Chelsea's Perfect Storm

22 July, 2014

        

Jose Mourinho may have just pulled off one of the finest pieces of business in the history of the transfer window.  David Luiz left Chelsea for Paris St. Germain prior to the World Cup for a staggering fee in the region of 40 million pounds (some reports claimed 50 million).  Before the World Cup, Chelsea fans may have been sad to see the floppy-haired defender exit Stamford Bridge (their opinions may have changed afterward... http://cdn29.elitedaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/david-luiz-crying-elite-daily.jpg).  When he arrived in January of 2011, Luiz was an instant injection of energy into a rather aging squad and made a habit of accumulating fan-voted man of the match awards.  His heroics in the 2012 Champions League mustn’t be forgotten among Chelsea diehards either; following a 1-3 defeat to Napoli in Italy, Luiz led a furious 4-1 comeback victory in extra time and was subsequently named man of the match by UEFA.  After missing the semi-final against Barcelona with a muscle injury, Luiz deputized for the suspended John Terry alongside a makeshift back line of the exit-bound Jose Bosingwa, an unconvincing Gary Cahill, and the reliable Ashley Cole, and managed to spearhead an upset over the heavily favored Bavarians.  

However, with Luiz leaving Chelsea, the summer window couldn’t have started any better for the East Londoners.  Obviously, the staggering transfer fee makes it very, very appealing to fans and club executives alike who watched an ageless John Terry and the now rejuvenated Cahill form a rock-solid partnership in the middle of defense.  The versatility of Branislav Ivanovic and Cesar Azpilicueta only adds to the conundrum of why they even kept Luiz around for this long (most of his playing time this last season was out of position in defensive midfield).  The money that the Luiz sale generated was meaningless unless Mourinho addressed his squad needs immediately, which he absolutely did. 

Between the purchases Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Felipe Luis, Nemanja Matic (January), and the return of Thibault Courtois to the club, Mourinho has used the Luiz sale as a platform for addressing every need at the club.  The combined production of Samuel Eto’o, Fernando Torres, and Demba Ba cowers in the shadow of Diego Costa’s body of work, while the combination of Matic and Fabregas truly makes the Chelsea midfield efficient in every facet.  Petr Cech, who has been as loyal of a servant to Chelsea as anyone over the last decade, is 32, and faced no real competition from the ancient Mark Schwarzer last season.  Adding Courtois to the mix will only elevate Cech’s game (he is likely to retain the #1 goalkeeping spot), but also serves as a changing of the guard in a position so critical to a club’s long-term success.

Easily the most under-the-radar first-team move Chelsea have made in the last two transfer windows was the purchase of Kurt Zouma from St. Etienne in January, which opened the door for Luiz’s exit.  Premier League fans probably aren’t familiar with the 19-year old French center back who is widely regarded as one of the best young players in Europe.  To give you an idea of what kind of talent this young man possesses, Les Blues’ manager Didier Deschamps sees Zouma, who has yet to make an appearance for the senior team, as a future France captain.  High praise from a man who has both captained France to World Cup glory and managed his national team in the same competition.  As he did with Raphael Varane at Real Madrid, it’s almost a sure thing Mourinho will transform the already impressive Zouma into a top-class defender.  Zouma will feature in the first team this season, and will surely benefit from the tactical soundness of Chelsea’s more senior defenders (keep in mind Luiz was likely the most tactically undisciplined player at the club), who still have at least a couple more seasons left in their legs.

Which leads me to my final point; David Luiz showed throughout the World Cup how tactically undisciplined he is, and how unwarranted his title as “worlds most expensive defender” really is.  By the time the Germans played Brazil, Luiz’s deficiencies had been figured out.  Throughout the tournament, Luiz’s careless positioning upfield and unnerving habits of streaking forward recklessly were covered up by the excellent Thiago Silva (who, luckily for Luiz, will suit up alongside him next season).  However, with a much less mobile and likely rusty Dante coming into the side against Germany, Brazil were mightily exposed.  Time and time again, Luiz committed himself to the midfield against the run of play, allowing Germany to simply pass it around until enough Brazilians followed suit, and could eventually pass it into the net past hopeless Julio Cesar.  

Chelsea enter the 2014/2015 season as favorites to win the Premier League, and for good reason.  They’ve done the most in the transfer market thus far, and people will be most excited about Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa.  However, the sale of David Luiz put all the wheels in motion for Chelsea, both short and long-term.  Zouma spells a bright future for the Chelsea defense, while established players like Fabregas and Costa have joined as a result of the enormous fee Paris St. Germain paid for Luiz.  Mourinho has again proven he deserves the self-bestowed title ‘the special one,’ and surely expects this season to be just as special.