositions for top players to join. The reality is all three are pretty much similar sized clubs, I'd argue Chelsea and Arsenal are slightly bigger but not by much, Spurs have narrowed that gap, top players now want to join them whereas in the past they were laughed out the house by them (see Eto'o 2008).

- Global Brand - The thing that matters to the board most, without wanting to offend overseas fans, you tend to find the most passionate and committed fans are from the country of the club's origin. Fans will come and go, supporters will always be there. Chelsea have millions of fans but only tens of thousands of supporters by comparison. Fans are fickle, they will change teams and often claim they "support more than four clubs". Success breeds fans and without it, you can pretty much bet your bottom dollar they'll lose interest and switch to the next flavour of the month. So we'll see how many followers the club get on Twitter and how many turn up to their pre-season tours in Malaysia should the club continue to decline.

The form of the team is worrying. Similar to AVB and Scolari's last days. No belief, no passion or conviction  in final third and goals leaked left, right and centre. Make no mistake top 4 is in the balance now, we have a much tougher run (on paper) than Arsenal and Spurs and we aren't even winning the games we should be winning. A win or even a point for Spurs tomorrow puts them closer to us despite being out of form of late, Arsenal now only 5 points behind. Failure to beat Wigan means that if Arsenal, Spurs and Everton take maximum points from their games we find ourselves in 6TH PLACE by the time kick off at MAN CITY (AWAY). 

Ultimately it's a game of stick or twist for the board now, face the consequences or stick with Benitez. As much as I loathe Benitez, I believe like with AVB the board have made their bed, now they should lie in it (until the Summer).

R.I.P Rationale, Common Sense & Faith in Humanity

First of all let me say that Hazard was in the wrong, regardless of whether he kicked the ball or ballboy, he overreacted. However he isn't the only one. South Wales police, the press, public, Swansea players and ballboy himself can join the long queue. Hearing that police will "not take the matter further" actually makes me sick to my stomach. The incident has been blown way out of proportion but sadly, draws uncanny comparisons with the John Terry witch-hunt last year. To break it down simply, Chelsea were chasing a game and in the latter stages, Swansea ballboys were time-wasting to ensure the retrieval of the ball took as long as possible, a clear act of gamesmanship. Judging by his Twitter comments it was pre-meditated, he clearly wanted the limelight and let it known he would be on TV.

This is the problem we have in society, the PC brigade that thrust moral outrage at the most minimal of events upon us. All that needs to simply happen is for both Hazard and the ballboy to shake hands and exchange autographs (the ballboy is probably the bigger celeb of the two now), that is as far as the incident should go. It was a simple misunderstanding to an incident that happened in the heat of the moment. For those that believe Hazard went in with the intent or in fact kicked the ballboy I ask you this: If time was being wasted anyway, why would Hazard want to intentionally cause injury to a ballboy thus prolonging things even further and wasting more time?

Sky's product "The Premier League" is becoming increasingly more about politics and brand image rather than actual football and common sense/rationale scarcely prevails, this incident being indicative of this, as have others. Since Sky got involved the agenda has long since been to destroy football as a sport and make the transition into being a business. In business there are no morals, few ethics (which are actually adhered to), it's a cold and ruthless game whereby you cannot have or be seen to display any emotion. This doesn't necessarily transcend onto the football pitch though, to players, football is first and foremost a sport, they dedicate their lives to it from grass roots level upwards. The FA have tried vehemently to stamp out any kind of emotion from the game. Footballers, managers and even fans are now being told to be submissive and emotionless. The lack of empathy with Chelsea fans regarding Di Matteo and Benitez is further testament to this.

- Wayne Rooney -  banned for swearing after scoring a goal

- Ashley Williams - publicly vilified for kicking a ball at Robin Van Persie's head (whilst the ball was in a dangerous area in his own 12 yard box), which he later apologised for and claimed was unintentional.

- John Brooks - dropped for a tongue in cheek conversation with the Man City players, telling them to thank their own fans.

Most journalists have never played football or any sport at any level so their public condemnation of Hazard and sensationalism shouldn't surprise anyone, it doesn't surprise me at all fellow professionals like Michael Owen and Gareth Bale have leapt to the defence of Hazard, they understand football and understand the concept of emotions running high in football stadia, football is more than just a mundane sport to them.

I'll finish with some food for thought, who is the real victim?

Is it the tactless 17 year old ballboy who boasted of time-wasting before the game and milked as much attention as he could from a minor incident and drives around in an Audi OR is it 22 year old Eden Hazard, who in the heat of the moment whilst provoked may or may not have kicked the ballboy whilst trying to retrieve the ball and is no undergoing a character assassination from the press? One can seemingly do as he pleases and is under no pressure, the other has been in the country not much longer than 6 months and left all he knows and is expected to deliver for one of the biggest football clubs in the country. Wayne Rooney and the Manchester United Football Club were real victims of the PC witch-hunt, not armchair Sky viewers, Ashley Williams was the real victim of the ball incident in Swansea, not Robin Van Persie and John Brooks was the real victim at the Emirates, not Sky or the FA's brand image. The victim culture that exists amongst human beings and is transmitted via football succinctly epitomises  everything that is wrong with not just football, but modern society, the need to try and condemn people of being guilty for something when they aren't. The need to create a (moral) crime that doesn't actually exist

SHAMpions of Europe, we know what we are

So after another abject and dismal home display I find myself at a strange place regarding Chelsea. Last night was the first time I'd been to a Chelsea game of any description this year and first game I'd been to under Benitez. I did in fact mention in a previous blog I would never go again whilst Benitez is there but relented due to a change in circumstance. The main reason being this will be the last season for Lampard, Cole and possibly JT and I will be going to the last game against Everton for their farewell games so I may as well have brought my brief boycott of games to an end. Everton at home always seems to be an emotional one regarding club legends, many of a certain era may recall the fantastic Zola lob which sent us way on our way to the top 4, it was Zola's last goal for the club. Anyway, back on to current matters last night was also the first time I left a match before the final whistle. The home performances under him have been abject to say the least but the masochistic side of me had to see for it myself. Words can't describe how bad that game was, for me it was up there with Southampton at home on Boxing Day in 2002.

I criticised Benitez heavily before he had even managed a Chelsea game and win or lose stuck by it, even after the wins against Everton, Sunderland and co. I believe Benitez is a substandard manager and will continue saying it until the chickens come home to roost. Cast your mind back to the 08/09 season when Liverpool peaked. Mascherano, Reina, Alonso, Gerrard and Torres at the heartbeat of that team and a solid backline. Liverpool finished on the highest points tally never to win the league although they should have won it and probably would have but for a meltdown on Benitez's part which caused a mid-season collapse. That Liverpool team was so much better than United it's hard to fathom how they didn't win it. Liverpool actually won more away games than home games that season, Benitez's tactics cost them so many games at home hence costing them the title and we are seeing that at Chelsea now. 4 games out of 6 under him that we have failed to score and in all honesty in all 4 of them we haven't even looked like scoring. Under RDM we created chances and scored in every home game across all competitions, despite media spin every Chelsea fan deep down knows this team was better off with RDM as manager, the stats speak for themselves. If the media had the lube at the ready over just one lucky win at Everton, God only knows how they'd have reacted if Benitez had lead us to wins at the homes of our biggest rivals and won comfortably. That 4-2 ranks up there with one of the best away Chelsea performances in a derby and although I wasn't present for the 2-1 at the Emirates and truth be told so humgover and drunk from the previous nights excursions to even remember the 1st half, it was one fo the most professional performances you'll see away from home in such a big game.

The soul of the club has been stripped from the core, having spoken to Chelsea fans I know and on social networking sites never before have fans felt so removed from the club. This is a club that I simply cannot identify with at the moment. Usually I am either angry or crestfallen immediately a defeat but last night I was neither. Quite frankly I didn't want to be there before, during or after that game so my ticket was wasted and would have been better off in the hands of a tourist. I just simply get no buzz or thrill in going to Chelsea games any longer, I thought that I may feel differently once I started walking along the Fulham Road but it never came. Losing to West Ham and to a lesser extent QPR and Swansea at home should hurt but it doesn't. I actually admire and envy fans that can still go home or/and away every week and still have the same passion for the club. It's got to the stage now where I am counting down the days to the season's end. If we make top 4 great if we don't, we don't. Something has been stripped out of this football club that is far more valuable than any win or trophy. Whatever we think of Benitez, he isn't responsible for that, he's just simply the fall guy for Abramovich's relentless act of vengeance on those who he felt betrayed his 2nd most prized possession after Torres - AVB. The smart people can see Benitez's appointment was merely just a smokescreen. The board are stripping out the soul of the club, removing fan favourites and treating club legends like chewing gum off the sole of a shoe and what are we sat here doing? Castigating Benitez who was inevitably going to get poor results as he is a sub standard as proved by his record in England and Italy, even in Spain he was only aided by the financial capitulation of Barcelona and decline of Real Madrid under the megalomaniacall Perez. I'm not sat here saying we should lay off Benitez but we have to be focused and get down to the root problem.

We are Champions of Europe and I couldn't care less, we laugh at Spurs and Liverpool almost weekly (it's hard not to) but they are clubs with a soul, just like the Swansea side we saw today. These are people that can be proud of their football clubs and what they stand for. Gary Neville will never become Liverpool manager and Tony Adams will never become Spurs manager, that I am 100% certain of because fundamentally they have owners and a board that respect the principles and history of the club. I'd rather be a midtable/relegation battling non-entity as we were when I first became a fan and be proud of the club than what we have become now. This isn't Chelsea Football Club, it's a club that the owner has decided to build around one failed player. A Dave Whelan or even Ken Bates would put their hands up and admit they got it wrong and would try other methods but not this owner and this board, over the summer we somehow managed to entice two or three of the best young attacking players in world football yet are wasted our time on a player that simply cannot cut it at top level football due to horrific injuries he sustained a few years ago. If I were Oscar or Hazard my transfer request would be in this Summer, in all honesty when these two fulfil their potential they can/will be playing for much better clubs than Chelsea.

It's hard to believe I can no longer get excited for a semi final of a cup any longer such is my drained passion and enthusiasm for the club. I can remember begging my parents to let me stay up for the League Cup semi against Arsenal as a kid such was my excitement but if I'm being totally honest my passion never has been the same since Mourinho left, sacking after sacking of good and nice managers has worn me out and the appointment of Benitez was the final blow, Di Matteo was a rare exception to the rule, I went to his first game as manager at Birmingham midweek and the support for hom was as strong as ever. I knew he was always on borrowed time but still feel the club could have dealt with the situation in an appropriate manner

As with any football club it's always the fans - the people who care about the club most that suffer.

I'll always love the club, but it's not a club that I like at the moment nor one I can relate to.

New Year, Bad Start

New Year, Bad Start. The fact of the matter is few in their right minds could argue QPR deserved to win. When the media and fans alike were quick to start singing the praises of Benitez after the Everton win I stuck to my guns, I've always believed Benitez is a poor manager and stand by it, I'm not prepared to be fickle as some are. When QPR lost 3-0 at home to Liverpool in what some have described as the worst performance seen by a Premier League team it was quite clear there was going to be a response. It was damage limitation for QPR, any fool and his cat could see QPR were going to be well organised and pack the midfield. It was a game we needed to be at absolute full strength to win, the time to rotate the squad would have been in the cup ties. I'm a firm believer in the saying "You can't teach an old dog new tricks". Resting players and disrupting a winning team is something Benitez did during his time at Liverpool consistently hence why they never won the league title under his tenure. "Resting players" well that just doesn't wash with me. Do Liverpool rest Suarez? Do Man U rest RVP? Do Barcelona rest Messi or Real Madrid rest Ronaldo? No player in the form Mata is in would want to be rested, least of all in a league game. Having lost Cech to injury, not starting Mata, Hazard and Cole just took the biscuit to me. Few could argue our best players on Sunday were Lampard, Ramires and Mata. Ramires and Mata in particular carried the team last season and as soon as I saw the team selection I believed QPR could get something out of the game and that's how it panned out.

I will concede that there are few better managers than Benitez in preparing for one off big games as we saw against Everton and even City to a degree but that's all he is, a cup manager. Unlike some I never harboured the delusions of grandeur that we were ever in a title race, all I want is Benitez and Torres out of my club and a top 4 finish to ensure we get the quality of player and manager good enough to replace them with in the Summer.

What happened today shouldn't surprise any Chelsea fan that has been a fan for at least as many years as toes they have on their feet, it's just typical Chelsea

Not won a game in a long period of time........ Check
Not scored a goal in a long period of time..... Check
Low on confidence.....Check

Only Chelsea could beat a side that were unbeaten at home having lost only twice all season and days later lose to a side bottom of the league with only 1 win and 20 and winless away from home in the entire year of 2012. Yes, this really did happen, it's us all over. I grew up watching a Chelsea that couldn't beat Blackburn at home for toffee yet would happily go to Old Trafford - the most formidable of grounds - and play Man U off the park every year. An experienced Chelsea side that couldn't beat a young Leeds team at home that had been down to 9 men for nearly an hour. All you can do is laugh really.

At this stage a loss is a loss, it's not as if we've lost to Spurs or Arsenal whereby it would have a direct impact on us as well as the fact there is a strong rivalry there. We simply have to move on. If people want to continue to harbour delusions of grandeur of catching the Manchester clubs than that's their prerogative but all I know is when City play Arsenal and United play Spurs later this month, the Manchester clubs will have my full support (as if they wouldn't anyway against that lot). If the Manchester clubs finish 20-30 points ahead of us so be it, as long as we get that 3rd spot (not taking any chances with 4th and having to qualify after our performance in the CL this year) that'll do me fine.

2013 was never going to be as fruitful for us as 2012 but there's still a lot to be excited about, a potential trip return to Wembley as well as a trip (possibly 2) to Amsterdam and we welcome Spurs, West Ham and Arsenal to the Bridge for the real London derbies. No matter what happens, bar the away wins at Arsenal, Leeds and Spurs this has been a season to forget. This Summer needs to be spent focusing on the rebuilding the image of this football club and pacifying the fans. This is a football club I will always love but in all honesty I can't say I like it very much given the way Di Matteo, Lampard, JT and Ashley Cole are being ruthlessly disposed of by the current board. The aforementioned is why, for me, Chelsea can, nor should they ever be mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Juventus, Milan or even Man Utd/Roma. Those are clubs that understand the fans and appreciate what those club legends mean to them. Totti, Del Piero, Giggs, Scholes and Maldini would never have been cast aside like stones like our old guard are. If ever a night showed how important Lampard, Cole, Terry and Cech are to the club and how much Benitez/Torres aren't last night against QPR was that night.

The last thing I am going to say is something I said 2 years ago at the start of the "transition". If this board gets rid of the old guard too quickly, we will become like Arsenal of 3/4 years ago. Ability in abundance but no steel or know how to grind out results, this team without JT and Lampard is actually reminiscent of that Arsenal team in 07/08 which in my eyes was the best team to never win the Premier League. Mata, JT, Lampard and Mikel are the only players we have at the club that are calm and composed on the ball with a confidence that transcends onto their teammates. Letting 2 of the 4 go is absolute madness. You can be sure that much like with Drogba every opposition fan will be glad to see the back of Frank Lampard, John Terry and Ashley Cole all of whom have thwarted their sides countless sides down the years. Teams that play Chelsea now don't fear our striker they fear Mata, Oscar and Hazard. When you are making Clint Hill and Ryan Nelsen look like a retro Italian CB pairing there is nothing in the game for you. Torres is finished at the top level and until Abramovich, Gourlay and co realise that we are going nowhere. I'd go as far as saying that if Torres is still here and starts the opening game of the 2013/14 season if I were Hazard or Oscar my transfer request would be going straight in.