Speaking exclusively to BOYLE Sports, Premier League legend William Gallas has given his perspective on whether or not Liam Rosenior is the right man to bring former club Chelsea forward and wants to see the Blues make an offer to Diego Simeone if the position becomes available this summer.
The former defender has given his analysis of the Chelsea defensive situation arguing that it lacks leadership and assesses whether Christian Romero or John Stones could be a solutions come to the Summer Transfer Window.
Elsewhere, he gives opinion on the points deduction debate, whether Everton and Nottingham Forest have legitimate gripes with how the situation was handled and his prediction ahead of Chelsea vs Port Vale at the weekend.
Liam Rosenior
Can Chelsea Win Silverware With Liam Rosenior?
That's a good question. After the Everton result, a lot of people will say maybe he’s not the right man. But I think the biggest problem is the squad at the moment. Any manager who is going to join Chelsea is going to have a difficult time because it looks like the players are a little bit lost.
Maybe that’s why the manager needs to have more time to refresh the brain of the players, to rebuild the team, but as we know, Chelsea is a club that needs to have success. We need victory. Right now, when you look at Chelsea's position, it's not good in the Premier League. They are in sixth position, six points behind fourth place. They need to qualify for the Champions League . It is a very difficult moment for everyone, including the manager.
Will He Get Time?
With Chelsea’s owners, anything can happen. Nobody knows what is going to happen at the end of the season. It was really difficult to accept the result against Paris Saint-Germain. A 8-2 loss is very hard to take, and then they lost 3-0 to Everton .
They have to find a solution this weekend against Port Vale in the FA Cup to get a better result and come back with a victory, but you don't know what the owners are already thinking. You don't know what they will do if they are already looking for a new manager. Maybe they think they made a mistake to bring Liam in.It would be difficult to sack him before the end of the season. I don't think it would be a good idea for anybody, but for the manager, it would be a disaster. For the fans, it would cause even more frustration against the owners.
Rosenior’s Replacement?
What kind of manager did Chelsea need? I think it all depends on what you are looking for. For the long-term, you can bring in Cesc Fabregas because he is doing well with his club at the moment. He is young and able to speak to a young squad. He's doing a good job. In the long term, he can bring Chelsea back to the positions where everybody wants to see Chelsea .
If you are thinking about the short-term, to have success straight away, they need that experienced head to guide them, like Diego Simone and with his personality, he can win things very soon with Chelsea . Maybe the Chelsea players need him too, because we need to see more warriors and soldiers in the team after what they’ve shown us. I think you need that type of manager who is a little bit more harsh on the players.
Is Immediate Success Needed?
Speaking as a former player, especially for a big club like Chelsea , you do need success right away. But now everybody says you need time to rebuild a club, and that’s why so many clubs like Manchester United , Arsenal and other clubs are these long-term projects, but for me, that’s only because of mistakes they made in the past. That’s why a club like Manchester United , even if they are coming back, are coming back slowly, slowly. Even for me, they are not at their best again yet. I remember when I used to play against Manchester United . That club was very scary. Even the players on the pitch, it was something when you played against them.
The last few years have been a disaster for them. With Michael Carrick, they are coming back, but even when you look at the squad, they are not really a scary team anymore. That is because of mistakes they made in the past. That's why now everybody says you need time. You need to give some time for clubs to come back to their level. That’s how people speak about it, but I disagree. For me, for a big club, you need to have a result straight away.
Chelsea’s Defence
Lacking Leadership
Are Chelsea missing a leader for their defence at centre-back? I have spoken about the problem for many years and I think the people who are in charge of recruiting players, some of them need to be doing a better job.
They need to understand how important it is to bring experienced players into your squad, especially in your defensive line, but also in midfield or in attack. You need experienced players in every line of your team. At centre-back, you need experience in the middle of the backline. As a centre-back, you need to have one player who can control, who can speak to his defenders, who can speak to his midfielders and take the pressure on his shoulders.
Romero To Cross London?
Christian Romero is a winner, but he could not be the new Thiago Silva at Chelsea . If I have to think of players like Thiago Silva now in the Premier League , I can’t find anyone right now. I would put him and John Terry in the same spot, even though I didn’t play with Thiago Silva , but I have seen him, and he was just fantastic.
As a player and a captain, Christian Romero has a different style. What you need is one experienced player who can control every team, and when you play alongside Romero , I think a player might feel less secure, especially when you are young. You need players who won’t take a red card for a stupid foul. For me, Romero has to improve in this part because he puts his teams in trouble.Maybe Chelsea need to look for centre-backs who can bring you all these things to be calm and have that security to be a good captain at the back.
Stones Solution?
What does John Stones bring to Chelsea ? Leadership experience and composure. He is calm. He can bring you everything. He looks like he can be the right guy to be the leader of the defence line at centre-back. I think Stones can be a good idea.
Chelsea vs Port Vale
Everton & Nottingham Forest Complaint
Listen, I don’t think Chelsea need to have points taken off them. They have been fined already. If they make a mistake, they make a mistake. If other clubs are complaining because they still have the same points, I don’t think the authorities can double-punish Chelsea . You don’t need to do more.
Is it fair that Everton or Forest were given points deductions? That is another question. You have to ask the Premier League or the FA why they do this.
Prediction: Chelsea vs Port Vale
I think Port Vale are in League One and they are at the bottom of the table. I think they will be relegated to League Two , so it would be a disaster if Chelsea slipped up. If they have a bad result against Port Vale, that would be the end of the manager. I don’t think it is a good idea to sack him before the end of the season, but if he lost against Port Vale, that would be the end for him. The fans would be fuming, but sometimes you have to be careful. If they come to Stamford Bridge , it is different. Chelsea will win 3-0.
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