It hasn’t been the greatest couple of weeks for both Ashley Cole and John Terry, but they will no doubt put it behind them as they look to drive Chelsea to a first Premier League title since 2010.
However, it will be their last chance in the Chelsea blue, as Roman and Roberto’s new age policy is right in play now, meaning neither will be likely to get an extension to their current deals, with Cole’s ending this season, and Terry’s next year. Midfield talisman Frank Lampard will also be likely leaving, possibly even in January, with LA Galaxy interested.
We got a chance to see the Cahill and Luiz partnership again on Saturday, and although they had a poor 10 minutes after the break, they acquitted themselves well, and ultimately we won the game, with Cahill showing he is fine with taking over the goal scoring duties from JT, with a thunderous volley early on.
As for Ashley Cole, we will undoubtedly miss him, proving himself as one of the best full-backs in the world over the past five years or so, but in Ryan Bertrand, we have a fabulous understudy.
It’s harsh to say, but I don’t think we will miss Frank as much as the other two. A great servant over the years, but as a more attack-minded midfielder, we have been spoilt by the likes of Oscar coming into the team, and with Ramires and Mikel performing fantastically, Frank will be no doubt be used sparingly, although no-one can predict injuries, especially with the high volume of games that we will be involved in this year, especially as we continue to progress in all competitions.
As we saw with Drogba this summer though, you certainly don’t know what you’ve got until its gone, and although not missing his goal scoring ability right now, you can definitely notice the difference within the squad without the powerful Ivorian up top.
If the old guard are looking to sign off from London with the Premier League trophy, they are going about it the right way, seven wins and a draw so far, and that one ‘blip’ in the record will be a frustrating one, having come against bottom side QPR, who have only managed three points from their eight games so far.
John Terry will be out of the fray for both the league and league cup encounters with Manchester United now, so we will again get to see Cahill and Luiz tested to the max, that unless Di Matteo decides to mix the selection in the cup, as he did in the demolition of Wolves.
When Roman first came in back in 2003, we witnessed the new regime, and the evolution of heroes such as Terry, Lampard, Cole, Drogba, and Cech. Although the latter may well be here for a few more years, it certainly has a new regime feel again to it, and we can only hope that we have as much success as first time around. Who knows, can Di Matteo prove himself to be the new Special One?
By Brad Smith
Follow @BrummieBrad