Ancelotti appointment must be the first of many changes at Chelsea

Premier League / Tareq Quiroz / 01 June 2009 / Leave a Comment

Fresh blood is needed at Stamford Bridge as ageing squad begins to creak.

So, that's it for another season. The big games have come so thick and fast in recent weeks I don't know what I am going to do with myself. All I have now is endless days checking my club's website to see if we are making any signings. Only the summer reflection will tell me if that was a satisfactory season but I am inclined to think that was an above average season of football.

I may be satisfied but it is clear that for some clubs only trophies will bring that feeling. And for certain clubs only the Champions League title is enough to keep the bosses happy. Chelsea are undoubtedly the team that would spring to most people's minds at that statement. They have gone through an incredible four managers in the last two seasons as they search desperately for that elusive crown. Desperation is most definitely the key word there and I think that has now reached its pinnacle with the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti.

The Ancelotti move is a clear sign that Chelsea are intent on winning the Champions League at all costs. Those costs being for me any chance of winning the Premier League title. In eight seasons in charge of a Milan side full of amazing players Ancelotti only managed to secure the Serie A title on one occasion. On the positive side he did manage to win two Champions League crowns in that time.

Ancelotti has been accused of being defensive in the past and I think you will most definitely see that type of approach with his new Chelsea team. The way he sets his teams up suggests to me that they just won't win enough games next season to compete for the title. His tactical know how and experience of European football both as a player and manager will however suit the challenges of the Champions League.

Chelsea fans may be happy that they have secured the man they were after but I am not sure how long that will last. I can already see a stodgy start to the season and the fans will not be best pleased to see safety first football. I don't blame Abramovich for trying a change in tactic but I fear it is a doomed one. They are currently trading at [4.1] for next season's Premier League title and I don't expect many shrewd punters to be getting involved backing them at that price.

I think that the FA Cup final win will paper over the cracks for the time being but make no mistake this is a Chelsea team who are on the way down not up. Some players are just showing slight signs of getting past their best and there's not an awful lot to be scared of on the bench.

This is a side that needs rebuilding if they want any further major success. It is time for everyone connected with Chelsea to stand up and see what is going on. For the last six seasons they have had one almighty go at dominating domestic and European football. There have been six domestic trophies but no European ones. The league title has eluded them for the last three seasons as their desire to win the Champions League gets in the way of everything else. They will undoubtedly adopt the same though process next season and attack a Champions League for which they are third favourites at odds of [8.6].

If Ancelotti takes over this group of players without major overhaul then they will not come in the first two in the Premier League and will not get past the quarter finals in the Champions League. The likes of Lampard, Carvalho, Anelka, Drogba and Ballack would all be in a top 10 list of Chelsea's best players over the last five years. But the other thing they all have in common is that they are all now in their 30s. These players are not getting any better and pretty soon they will pick up more injuries and performance levels will drop.

Ancelotti doesn't have the credentials to make this work. He will soon find that his best players are past it and I seriously doubt that he will bring success to Stamford Bridge. Abramovich has shown that he is not a particularly forgiving chairman and it wouldn't surprise me if by this time next year neither he nor Ancelotti are at Chelsea FC.