With Arsenal experiencing their second crisis of the season and Liverpool suffering some damaging defeats recently, Chelsea have had the chance to make fourth place their own. Instead, they have slumped, with poor result following poor result and they now sit unhappily in fifth.
Where they go from here is anyone’s guess. A divided dressing room became even more embattled after reports emerged of a dispute between Villas Boas and his players. The Portuguese has the faith of Roman Abramovich it would seem, but if they look at risk of not qualifying for the Champions League the Russian may be forced to act.
Absence from the Champions League would be a major blow for a team struggling to meet the UEFA Financial Fair Play rules. The absence would lead to a need to cut costs quickly at the start of next season.
It is all somewhat harsh on Villas Boas, who has a coherent tactical philosophy and has brought in some useful players. But he is stuck with a collection of egos and big names who it is difficult to manage. Many of Chelsea’s goals conceded this season have been from individual errors, rather than tactical instruction.
Long term, Chelsea really ought to stick with Villas Boas. The only way of competing with Manchester United on a regular basis is through stability – finding a manager and keeping him long term. Chelsea changing their boss would risk that now and lead to them having to build all over again. Surely that is not what they need, let alone want?
This is a team needing to be rebuilt. It is many teams within a team. A group who enjoyed the pragmatic days of Jose Mourinho, and another who hail from the land of Samba football.
And Mourinho is waiting to take over at Chelsea this summer if things go wrong. It doesn’t take a huge leap of the imagination to see Abramovich firing Villas Boas, bringing in Guus Hiddink on a short term deal for the Dutchman to repeat his 2009 trick and qualify them for the Champions League, before giving way for Mourinho to take over again. But that would be going backwards, to a failed idea. Mourinho may have won things – but his football was terrible, and everyone knew it. Abramovich more than anyone. It was not the kind of thing which made him fall in love with the game.
Villas Boas needs to win the dressing room battle – it is vital to his ability to continue long term – he must crack the dressing room and sell on or ostracise the egos in his squad. His ideas will work, given the time. But that is not usually in abundance where Chelsea and Abramovich are concerned.
