Oh no, not this again. *Facepalm. I have no right to question someone's love for Chelsea. Never have and never will.
I was born in East London and have been to more than my fair share of Chelsea games over the years. However, mainly due to the fact I live abroad now.. I can't attend that often nowadays.
I think that some of the Lampard “hate” is a bit overboard as well. As I previously said. I can't dislike Frank. I just can't.. but I can't help but feel disappointed in his actions. He has lied at least twice, possibly three times. I have the right to be disappointed with Frank Lampard. He was my childhood hero. I had more shirts with his name on the back between 2001-08 than I can count. Home, Away, third strips. All of them with Lampard on. Bought memorabilia with his signature on it. Travelled hundreds of miles to see him play.
I'm sorry that I feel a little disappointed in him but that's life. He is still a Chelsea Legend and probably the greatest Chelsea player of all time but I am disappointed with his actions.
As for the foreign fans. I LOVE that Chelsea has foreign fans. I love the fact that I can go into Lisbon and mock annoying Benfica fans with other Chelsea fans. I love being able to go to Africa and talk with Chelsea fans. I love hearing about thousands of Americans supporting our club. It just shows how much we've grown as a club. This site is proof of that.
Wherever we may be, whatever our nationality is, one thing unites us. That thing is blue, that thing is Chelsea FC.
The thing is success is a very subjective concept. I'll give a brief personal example. I used to work in a worldwide coorporation, with a lot of responsibility and recognition. I wasn't as political as the job demanded, but that could be easily fixed and the promising career I had there could still take me very far. The wages were good and I had some power - designed every process in the Canadian branch (the whole company in the country) and whatsnot, worked with more than ten different countries, controlling process on them. Got recognized by many big shots in the company, collected a few awards - some worldwide worth - and a few other things. Success for a 26yo woman that wasn't even majored on business administration, right? No. I'd rather work much less even if meant have less money and do something I was passionate about, as well as having time, health and a stress-free life to enjoy whatever money would afford me. At age 29 I said enough is enough, vowed myself to never work in a coorporation again and started another major in early age education. Now I teach 15 four year-old - in a Canadian school nonetheless - and I have overprotective moms questioning every decision I make about their little precious spoiled-rotten children. I finally found the success I craved. It's long term for me because my life quality, my happiness, feeling accomplished and trying to do something for each of those little ones that will spend some months with it pays it all off. Another person will read this post and thing I'm pathetic, stupid, silly, or someone who just lacks ambition. That's nothing wrong with their assessmemt, again, success is a subjective matter. On that note and about this club and this season, I don't really judge our success on the trophies we may raise or not. We sort of accidently raised the last three trophies we won (maybe except the FA Cup). We were the underdogs, the team who's played ugly, the dark horse. While it doesn't take the credit away from our honours then, it takes away the enjoyment. The excitment of beating Barcelona and then Bayern of course made up for the pragmatic, defensive, coward approach we had back then. But shouldn't my team give me 'the feels' whether it loses or wins? We played boring, predictable, limited, high-risky (in the bad way) kind of football that made me nervous, but I rarely found myself being entertained by the football we showed. A balance is the ideal situation and I think that's where we're going. We might not immediately be (but I believe in the future we will be because that's clearly Roman's objective) as entertaning as Barcelona and Bayern - and even Real Madrid - in their best days in the past five years, but that's the goal and Mourinho proved with his Real Madrid side that he can provide that - even though some moaners love to talk about what they don't know and say otherwise. That team was exciting to watch, but it had weaknesses, just like Barcelona - who lost to us - and Bayern - who also lost to us - had and still have. So when I look at the progress in Hazard and Oscar (the Brazilian suffers a lot with the winter, but spring is coming and he might blossom again, pun intended) both technically as well as tactically; the recover process that made Terry one of the best - if not the best - English CB in activity, Cahill's progress, Azpilicueta rising, defensive stability, bringing Matic and eating our pride for letting him go, fixing 80% of our midfield issues. And with the exception of Terry - who's older than the others - those guys are very young and their best days are definitely yet to come (not sure about Cahill, but I'm sure he can progress some more). BBC commentators said during the Arsenal massacre that teams should be warned because that was Chelsea in transition. That's the message sent regardless of trophies or not. That's the Chelsea under development, what should they expect of a Chelsea a few steps ahead in the process next season? If now it's a Chelsea that face any top team in the world equally, a team that nobody wants to draw or to play, a team that made the Bridge a fortitude again, so that teams crumble even before they step foot in that pitch because they know that's OUR domain, we rule it, what will this Chelsea be come next season? How come can that not be a success? They look at the man at our dugout and they know they're fucked because he's got the tactics that will kill them and they know we'll be much stronger. Do we still have deficiencies that should be addressed both technically and tactically? Of course we do, but this team is way too young from the pivot on and we have almost literally no striker at all. Eto'o is old, but also has a great responsibility imo for us fighting to be where we are now. We need to add quality in some positions, but I think as needed as that, we need to mold the young talents we already have. Hazard, Oscar, Schurrle, Salah, Willian need to mature and grow a winning spirit and a fighter character. They just couldn't handle the pressure, they couldn't separate in their minds the EPL from the UCL in the weekend matches prior to playing in Europe. They're still young and I'm not sure all of them will prove that they can become real champions, the kind of guys that have ambition running in their veins. I hope all of them succeed here with that because they'll need it. Mourinho doesn't tolerate weak characters in his team, unless they have very marginal roles. But still I look at what this season showed, and I look at our rivals, at their fans and I see fear. I like the feeling of my team being feared and not only respected. Even some of the respect we've earned had been lost in the last few years. It's been earned back and if we'll be lucky enough to have all of this crowned with a trophy, all that much better although it may be yet soon to say (I don't think we have more than 20% chances of winning either title). But even if we don't, it doesn't erase this. The feeling is there, the message has beens sent. I hate using the expression glory hunter, but if the only expectation and the only acceptable thing from the club you support is trophies, then I can't think of another title... unless the club has built a team that reaches the levels or those other clubs aforementioned. But isn't that exactly what we're trying to build here? Or does anyone think Barcelona and Bayern were built in a season? Or that a team like Real Madrid has the effect they have because of a couple of trophies? We've won all trophies that were there to be won. we've conquered it all, now it's time we dominate, but for domination to come, you have to build... and that's what we've done this season and don't fool yourselves, there's more to be built and I think the team won't be at the top of its abilities and productions for another couple of years, but I do believe we'll enter next season as clean favorites to win whatever competition we enter. If that's not success, I don't know what is, no matter how subjective the concept may be.
