Thanks for Everything Ralphie & Trouble in Paradise

We made it friends! Somehow the City of Corpus Christi managed to survive the bitter cold and not end in frozen apocalypse. So, with that, let’s get the show on the road!

There are a few tidbits out of North London today and the biggest, in my opinion, is the sale of Lauren to Pompey on a 2 ½ year deal. I am sad to see Lauren go and was hoping he could win his way back into first team football. Eboue can develop into a great player (if he can get the diving and play-acting under control) and Hoyte is doing OK, but nothing beats experience. Laure gave the club his all and never let up. He wasn’t the best defender in the world, but it takes more than skill to be a good footballer. Drive, heart, and years of experience mean a lot. He will be sorely missed and all the best to him at Portsmouth.

In other Gunner news, it appears that Robin van Persie may possibly be healthy for the Manc match after being ruled out only yesterday. He picked up an ankle knock this week in training and scans are being done today to determine his fitness. As the match is on Sunday, I’m betting he is available, though he’ll be on the bench. I expect to see Adebayor up front with Henry. Ade gives defenders fits, especially Rio “I wanna be funny like Ashton Kutcher… that’s a good gag innit… but I should have been focusing a bit more on football in the World Cup, etc. etc.” Ferdinand. RvP on the bench can add some new direction and fresh legs though. We’ll see, and I still think it will be a tough match, but I’m leaning (of course) in the Arsenal direction.

Across London in the west part of town, stories continue to abound over the disaster that is the Chelsea locker room. Manager Jose Mourinho (giant ego) and owner Roman Abramovich (billions of $’s and an even bigger ego) have supposedly been butting heads lately over issues such as Schevchenko playing, transfer kitty’s, etc. The dynamics of the manager-owner-player relationships over there are very interesting indeed. So, let’s start with the owner. Roman Abramovich is a Russian billionaire who purchased Chelsea in 2003 and is someone who wants to flaunt his wealth and have the biggest and best. He currently owns 4 of the largest yachts in the world, big houses, helicopters, etc. So it stands to reason that he wants the best football club in the world. Therefore, he opens his checkbook and lets then manager Claudio Ranieri buy who he wants. But, just buying players doesn’t mean you are going to win trophies, which is what happened and Ranieri was booted out of the club. RA then signs Jose Mourinho who had just won the Champions League with Portuguese side Porto.

So Mourinho comes aboard, buys some more players at ridiculous salaries, and wins the league. He does the same the next year, though it isn’t as big of a blowout as it was the previous season. So now we are in his third year there, he brings in 2 more big signings (Ballack and Shevchenko) for £30m each, and neither are really producing as they should, especially Sheva (who is rumored to be best buds with Abramovich). Alongside this, there are a rash of injuries (Terry, Cech, Cudicini, etc.) and Man U gets off to a great start in the league. Suddenly, Chelsea are not top of the table but second. This wouldn’t be so bad for many clubs, but RA wants to be the best. The pressure is on.

So the rumors of riffs and player problems begin to pour out of The Bridge. RA is all over Mourinho, Mourinho says he needs money to get new players, the players think Sheva is a mole, and on and on. But here is what I think is happening. While Chelsea were winning, RA pretty much let things go and didn’t interfere too much. He knows Mourinho has a big mouth and a bigger ego, but he was producing so let him be. Now, the results aren’t up to RA’s snuff, and he is starting to meddle in the club. He wants his ego sated and thinks that with all he has spent, the club and players should produce. True to some degree. Mourinho feels he is the lynchpin in the organization and he needs whatever he asks for. This a bit true as well, because as we’ve seen, you have to have the players as well as the management to win. So it seems the club have two giant egos and one small roof. Mourinho won’t stand for it and will probably leave in the summer, with the club being hard pressed to find a better manager (rumors have it Sven is being courted, which proves my point). In addition, some of the players may go because they aren’t getting playing time (Sheva, Wright-Phillips) or just want out. So Chelsea will be where they were when Ranieri was manager and will slip in the table. Roman may try to revive the club but it will be hard to relive the glory of two consecutive League titles and he’ll probably grow weary of the club soon after. Maybe he’ll sell it or he’ll stop putting in so much cash and expect the club to support itself, which will mean no more unlimited signings. All in all, I think the days of the big bucks and lopsided club finances are drawing to an end, and I can’t be happier. Not just because I support another club, but because it will be good for all of English football.

Finally, if you are Plymouth fan and tell everyone you’re Argyle till you die, you may need to rephrase it so that you are Argyle forever. Plymouth have just signed a deal with the Co-Operative Society's funeral services in order to offer fans a true club send-off. Packages are reported to offer “endless options for you to tailor your funeral to reflect your love of Argyle, from tastefully decorated coffins to having the catering at Home Park.” Not a bad way to go! Time to put your order in Graeme!

Adios.