Chelseas back-four warriors are the key to Jose Mourinhos success this season By Alan Smith #viaTheTelegraph Chelsea’s back four: the best defence in the Premier League by quite some distance. Not even Manchester City’s rearguard led by Vincent Kompany can match the incredible organisation, resolve and outright ability of a unit that provides a magnificent platform for their’s trophy assault at home and abroad. Champions League winners? You wouldn’t be at all surprised. The Premier League title is clearly well within reach. We talk often enough about Chelsea’s creative forces, about Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas and Eden Hazard. Yet their majestic contributions so far would not have reaped such reward if those warriors at the back had not done their thing. And they are warriors, each and every one. From right to left, Branislav Ivanovic, Gary Cahill, John Terry and César Azpilicueta will neither shirk a scrap or ignore their defensive duties. In short, each perfectly conforms to the image of a proper defender happy, if necessary, to confine themselves to the gritty graft. Just as well, too, since Jose Mourinho will not tolerate any other kind, as proved by the sale of David Luiz. The end result on Sunday was the almost complete taming of an Arsenal attack that arrived at Stamford Bridge feeling pretty good. At the sharp end, it also boasted a confident centre-forward fresh from his hat-trick in the Champions League. Danny Welbeck, however, didn’t get a kick. Not a meaningful one anyway within range of goal. And for that you must mostly credit the water-tight partnership between Terry and Cahill. No matter how the ball came the Arsenal striker’s way – and it has to be said the service wasn’t great – Chelsea’s centre-halves combined instinctively to snuff out the danger before it took hold. At this point, we must doff our cap to Terry’s all-consuming influence, whether through anticipation, tackling, positioning or merely his commanding presence. On several occasions he proved the right man in the right place. Nobody, for instance, covers that near post area to cut out crosses with quite the same regularity. That nose for danger, developed at an early age, has not been dulled by the passing of time and will see Terry captain Chelsea for the 500th time after the international break. Cahill must love playing next to his partner, such is the understanding between the pair. From a purely footballing point of view, what a pity that Terry has opted out of England duty, for his calming presence next to Cahill would certainly have been welcomed at the World Cup. As for the full-backs, we are talking reliability to the nth degree. Ivanovic might not fulfil the attacking criteria of a modern full-back but he never turns up for a match lacking will or steel. Few opponents get the better of this eternally honest customer. On the other side, Azpilicueta was last week described by his manager as a ’fantastic professional’, awarded a new contract by Mourinho ’because I didn’t want to lose him.’ The Spaniard, having seen off Ashley Cole, is now keeping new signing Filipe Luis out of the side. Not bad when you remember he is actually a right-back. And on his 100th Chelsea appearance, the 25-year-old practically bullied a dreadfully poor Mesut Özil, constantly reacting quicker and showing more strength. Like Ivanovic, Azpilicueta is blessed with a marvellous attitude. So there you have it – four top-class defenders that combine to form a peerless rearguard. As hard as Arsenal tried here, they kept banging on a door fitted with four unbreakable locks. Only right at the end did the visitors finally manage an effort (of sorts) on target having previously failed to make a dent. It could be described as a thing of beauty, the way four players come together in such impressive style. For Arsenal fans of a certain age, memories would have inevitably been stirred of their famous back four that tended to defend with similar fortitude. For Chelsea, then, the earlier aberrations witnessed against Everton and Swansea when goals were conceded in uncharacteristic fashion have been swiftly addressed. When it matters, on the big occasion, Mourinho invariably gets that part of the side right. But even he would struggle without the right players. Eden Hazard measures how well he has played by the number of times he gets fouled. Last season the midfielder topped the charts in this respect, a fact which pleased the Chelsea flier no end. And the way he has started this campaign, the Belgian international looks poised to lead those stats again. But they will not all prove as important as Laurent Koscielny’s trip to concede a penalty in the derby on Sunday
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 21:53:51 +0000
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