Mikel John Obi

[DYC. 7,542]

He will be sold this summer I think. I'm not gonna missed him badly, but he has done his job for us all this years, so credit to him and good luck. You will not find another player who is more 'calm and patient' being benched weeks in weeks out than him.

Mikel is a very smart man. If he leaves Chelsea, and that's a big if, he will not end up at a top side. And he'll never make as much money. We've seen how players like Bosingwa, Kalou, Malouda etc. ended up when they left.

[Cripen 110]

I think Ake is a good option to replace Mikel. C'mon, lets give him a chance. He has some experience and whenever he played he was doing well and showed signs of good potential. Mikel was 19 y/o when he strated playing for Chelsea, Ake is 20 right now. Mikel played a small role this year and really, I think it isnt too much to ask for Ake to take his place.

[OhForAGreavsie 5,775]

Mou said RLC will stay, whether he replaces Ramires or Mikel is another question...

I'd like to see Ake replace Mikel though. It seems that Chalo is more of a playmaker-ey player rather than a holder like Mikel is, from what I've seen of him play at Reading (not much; I might be wrong) while Ake is supposed to hold. Plus he's a utility player, he can play anywhere in the first 6 outfield positions.

Btw assuming we'd use 4-3-3 next season, that's 3 CDM/CM places available, and including Cesc deep that means we're talking about 4 and 5th choice.

I am not, and have never been, a Mikel believer but, I think we need to be cautious about allowing him to leave. As restated by a number of people in this thread, he has proved able to accept a squad role without rocking the boat. Every squad needs that. There is a balance to be struck between upgrading the talent pool and keeping the group happy. That was why Lukaku and De Bruyne had to leave and it's an important consideration.

Meanwhile, I think that Ake would have had more game time over the last two seasons if Jose had confidence in him so, unless Nathan is prepared to do a Mikel and accept a squad role, his days might be numbered. Shame because I like him, but that's how it looks to me.

I also don't see enough quality in Chalobah or Baker to give either of them a big chance here. RLC however is different, I've no doubt that he has the talent to make it. The question for him is whether he has the x-factor which will allow him to make the most of his ability. The jury is out on that. I desperately want him to come up with the right answer because I haven't been so hopeful about a Chelsea junior since Clive Walker and that was nearly 40 years ago!

(For what it's worth, and more than a little off topic, the excitement about Walker came from write ups in the programme and lasted only till I actually saw him play for the first time in a Youth Cup game at The Bridge. Clive went on to have a good career of course but, in my opinion, Ruben has far more ability and will be a star if he maximises his potential. Can't honestly say I'm confident that Ruben will do that but I'm keeping everything crossed.)

[Reddish-Blue 2,223]

Mikel is a very smart man. If he leaves Chelsea, and that's a big if, he will not end up at a top side. And he'll never make as much money. We've seen how players like Bosingwa, Kalou, Malouda etc. ended up when they left.

Kalou left Chelsea, scored 30 goals in 2 seasons for Lille and earned a move to the Bundesliga...he may not be at a top side but he's a regular and he's scoring goals.

As for Malouda, he was past his peak by the time he left Chelsea in 2013 and yet from what I've heard, he earned a good amount in the Turkish league

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

Mikel is a very smart man. If he leaves Chelsea, and that's a big if, he will not end up at a top side. And he'll never make as much money. We've seen how players like Bosingwa, Kalou, Malouda etc. ended up when they left.

Depends what you think of top sides are. Yes Bayern, Barca and Madrid might not interested, but I could see clubs like PSG, AC Milan, Inter, Roma and some other middle clubs might interested in him.

[DYC. 7,542]

Kalou left Chelsea, scored 30 goals in 2 seasons for Lille and earned a move to the Bundesliga...he may not be at a top side but he's a regular and he's scoring goals.

As for Malouda, he was past his peak by the time he left Chelsea in 2013 and yet from what I've heard, he earned a good amount in the Turkish league

I don't understand your point. Like you already said, not top sides. I never said they ended up at League One clubs. There's a long list of decent ex-Chelsea players that never joined a top side again, and my point was Mikel would be on that list.

Depends what you think of top sides are. Yes Bayern, Barca and Madrid might not interested, but I could see clubs like PSG, AC Milan, Inter, Roma and some other middle clubs might interested in him.

Mikel has not been a starter for ages, never in his Chelsea career an undisputed starter. Those kind of sides have never shown interest, they could have bought him if they wanted to. The only way they would get him is if he was a free agent. Maybe Milan and Inter in their current state, but they aren't willing to pay fees for players of such calibre.

[didierforever 7,349]

Mou said RLC will stay, whether he replaces Ramires or Mikel is another question...

I'd like to see Ake replace Mikel though. It seems that Chalo is more of a playmaker-ey player rather than a holder like Mikel is, from what I've seen of him play at Reading (not much; I might be wrong) while Ake is supposed to hold. Plus he's a utility player, he can play anywhere in the first 6 outfield positions.

Btw assuming we'd use 4-3-3 next season, that's 3 CDM/CM places available, and including Cesc deep that means we're talking about 4 and 5th choice.

rambo for me is a sure shot player next season. we can agree to disagree but selling someone like rambo to be replaced by a teen would be a massive massive mistake.

call it 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. its almost the same thing. lets take it with 4-2-3-1.

cesc plays as no.10 flanked by hazard and willian/cuadrado with both willian/hazard filling in when cesc is unavailable and with rambo as a filler winger.

for the 2 pivot players, we will have matic and pogba/koke as starters with rambo as the back up along with whoever replaces mikel.

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

Anyway, how long his contract left? It seems forever since he last sign an extension.

[lucio 5,391]

He could be back now. He was already fit but too tired to play against stoke.

[Reddish-Blue 2,223]

Anyway, how long his contract left? It seems forever since he last sign an extension.

http://www.transfermarkt.com/john-obi-mikel/profil/spieler/30739

He has a contract until June, 2017

[CFC888 219]

Expect him to be part of the subs this weekend and may well get half an hour or so of playing time if we have a game to shut down and Jose wants to take Matic off to avoid a yellow and subsequent suspension.

[Oscar 441]

Depends what you think of top sides are. Yes Bayern, Barca and Madrid might not interested, but I could see clubs like PSG, AC Milan, Inter, Roma and some other middle clubs might interested in him.

PSG and Roma and Inter already have better players on their squad.

And an old Dejong is still better than Mikel

[mufilika 101]

PSG and Roma and Inter already have better players on their squad.

And an old Dejong is still better than Mikel

Mikel is better than most DMs on those teams. And an old Dejong better than Mikel?

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

PSG and Roma and Inter already have better players on their squad.

And an old Dejong is still better than Mikel

PSG maybe, but not sure about Roma and Inter. Mikel is still a useful player when he is fit, and he is not that old actually and could still have couple of years on top level. But it is still depend on if they needed him or not though. If we're lucky, we could get around 5-7 millions for him.

[OneMoSalah 8,614]

Won't be going anywhere, he signed a 5 year extension in December 2012 under Di Matteo remember. Can't see Jose selling him, he brought him here, he obviously still feels hes good enough to contribute here so he won't go anywhere unless its a stupid offer.

[Gilvorak 3,734]

Won't be going anywhere, he signed a 5 year extension in December 2017 under Di Matteo remember. Can't see Jose selling him, he brought him here, he obviously still feels hes good enough to contribute here so he won't go anywhere unless its a stupid offer.

Yep. Class player and still has a role to play for us. Wish he was fit for PSG, definitely would have put in 10x the performance Matic did that night.

[OneMoSalah 8,614]

Yep. Class player and still has a role to play for us. Wish he was fit for PSG, definitely would have put in 10x the performance Matic did that night.

Think if he played alongside Matic we would of had a better chance, similar to the line up against Stoke.

[Joker10 946]

De Jong is not that old, he is only 2.5 older then Mikel. De Jong is actually the only quality midfielder in Milan, Mikel wouldn't have any problem starting along side him though.

I think it depends on Mikel, i think he leaves only if he asks for a transfer. Quite frankly Mou would be quite happy to keep him as a squad player.