Todd Boehly runs the danger of angering Chelsea fans by switching to Roman Abramovich
News about Chelsea: Todd Boehly could rebel, putting the Blues in a worse situation than they ever were under Roman Abramovich.
When Chelsea dropped in the standings or was eliminated from the Champions League between 2003 and 2022, it was frequently obvious who was to blame. At least it became obvious who was receiving the most of the pressure and attention. It was the managers, as it always is in football.
When players like John Terry, Frank Lampard, Petr Cech, and Didier Drogba consistently win awards and performances improve when a new coach takes over, it must be the coaches who are doing something wrong, right? The same can be said for Ashley Cole and Michael Essien for a spell.
That was Roman Abramovich's strategy. For the paying spectators in the stands, it was a quick and easy process. Next manager to enter the scene. Simple as you'd like. This success has resulted in a degradation in the club's stability over that time period, which was generally overlooked until it was too late.
It's difficult to be too critical of a team that wins the Champions League and makes it to cup finals. It's quite the record: two European championships, six domestic finals, a Club World Cup, and a UEFA Super Cup in six years. In the meantime, the league's points fluctuated between a peak of 93 and a low of 66 (till current season). As Chelsea enters its final years under Abramovich, the slump that began last season has only become worse this one.
There was almost a 30 point decline over the course of three years. Although the bar for winning the league increased over that time, the champions' totals of 99, 98, and 100 points represent an exceptional degree of success. However, Chelsea was so far behind that it was difficult to detect any improvement or even stability despite the continued flow of trophies.
Steps up Darren Boehly. the person who claims to gradually improve. After a final choice regarding the location or design of the new stadium is made, the stadium experience will undoubtedly improve, and Chelsea will likely operate, at least off the pitch, like a modern club during the next five years.
The league standings must also become better because if they decline, a real relegation struggle would ensue. However, Chelsea has not performed on this stage in many years.
Throughout Abramovich's 19 years as Chelsea's owner, there was practically never any resentment directed at him. Managers took the blow, and players were kicked out, booed, and had their heads demanded. Banners have expressed dissatisfaction with even a team's stars; intense rage at everything short of victory goes hand in hand with an unquenchable thirst for victory.
Even the most well-known directors have received negative reviews on social media, but the person in charge has never benefited from that attention. The dark figure was seated in the tallest chair at the largest table at the largest castle, with the largest stakes. Abramovich was invincible when it came to Chelsea.
How should anyone insult someone so honourable as to forgive the club's £1.5 billion debt to him. So what if it doesn't follow the popular model of top-tier football clubs in the 2010s when spending is high but cups are won. It's a Catch-22 since Chelsea might not have succeeded had they tried to utilise a different strategy. The good years are better than no years at all.
More to do with who they aren't than who they are in their first 10 months, according to Co. On the night of a terrible humiliation, making audacious 3-0 predictions over the frequent Champions League champions isn't a good look. Neither is publicly calling a game "s***" on video.
Sacking a manager who had the support of the fans and had united them once more in opposition to a team of underwhelming, characterless players is a terrible move. Seven months later, after investing £20 million to secure said manager, they embarrassingly get go of the 'chosen one'. There is not much debate on this. In order to win over the public, Boehly and his co-owners haven't chosen wisely.
In the short term, the fans don't really care about a summer of terrible transfers, a PR caretaker appointment, or now talking to the dressing room after another loss. Winning and a sense of unity are what matter. It didn't really matter who he was, what he did or didn't do, or even what he said or didn't say (at least not till the end) because Abramovich had that. Chelsea are currently so far away from this that it is difficult to predict who the next popular person will be.
Because Chelsea supporters have no desire to change, the hurt from the previous 12 months has been compounded by emotional weariness and confusion. Contrary to Arsenal, Tottenham, Liverpool, or Manchester United, Abramovich has not been the target of any demonstrations. Boehly isn't successful, Russian, or an oligarch. Being the next in line is his worst flaw. How do you adhere to the unachievable?
That does not imply that changes cannot occur. If Chelsea makes the correct choice for their next head coach, there is a potential they might swiftly get back on track. With the right infrastructure, academy, players, and youth system in place, a reasonably rapid turnaround is not difficult to envision. Boehly is swiftly reaching a revolution that Abramovich never had in the meantime.
Against Brighton, pictures of fans in the east stand looking down over the director's box conveyed the story. The main problem the personnel under scrutiny have is that Chelsea don't do patience. Over time, changing the club's culture is possible, but only if there are indications of what's to come. There are not at the moment.
Although Lampard is a coach to support, this isn't a team to rally around. He still has seven league games left and perhaps just one more European match to play. The squad is disorganised, worn out, and lacks leaders and guidance. The people at the top of the tree are approached when there is no one else to complain to or about.
A new manager would be in place before Abramovich's decisions were really contested, so attention would often shift away from him swiftly. Trophies won are difficult to argue against. Boehly currently has nowhere to run. Questions are pouring at him quickly, as is only fitting. It's a turn that fans haven't witnessed in a long time.
How can you change the perception that there were no issues with the club in the beginning, despite the fact that the aforementioned league results and the following reorganisation of the personnel suggest otherwise? Abramovich is not Boehly. This ownership has no desire to lose money in their quest for victory. Although it has been shown that they will invest considerably, their plans do not centre on maintaining this trend.
It's challenging to put the framework in place to provide consistent outcomes over time, but in the meanwhile, they need to find a method to balance getting things done because if things don't turn around soon, they run the risk of falling into a hole that is dark and uncharted.
They won't worry because they specialise in long-term, incremental improvement. The narrative that it might not be possible in football at this time will only seem more plausible the longer it takes for that to bear fruit.
That will only cause them more harm. The owners are at the centre of the growing pressure that is currently affecting Chelsea.
