Chelsea unaffected by Spending
Chelsea vice captain Frank Lampard insists that he is unaffected by the large amount of spendings made by rivals Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City this summer to strenghthen their squad. Lampard has maintained that Chelsea is not in a need
of serious team reassignment and that Blues have the right squad to win the Premier League.
Manchester United have brought three players on board with a combined spending of roughly 60m. Liverpool and City have spent approximately the same amount in order to fortify their team positions for the upcoming season.
In response to the huge spendings made by Chelsea rivals vice captain Lampard has stated that, “Manchester United, Liverpool and Man City have spent fortunes on good quality players but we are in a bit of a different situation in that we already had a very
strong squad”.
Lampard has also insisted that the team is doing well under Andre Villas-Boas coaching, saying that training ground is more demanding and fierce: “It’s always been fast and intense and there’s not been one session where people can relax or be sloppy”.
The vice captain, speaking in Kulala Lumpur on the team’s tour of Asia stated that he is assured of the team’s ability despite the fact that the players let the expected high standards slip a little last season. He was found stating that its just a matter
of getting more focused and organized: “Whether Manchester United or any other team spends, we still believe in ourselves.”
On the other hand, Chelsea have been frustrated in the transfer window so far by Tottenham’s desire to keep Luka Modric on board, but the Blues have agreed a deal to sign Belgian goalkeeper Thibault Courtois. Chelsea boss Andre Villas Boas has also confirmed
that Courtois will be joining the team soon. The Belgian foot ball sensation left a lasting impression last season making forty appearences in the pro-league.
Despite Lampard reaasurances regarding the team’s abilities and experience Chelsea performance was largely suboptimal during the last season.
In the light of the performance shown by Chelsea last season the unwavered confidence of Frank Lampard seems a little over assessed and unjustified. Lampard himself is getting old to play football and his retirement from the game is imminent in a matter
of few years.
Given the club’s recent sub-optimal performance, transfer window troubles and growing average age of its players, It becomes all the more important for Chelsea to review its decision to act more aggressively in the transfer market and focus on building its
talent from a long term perspective.