International Pain

Article by e-Chelsea Correspondent Lee Beevor

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I have grown to loathe international weeks. For a start, the number of match days is greatly curtailed, with one or two a poor substitute for the six that are often on offer. Secondly, there is the standard of the football itself. With my preferred brand the breakneck pace of the Premier League; internationals are by contrast, pedestrian. As an Englishman I find it frustrating to watch players seemingly paralysed with fear, when for their clubs they are among the best in Europe.

This Wednesday’s match against Denmark was frankly appalling. My entertainment during a turgid 45 minutes was derived via Twitter, with only a flashing Ashley Cole cross which hit the post briefing engaging me. In fact, I gave up on the match completely at half-time, opting for Spain v Italy in preference. In this choice I was rewarded, as from the first whistle Spain tore into the Italians. Their intensity was a complete contrast to England’s listlessness and they could have scored several goals in the first six minutes.

As a Chelsea fan, I enjoyed watching Cesar Azpilicueta, restored to his favoured position on the right side of defence. Az did not cross the halfway line too often, as Jordi Alba was bombing up and down the left, leaving plenty of space behind. As such, the centre backs often had to move across to cover, leaving Az to be watchful and block off any counter attacks. This he did well in an assured display that will hopefully cement his place in the Spanish squad for Brazil.

I also had my eye on Diego Costa, who was making his debut for the national team as centre forward. The Atlético hitman has been heavily linked with a summer move to Stamford Bridge, so it was a good opportunity to study him closely. Costa seems to be an old fashioned number nine, rarely moving from the central areas, making short darting runs into the box. He was marked very closely and with so little space available, was not able to make much of an impact. His work rate was not impressive and his touch was quite poor. His physical strength was evident and his readiness to shoot instantly a positive. In conclusion, there was not much to suggest he will be the answer to Chelsea’s striker problems!

My final gripe with international fixtures, particularly friendlies, is the risk to our players. Chelsea is in contention to win the league for the first time since Carlo’s double. To see this derailed by an injury to a key player, or in the case of Eden Hazard, an irreplaceable player would be heartbreaking. Indeed, the unthinkable nearly happened with Tiote placing a “reducer” on Eden during Belgium’s draw with the Ivory Coast. Thankfully, he was able to play a full part in our annihilation of Tottenham, but without him our title aspirations would be severely dented. Arsenal of course, was not so lucky and by the time Jack Wilshere plays for them again, they may only have the FA Cup to play for.

So let’s scrap the international friendlies, except perhaps as a prelude to major tournaments. The qualifiers could be moved to the summer, taking place in the years prior to the main event. In this way, we will appreciate them again, as they provide an alternative to watching the cricket (yawn!). The footballers will bleat that they need a rest, but let’s face it, greedy chairman and lucrative overseas tours combine to severely limit these in any case. Thankfully for now at least, domestic football has returned and will run without interruption until the season’s end. Come on you Blues!

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