Chelsea dilemma : Adopting the ways of the previous era left The Boehlys correcting one mistake with another

A good part of their 19 years with Roman Abramovic was a match made in heaven and boy did it deliver the turning point in the club’s history as good memories and trophies decorate the tenure.

Aside his urge to take the club to that top level, things also seemed to always go the way of Chelsea in the era of the Russian billionaire in a way that the club always come clutch when already written off.

A good example was the run to their two Champions League titles. Those came at the time the club was struggling. But adding more sauce to the era, they were also able to attract top class managers, players and sponsorship deals.

Change of management when results are not favourable was most times a positive turning point for Chelsea, but logically, it should be otherwise. Even though new managers on the long run get it right, they most times struggle to get on at the start.

This wasn’t the case with Roman Abramovic’s Chelsea as almost every of the manager to have served at the club in the era of the 56 year old, was able to win at least a silverware – when they have spent more than a season at the helm.

Even Maurizio Sarri, who had never won a title as a manager before his appointment by the club was able to deliver the Europa League title, when his side thrashed fellow Londoners, Arsenal in the 2018 final in Baku, Azerbaijan.

When it became inevitable that Abrahamovic will have to let go of the club last year, hearts were heavy as everyone around the club knew, it was never going to be the same. Fair enough, it hasn’t been so far.

There were concerns over the ambitions of the new owners, hence, Todd Boehly was reportedly made to sign specific preventative measures, which would forbid him or Clearlake Capital, the private equity firm behind the deal, from paying dividends or management fees until 2032.

The agreement, termed ‘the anti-Glazer clauses’ prohibits the sale of any shares in the club for ten years and agreeing to strict limits on the level of debt that they could take on as Abrahamovic was keen to handover to someone with a good plan.

To be fair, the new owner did try to make good impressions of themselves but in an attempt to do that, brought confusion amongst the fan base as they struggled to get deals done in the summer, which was as a result of the internal disagreement with the the head coach, Thomas Tuchel.

Fans of course are always in favour of what takes the club forward and upon revelation of Tuchel’s nonchalant attitude that costed them in the deals for both Jules Koundé and Raphinha, they, a good percentage want him gone at the time.

It did not help matters that the period also coincided with Chelsea’s poor performance. Yet, it was shocking when it was announced that the German has been relieved of his duties by the club.

It was a decision that divided opinions as some felt Tuchel has written his own Chelsea history and it is time to move on, while others still felt some attachment with the man, who led the European glory against all odds not long ago.

Trying to do it in the way of Roman, but now, Todd Boehly would have realized it is not so easy getting the results just as the Russian got it back then as the departure of Tuchel only but exposed Chelsea to further dangers, ones they’ve not or look like recovering from since then.

It could have been a forgivable error had his successor, Graham Potter managed to succeed in the post. However, after a start which was made fair seeming by the heroics of Kepa Arrizabalaga between the sticks, it was all washed away in no time.

The appointment of Potter was everything but right. For a start, he is not an elite manager and has nothing on his CV to warrant a job at a club like Chelsea. Even reports around the club suggested there were other strings attached to his appointment other than his abilities as a coach.

Thereon, Chelsea went on underwhelming runs. It started with six winless in domestic competitions, which ended with four straight loss and a subsequent elimination from the Carabao Cup in the hands of Manchester City.

To be fair on the Englishman, Pep Guardiola side were just too good at the time but this is Chelsea and questions were bound to be asked, even if you played much better than you did in your first meeting with the Citizens.

Chelsea has a reputation of being a result oriented club and only under a few manager has their games been fancy. It is an institution where ugly football can be forgiven but there is always bound to be troubles if the results are not favourable.

But since it was only his early days, fans overlooked the shortcomings of the former Brighton manager, albeit not really convinced of his guts to take the club forward due to his lack of conviction, even when on media duties.

Good managers employ more than just good tactics to succeed at top teams. It takes good leadership qualities, good man management and good level of oratorship because of the high level of players, experience and their achievement.

Unfortunately, Potter did not have all these due to his inexperience as it was his first time managing a top team.

Upon restart after the World Cup, the club went on another poor run, recording just two wins and six defeats in 12 games, seven of which they failed to score a goal, while also getting dumped out of the Emirates FA Cup after losing 4-0 at Manchester City.

However, the management was reluctant to part ways with him, not only because of the world record compensation fee paid to Brighton for hiring him but more for the guilt of admitting their error.

To worsen matters, the winter signings are having difficult start to life in West London. Only Enzo Fernandez has shown promising signs of all the players after the club spent well over £600 million in six months.

Faults also lies with the management as some of the players that have been signed doesn’t really fit into the system. Maybe Todd Boehly needs lessons on how things really work in live football.

From the manager recruitment down to those of the players, the new administration has gotten it wrong hence, their efforts to take the club forward is being slowed down.

After the 2-0 home loss to Aston Villa, it became too much for the club to take and Potter was finally shown the exit door. Bringing an end to the most regrettable managerial appointment the club has made in recent times.

Now in search for a successor, it appears Chelsea have learnt their lessons as they choose not to rush the decision but wait until the summer to appoint the right man. Hence, former manager and club legend, Frank Lampard has been chosen to oversee affairs until the end of the season.

For a management so resilient, delay will not be denial for Chelsea but getting the next manager right will be very crucial for their long-term project, given the pace already set by Pep Guardiola in the English top division.

The Spaniard is having to fight off different competitions for the league title every season due to the inconsistency of the other clubs and if teams like Chelsea doesn’t emback on a trusted project, it will be very difficult catching up with the Citizens in the league.

Antonio Conte was the last manager to win Chelsea a Premier League title back in 2016/17, when the club won the title with 93 points – a total which would only be enough to win just one of the following five league titles.

The standard is now different and Chelsea needs to avoid making another mistake as they set to appoint a new manager in the summer.

Author : Kehinde Hassan Afolabi