If Rafael “Rafa” Benitez can get fellow Spaniard Fernando Torres playing for Chelsea as he did for Liverpool, then Roman Abramovich’s latest throw of the managerial dice will look like a double six.
Benitez was appointed Chelsea’s caretaker manager on Wednesday until the end of the season, with his immediate task being to shore up a porous defense that has contributed to a run of only two wins in eight games that has left the European champions on the verge of an embarrassing group-stage exit from the UEFA Champions League.
Their 3-0 defeat at Juventus on Tuesday spelt the end of the line for Roberto di Matteo and meant that Chelsea’s prospects are out of their own hands in the final round.
Photo: EPA
Di Matteo himself was brought in as a stop-gap after the sacking of Andrea Villas-Boas last season, but then got the job on a permanent basis after giving owner Roman Abramovich the “big one” in May. However, “permanent” means something entirely different at Chelsea than elsewhere, as evidenced by the nine managers who have now been in the hot seat in the nine years since the Russian billionaire bought the club.
Villas-Boas, now Tottenham Hotspur manager, lasted a similar time to Di Matteo’s 262-day reign, while Carlo Ancelotti was positively long-serving with his two years.
What Ancelotti, Villas-Boas and Di Matteo had in common was their frustration with the performances of Torres, bought under Ancelotti’s reign for a stunning £50 million pounds (US$79.74 million) in January last year.
Photo: Reuters
All three men kept faith with the Spaniard in the face of poor returns before eventually dropping him. However, Di Matteo went furthest, dropping him from Tuesday’s team to face Juventus, despite not having another recognized striker in the team.
Torres has cut a forlorn figure for most of his time in London, but linking up again with Benitez, who bought him for Liverpool from Atletico Madrid in July 2007, could finally kick-start his Stamford Bridge career
“Rafa Benitez has been the most important coach in my career. He has been the only one who knew how to help me improve,” Torres said not in his Liverpool pomp, but a year ago, when he was agonizing over his 25-game scoreless streak for club and country.
The striker has found the net on a reasonably regular basis this season, with seven goals from 19 games, but still looks a shadow of the razor-sharp penalty-box poacher who scored 81 goals in 142 games for Liverpool, including 33 in his first season.
Benitez has been without a club for two years after lasting just six months at Inter and reports said he turned down a short-term deal at Chelsea last season.
The received wisdom is that he is now merely keeping the seat warm for Pep Guardiola, the former Barcelona coach who is enjoying a year’s sabbatical from the game, but Benitez will not see it that way.
Just like Jose Mourinho, the man he locked horns with during those classic Liverpool-Chelsea Champions League clashes of the early 2000s, Benitez is his own No. 1 fan and will no doubt expect to make the job his own beyond this season.
Di Matteo got off to a flying start last year when he turned round a 3-1 first-leg deficit against SSC Napoli in the Champions League first knockout round to win the tie and go on to lift the trophy, and then get the full-time job.
Benitez faces a much tougher task, as even if his new team get their expected win over Danish side Nordsjaelland in their final Group E game in two weeks, a draw between Shakhtar Donetsk and Juventus in Ukraine would send them both through.
However, the Premier League situation is far more salvageable. Chelsea are currently third on 24 points, three behind Manchester United and four behind Manchester City, who they play at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Success shortens the memory and should a revitalized Torres suddenly start banging in the goals at one end and Chelsea’s defense and stiffened midfield stop leaking them at the other, Benitez will be the toast of west London.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely