It doesn’t rain, but it pours. Well, for Frank Arnesen and Chelsea’s youth set-up, at least.
Yesterday I posted on Arnesen’s poor record at Chelsea and the lack of young players pushing for a place in the first team. In what has become a vicious circle, it looks like the general shortage of young talent at the club has combined with the lack of opportunities afforded to those who do have ability to make Chelsea a very unattractive prospect to players learning their trade.
It’s reported today that long-time Chelsea target, Jonjo Shelvey (he was included in the bridgeviews list of rumoured Chelsea transfers back in early June), has turned down the opportunity to join the Blues. Now I haven’t seen the Charlton man play, but reportedly he’s a rising star, a box-to-box midfielder who has a bit of everything to his game. The news will come as a double blow to Arnesen after Frank Nouble, the striker who learned the game at Chelsea and scored 12 goals for the under-18s last season, refused a new contract and joined West Ham two weeks ago. Two seventeen year olds turn down one of the biggest clubs in the world inside of a month. Is that some kind of record?
Breaking it down, you would imagine that Chelsea would generally be an attractive prospect for youngsters – learning alongside some of the best in the business, training at the very best facilities and so on. So there’s obviously a perception out there – and a fair one - that young players don’t get chances at Chelsea, and other clubs that can offer less in other departments are deemed more attractive (in the case of Shelvey, West Ham). To reverse that perception young players need to be given opportunities, and to an extent that is down to the manager. Encouragingly, Ancelotti looks willing to give the likes of Mancienne, Hutchinson and Sinclair a go.
But if Ancelotti is to do it consistently, two things will need to change: Arnesen will have to provide the players; and both the board and the media will need to reduce their expectations of the side to win everything immediately. Without those two things, Carlo might not have enough room to manoeuver.
if he hasn't got the bottle to come and play for a big side then we're probably better off without him anyway.
it's all paper talk i think though.
Posted by: chelsfan | 05 August 2009 at 08:51
Chelsfan - thanks again for your comment.
We do want players with the determination and stomach to play for a top side. I can't help but think that some players - maybe Wright-Phillips is a good example - haven't made it at Chelsea not necessarily because they weren't good enough but because mentally they were happier being in a smaller pond (that said I don't think SWP was good enough technically, either).
But I think Shelvey is a bit different - reports suggest he's some kind of progidy, and he's young enough to take the long-term career view. And for some reason he didn't choose us...
Posted by: Russell Saunders | 05 August 2009 at 18:07