Salomon Kalou and William Gallas – foes now, teammates next season?
(Picture: Reuters)
SALOMON Kalou has caused a stir among Chelsea and Arsenal fans by saying that he is a fan of Arsene Wenger and is very open to playing for the current Arsenal manager (see story here).
The 23-year-old made the comments right after Chelsea’s 1-0 victory over Juventus in the Champions League, and hot on the heels of recent revelations of a fractured Chelsea dressing room under the reign of former manager Luiz Felipe Scolari.
While Didier Drogba has whined – one too many times – about wanting to leave in the past, and shocking rumours of a player mutiny (with Drogba, Petr Cech and Michael Ballack being fingered as the main culprits), Kalou is the first player outburst to come out of the Chelsea dressing room since the arrival of Guus Hiddink.
While Drogba has now publicly stated that he is happy to stay at Chelsea, the Blues will do well to persuade Kalou that his future lies in the blue half of London.
After all, Roman Abramovich is not going to spend big anymore on players, and the likes of Kalou, Michael Mancienne, Michael Essien and Joe Cole could prove to be the spine of the next winning team, with Drogba and Ballack starting to lose their edge with their age.
But first, Hiddink has got to work his famous man-management skills on calming his players down, otherwise there could be a significant exodus come the end of the season.
WELCOME TO THE POSTMAN'S NEIGHBOURHOOD 
I don’t think any manager in this world can control a Chelsea team full of egos. Big Phil can’t, and even Jose Mourinho experienced the brunt of players’ unhappiness while he was at Stamford Bridge.
Hiddink is a good manager who commands respect from everyone in the game. But he has to get the Chelsea job on a permanent basis first. Players might not be willing to listen to him if he is only staying for a few months.
If he does stay long-term, he needs to get rid of some disturbance in the squad. The likes of Ballack, Drogba, Kalou and Malouda are disrupting figures, while the underperforming Cech, Ivanovic, Deco and Anelka to a certain extent have to be careful too.
Some of the players I mentioned above can’t stand being left out of the starting lineup and these are the ones causing disharmony. Hiddink needs to sell them and buy players who are willing to be rotated because soccer is a team game. One of the reason why United are so successful is because players like Fletcher, Foster, Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Neville, Evans, O’Shea, Rafael, Park, Nani, Anderson, Gibson, Welbeck, Tevez, Rooney are all willing to sacrifice for the team’s cause.
Conclusion:
If Hiddink wants to bring the squad together and have them unite like a big family, he has to sell those unhappy players and those who are unable to give 110% every week for the team. His previous teams, the Australia and South Korea national team all had super team spirit and they play for one another. If Hiddink can transform those qualities to Chelsea, the Blues could well give the Red Devils a run of their money……
Comment by Loh Shengli, 24, Man United — February 27, 2009 @ 3:32 pm
With Kalou’s ‘secret admiration’ for Arsenal, it is no secret that Guus is not getting the Chelsea’s dressing room under control. With the future of the club so uncertain, with so many players from the previous reigns and managers, it is no wonder there is so much uncertainty in the dressing room.
One reason why Man U and Arsenal are the two most successful teams since the inception of the EPL is stability, something that Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have brought to their respective clubs. But with Guus only here for the remaining few months, most players will want to ‘play well’ so that they can be transferred to a club of their choice.
The uncertainty of having yet another anager comes in and leaving in less than a year’s time, like a certain Phil, seems disruptive to the players.
No doubt, Guus has brought his ‘one for all, all for one’ football to Chelsea, but it is not expected to be there in a long run, and the players know it.
All in all, I envisionage that the next Chelsea manager will get a hard time trying to rebuild this team.
Comment by Eric Lim Wee Hiok — February 27, 2009 @ 3:49 pm
While a large team of egoistic players are hard to please, Chelsea’s frequent change in manager is probably the main cause of the whole dressing room issue. Players seem to pledge their loyalty to certain managers instead of the club. Drogba have been ranting about joining Mourinho. Deco and Boswinga have a close bond with Scolari, and his departure will probably unsettle them. The problem is that each manager tries to form a team which suits his tactics, and having a team built up of players bought by different managers is hardly a good thing. One reason for Man Utd success is because the whole team is built up through the years by a single manager, and a world-class one. Fregie had the time and money to build up a team, which is able to match his ambitions and tactics.
Managers need time to work their magic, so does Hiddink. The Dutch have just taken over, and he needs time to settle the rubbish left over by previous managers. In any case, Hiddink is starting to win players over. At the next transfer window, he should probably cash out on players who seriously wish to leave, and buy in new players which fit into his plans. Harmony within the club is important if they wish to focus on challenging for honors next season.
The Russian boss wants everything, from the Premiership crown to European glory, and he wants them to be won in style, not to mention his lack of patience. I believe that if Hiddink is given enough time to build up his team, Chelsea will be gunning for doubles and triplets in years to come.
Comment by Suen Chun Lung — February 27, 2009 @ 5:55 pm
Hiddink apparently has got Chelsea playing football again but whether he got the dressing room under control remain to be seen. There are definitely some big egos at the dressing room in Chelsea and it would not be easy to accommodate everyone.
While Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea was praised for having character in the face of a defeat, individually the players are not angels. Petr Cech seemingly has something to do with Scolari sacking while Ashley Cole left Arsenal in a quest for more money, Lampard appeared in a sex video in 2000 and Drogba has whine so much that it is no longer news worthy. Furthermore Mikel was recently charged with drunk driving and Ballack had a row with his national team coach and might have something to do with Scolari sacking, Even the new signings can’t stay out of the headlines, Bosingwa kicked Benayoun at the back out of frustration and Ricardo Quaresma was described as mentally weak by Mourinho. Of course, JohnTerry was previously involved in an incident at a West London nightclub. Hiddink would definitely be busy trying to keep their character in check and get everyone to fight together as a team. There are too many disturbances at the club.
As for Kalou, I believe it could be Kalou himself that started the rumour. It is highly unlikely that Wenger would want him. He has Adebayor, Eduardo, Van Persie, Bendtner, Vela and possibly Arshavin and Walcott that can play up front. kalou might have started the rumour as he might want to join his Ivory Coast team mates at Arsenal. That is because despite Drogba “affirmation” that he is staying at Chelsea, he might still be regarded as a disruptive force in the dressing room and as such this could be Drogba’s last season at Chelsea.
Hiddink of course need not need to do anything more, given the situation at Chelsea. He could have just focus on the footballing side and try to win a trophy or two. But then again, Hiddink is known to be a strict disciplinarian and would not tolerate such nonsense from his players, hence the players would try to keep it under wraps. My guess is that at the end of the season, Hiddink will feedback to Roman Abramovich of the players characters and give some advice to the next manager, rumoured to be Dick Advocaat. After all, there is only a few months before the season end, Hiddink can try to keep the dressing room under control but the leopard spots would appear again when the new manager arrive, by then that would be too late to change anything. Surely, Hiddink would not let that happen to his good friend and pay master for both Chelsea and Russia
Comment by Chian Kong — February 27, 2009 @ 6:07 pm
I would say that there was nothing really wrong with the dressing room in the first place. Chelsea has a small squad and the core of the team has been playing together for many years. Even Ballack has been here for 2.5 years while Anelka is familiar with the french speaking players like Drogba and Malouda. John Terry has been absolutely classy in making sure that the dressing room is cohesive and united. He wwould organise dinners and go karting sessions for the dressing room and the fact that this bunch of guys have been through hell in Moscow and Wembley last year, they should have been cohesive enough. When Terry and Lampard went to ask Scolari to increase the intensity of training, it was a representation of the whole dressing room I believe. That Scolari’s methods were more for flair players like Ronaldinho and Ronaldo who obviously dont like to work too hard in training. With Scolari’s international experience, he might have a misconception of the intensity of play in the premier league. SO the fact is that the players as a whole are wary of his tactics and not satisfied with the intensity during training. That is why they fail to perform during the matches and kept losing to their rivals who are able to match their technical superiority. In comes Hiddink who seems to value hard work over flair but is adept at combining both. The players themselves also know that to continue to underperform, the focus will no longer be on the coach but on them. Their ego is at stake. Perhaps Hiddink has also shown his support for Terry and Lampard who are essential if you want to win the dressing room over. The increase in intensity would also have pleased everyone and one touch football is too Arsenal for the liking of the Chelsea players. They prefer to play the ball fast and an incisive pass by Lampard or Ballack to open up the defence. Or punt the ball up to Drogba so he can hold it up or work out a shooting opportunity himself. While Scolari favoured the cross from the sideline, the real chelsea prefers a slow high ball from the back to that their players have time to jostle for a good position and get into favourable positions. So tactically and training wise, Hiddink seemed to have earned the trust of the players. With Scolari seemingly favouring Deco because his alarming loss of form forced Scolari to drop him, Hiddink is giving everyone a fair chance. Most of all, he values Lampard and Terry. No one will begrudge Lamps for being the manager’s golden boy because he has proven on innumerous occasions that he can single handedly save the club. Of course, that he brings Drogba into play is another reason why Chelsea’s form is picking up. So I would fully expect them to maintain their challenge for the title under Hiddink because there is a cohesive dressing room.
Comment by Yam Hing — March 3, 2009 @ 3:42 pm
During the early days when Saloman Kalou played at Chelsea, my friend (a Liverpool fan), was simply in awe of this Ivory Coast player, claiming that he will one day be a world beater.
I disagreed with him.
A highly skilled player would be an exciting prospect to watch, but will never be a legendary player.
The likes of Maradona, Pele, and possibly Ronaldo had something in common: the WILL to become the best.
Kalou, for all his potential, looked like a player more inclined to big-money transfers, and promises of throphies than loyalty at a club.
Remember the disgraceful attempt to be registered in time for Holland at the 2006 World Cup? If even the highly strung Drogba could turn up for the African nation on a regular basis, why fight to play for a more illustrious national team?
Mecenaries, will never be a true great.
Back to the topic, Kalou’s outburst might be an attempt to get himself transferred to Real Madrid or Barcelona, following the footsteps of ex-teammate Robben.
In summary, Kalou’s whining does not mean that Hiddink is not good at managing egos.
Adrian Lim, 29, Civil Servant
Norwich City Fan
Comment by Adrian Lim — March 3, 2009 @ 8:33 pm
My uncle, who is a Man U fan since he was a kid told me Guus Hiddink is forced to work for Chelsea because Roman is paying his salary as Russia coach.
Hiddink is steadying this Chelsea ship. I don’t think there’ll be an exodus for the new manager next season as the Chelsea players are like family. Roman loves his players. He would help them with almost anything if they have problems.
The players are in kindness debt to Roman. There will be no more likes of ingrates like William Gallas.
Qyaerus-Syahrein, 27, Sengkang Punggol fan
Comment by Alex Hart — March 4, 2009 @ 4:37 pm
I can tell that this is not the first time you write about the topic. Why have you chosen it again?
Comment by How to Get Six Pack Fast — April 15, 2009 @ 11:45 pm