Everyone has an opinion on the manager’s situation at Chelsea, so it stands to reason that one of the most opinionated men in football should put his two pence worth in as well. Former Chelsea chairman and all-round motormouth Ken Bates has taken Chelsea’s as-yet fruitless search for a manager as the ideal opportunity to give everyone the benefit of his wisdom.
Bates has had what can only be described as a rant, giving his take on why Chelsea are in the position they’re in right now. Despite the fact that everything in the papers up til now is probably pure speculation, and there certainly seems to be a lack of direct quotes from anyone to say they’ve actually been approached, dear old Ken seems to know for a fact that all these ‘candidates’ have turned us down flat. What’s more, he knows why as well. Speaking to those who love us best at The Sun, Bates has said “The basic problem with Chelsea is that they have an owner who doesn’t know anything about football.” Clearly, Mr Bates has forgotten this man who knows nothing about football is the same man he chose to entrust his beloved Chelsea to – for a tidy profit? So I guess what he’s saying now is that despite holding himself up as our saviour when he ‘saved’ Chelsea by handing the club over to a rich Russian – for a tidy profit – in reality, he didn’t give a toss about us when he was lining his own pockets because if he did, he wouldn’t have put us in the hands of a man who knows nothing about football. And he suggests the club has only become ‘cold-hearted’ since he left?
This paragon of virtue then goes on to suggest it’s little wonder nobody wants the job, considering “the way Chelsea have treated their last few managers”. Did he seriously say that? I’m sure you’ll all excuse me while I choke on my beer. For sure, there’s been a few people who’ve questioned why Chelsea would want to get rid of Ranieri, but to be fair, Mourinho’s success kind of answered that. Jose’s departure, on the outside at least, seemed slightly more unfair although it was always very apparent that the dynamics behind closed doors were a dismissal waiting to happen. And Grant, come on, his appointment was never more than a temporary measure – a mistake certainly, but everyone makes them. Unless of course Mr Bates is going to suggest that he always got it right? Didn’t Ruud Gullit win us our first major silverware in 26 years? Whatever happened to him? And correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought Vialli won the League Cup, the European Cup Winners Cup, Community Shield and another FA Cup. Where did he go to? Oh yeah, that’s right Bates sacked them to put in a manager who didn’t actually win us anything. I wonder if the word ‘ironic’ occurred to the virtuous Kenny during his tirade?
He has a go at Kenyon & Co for thinking we’re a big club, but when this comes from the very same man who’s ridiculously pretentious development plans – including a hotel and apartment complex we really didn’t need – not only saw us teeter on the brink of bankruptcy but also cocked up any attempts to increase our capacity ever since, then it really smacks of hypocrisy. Don’t get me wrong, Gollum’s never been on my ‘most respected’ list either, but Bates questioning Kenyon’s integrity is like Ashley Cole saying Lampard’s a womaniser. Not that we should be surprised of course, I mean Bates has made a career out of making enemies and bearing grudges. But his mocking of what goes on inside Stamford Bridge these days would suggest he chooses to forget the almost debilitating atmosphere his venomous behaviour towards Matthew Harding created both before and after his death, and the effect his offensive and usually obnoxious mouth had on the club’s reputation in the first place.
Anyway, back to the bile that’s spewed out of his overactive and overgrown mouth and Bates has suggested he’s said none of this out of anger, but merely out of his sorrow for the supporters. “Sure, the Johnny-come-lately fans will be delighted with all the trophies,” he says “But the real supporters, the ones I know and respect, hate the fact that this is not their club anymore.” I take it these ‘respected’ supporters are the very same ones he would’ve had penned behind electric fences given the chance? The very same supporters he’d decided to charge an extra 40% to watch Chelsea immediately after sacking Gullit against their wishes? At least when Roman sacks a manager he doesn’t charge us extra for the privilege.
But of course, in true Bates style, he’s not finished there. He goes on “The most important thing any club can have – its soul – has been rooted out and destroyed. You can say whatever you like about Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, but generally they know how to treat people – and they know what being a big club is all about. Chelsea don’t.” Well that’s as maybe Mr Bates but it certainly wasn’t any different with you around. In fact, how many hours away from liquidation and obscurity were we when you were turning us into a big club? And isn’t that exactly where we’d be now if that man who knows nothing about football hadn’t stepped in and lined your fat, greedy pockets?
Still, I shouldn’t complain really. To be honest I’ve never liked Ken Bates, his behaviour at Chelsea was cringe-worthy at best and abhorrent at worst, and yet I always felt I owed him a grudging respect. Thanks to his perfectly timed slating though, at a time when it is probably the very last thing any self-respecting Chelsea supporter wants to hear – especially from someone who professes to give a shit – my debt to him has just been wiped out. So he can come out with this sort of bullshit as much as he likes – “I may be at Leeds now but when you have a second child, you don’t stop loving the first” – but as far as I’m concerned, he can carry on taking Leeds down as far as he likes, because if I was his first child I’d be putting myself up for adoption right about now!
Blue is the colour
