Chapter 791: Chelsea Is Finished

Manchester City's hard-fought 2-0 win over Everton didn't stir much attention in the Premier League.

Everyone had already grown used to Manchester City's strength.

Under Gao Shen's leadership, in just over two years, Manchester City had transformed from a nouveau riche club in the eyes of the public into a true Premier League powerhouse. Especially after winning the Champions League, they had firmly established themselves as one of the new giants in English football.

This was also Gao Shen's greatest contribution to Manchester City.

You know, Chelsea still hadn't won a Champions League title.

From Mourinho to Scolari to Hiddink to Ancelotti, and now Villas-Boas, Chelsea had chased the Champions League dream countless times. Abramovich had poured in huge sums of money but had yet to realize that goal.

In this round, Chelsea bounced back from a heavy away defeat to Manchester United by beating newly promoted Swansea 4-1.

This should have been a good thing, but unexpectedly, after the match, the Daily Mail broke an exclusive story.

Lampard and Villas-Boas had fallen out!

The scoop came from Martin Samuel, a columnist at the Daily Mail.

Everyone in English football knew that Martin Samuel was a die-hard Lampard fan and that the two shared a very close relationship.

This chubby journalist from The Times had been poached by the Daily Mail with a sky-high annual salary of £250,000 after he made a name for himself. The reason he often got exclusive inside information from Chelsea was precisely because of his strong connections with Lampard and the Chelsea dressing room.

Back then, when the England national team's "Double D" incident stirred up controversy, Martin Samuel was the one leading the defense of Lampard. His war of words with The Daily Telegraph's Henry Winter had become a spectacle.

Henry Winter was a close friend of Liverpool legend Dalglish and was supported mostly by Liverpool fans. Naturally, he backed Gerrard, which led to many heated arguments between him and Martin Samuel.

This was also a unique trait of the English media.

Each newspaper had its loyal followers. So once trouble started brewing, someone would jump out right away to pour fuel on the fire.

The media used this to create headlines, attract attention, and drive up sales. Clubs, on the other hand, used it to gain exposure and draw fans.

Every club had its own PR department tasked with managing and even manipulating public opinion.

This was the same all over the world.

For instance, Real Madrid once considered asking Casillas' girlfriend to resign from her job and work directly in the club's public relations department. Real Madrid's PR head was Butragueño, who had excellent relations with the Spanish media.

Ferguson mentioned many times in his autobiography that whenever a Manchester United player made a mistake and the media wanted to report it, he would always get word in advance.

Some stories were suppressed by him before they could be published, though there were things he simply couldn't stop.

Of course, suppressing stories came with a cost.

This was why Ronaldinho had criticized Barcelona for not protecting him.

If Barcelona had chosen to protect Ronaldinho, many of the stories about him wouldn't have seen the light of day. Even if they did, slight changes in how they were written would have completely changed the fans' perception of him.

But Barcelona didn't do that.

Once or twice might be tolerable, but if it kept happening and the performances on the pitch dipped, the fans' opinion would nosedive.

This was no coincidence.

Think about it. From Maradona to Rivaldo to Ronaldinho, Deco, and even to Messi in the future, Barcelona had always had the same approach when letting players go.

Real Madrid wasn't innocent either. They did the same.

From Hierro and Del Bosque to Raul, then Casillas, and later Ramos.

All the same.

From the club management perspective, this was just part of the business.

Players like Hierro, Del Bosque, Raul, and Casillas were adored by the local fans, but they were aging.

If they stayed, they would have to be used. If not, they could become a hidden threat in the dressing room.

But selling them was also tricky, given how much the fans loved them. How do you do that?

If you sell them just like that, do you think the fans won't storm the Bernabeu?

So, shaping public opinion became the ideal solution.

Later on, Hierro, Raul, Casillas, and others all returned to Real Madrid in various capacities.

Now, Chelsea was facing a similar issue.

At the beginning of the season, Villas-Boas publicly declared his intention to rebuild the team, and even veterans like Lampard, Terry, and Drogba were on the list.

In the match against Swansea, Lampard stayed on the bench the entire game. Not a single minute on the pitch.

Before the final whistle, Lampard simply walked away with a gloomy expression, heading straight to the dressing room without a smile. His entire demeanor screamed "unhappy."

The next day, Daily Mail published an article by Martin Samuel, directly criticizing Villas-Boas for showing a lack of respect to veteran players like Lampard, and claimed Chelsea didn't have the strength to challenge for the title this season.

There was no doubt that Martin Samuel was targeting Villas-Boas.

Paired with Lampard's early exit, this was bound to provoke a reaction from Chelsea fans.

Lampard's status in their hearts was no less than that of captain Terry.

Now you, a newcomer, want to sideline our beloved local hero? Fine, but if you're not as good as Mourinho and the team doesn't perform, don't expect us to back you.

And right now, it doesn't look like Villas-Boas is that impressive.

Martin Samuel pointed out that Lampard had only featured in four matches so far this season, three off the bench, one as a starter but subbed off midway. This had even cost him his place in the national team.

"He doesn't want to be a substitute anymore!"

When Gao Shen read this, he felt helpless.

Did Villas-Boas do the right thing?

In the long run, yes.

But in terms of approach and execution, he made a huge mess.

This was just the beginning. Turmoil in the dressing room was coming. Veterans like Drogba and Terry would push back. The team's performance would tank. Then Villas-Boas would start pleading with the veterans to deliver results.

That would be something to see.

Sometimes, Gao Shen felt the world was full of strange surprises.

What do you make of his tactical ideas?

Gao Shen was half his mentor. Boas had often gone to Italy to attend Gao Shen's seminars. His tactical thinking was advanced. He closely followed Gao Shen's philosophy, emphasizing high pressing and similar principles.

He won a treble with Porto, which meant his coaching ability was among the best of his generation.

Of course, that's assuming you don't compare him to Gao Shen!

So, what was Villas-Boas' biggest problem?

Gao Shen felt he was like a very capable department manager who didn't know how to manage his team.

This was common in companies. Such managers often failed to deliver results.

Take the Lampard case, for instance.

If it were Gao Shen, he would never say those things publicly before the season. But he'd still take action behind the scenes.

How?

He's a veteran, right?

I'll handle you one by one.

No big announcements. Quietly phase them out. That way, the team remains stable and the objective is still met—even if it takes a bit longer.

But Villas-Boas had already made bold declarations.

Fine then, go through with it!

You've already offended them, might as well carry it through to the end.

But what did Villas-Boas actually do?

Lampard, Drogba, and Terry were still playing, just less frequently.

As Samuel said, four games so far, Lampard came off the bench in three, started one but was subbed off at half-time.

Seriously, what's that supposed to mean?

Either don't use him at all—be decisive, drop him from the squad, send him to cup games or even the reserves.

If he had real guts, he could've sold Lampard like Ferguson sold Roy Keane.

That's called having spine!

But now, Villas-Boas was trying to smooth things over. Softly explaining Lampard's early substitution, praising him as an extraordinary player who would soon return to the squad and perform better than expected.

What are you even saying?

Could you be any less clear?

With this kind of approach, not only would Lampard's attitude not improve, even the young players who supported you would start having doubts. Would they still go all out for you?

I seriously want to give Villas-Boas a standing ovation.

"Chelsea have no chance of winning the Premier League this season!"

Gao Shen said confidently.

From the moment Villas-Boas took over and based on everything he'd done at Chelsea, Gao Shen was sure he'd meet the same fate as in his previous life—getting sacked midway.

And Chelsea might end up helping Arsenal, Liverpool, or Tottenham.

Besides Manchester United and Manchester City, two of those three teams could very well finish in the top four.

"Chelsea are still in third place right now," Carlo reminded him with a wry smile.

"It's only the sixth round. Just wait and see. Until Villas-Boas is sacked, I'm not wasting my time reading any Chelsea-related news."

When he said that, Gao Shen wore a look of absolute confidence, as if his words were law. Then he turned and left the room in dramatic fashion.

The coaches left behind exchanged glances.

The league had just started, and Chelsea were already being written off?

Villas-Boas had just led Porto to a domestic treble and was Europe's most sought-after young coach. Was he really about to be sacked?

Wasn't that a bit extreme?

"What do we do?" Carlos Vargas looked helplessly at Carlo.

He was new, previously an assistant to Fernando Lucas. Now that Lucas had become Leeds United's CEO, he had been promoted and was still trying to figure out the boss's temperament.

Everyone else just chuckled.

Carlo shook his head and sighed, "What can we do? Just stop bringing him Chelsea gossip. It's a waste of his time."

No one said anything else, but everyone had the same thought.

Could Gao Shen really be right?

Would Villas-Boas really be sacked midway through the season?

The league had just begun, and Chelsea were already doomed?

(To be continued.)