The media is having a field day over Chelsea’s problems with Gallas. In some ways it’s a good thing that Mourinho and company are in US and not in England, otherwise the mess would have been much, much bigger.
As it is, everyone is concentrating on the wrong issues:
Ballack being given the no. 13 shirt (a public bitch-slap to Gallas of the highest order) the same day Gallas failed to show up for training, statements by Mourinho saying that Gallas had ‘disrespected’ the Chelsea family and revival of a host of rumours surrounding Milan and Arsenal.
The real problem – the one that has caused the rift between Gallas and Chelsea to appear – is the defender’s super-sized ego.
Kenn Emetulu’s article on this issue over at Chelsea Blog covers the history of the problems really well – even though Kenn is blatantly biased towards the club.
The thing is, Gallas sees superstars around him and he wants to be just like them. He’s fumed at the apparent lack of appreciation for his talents, at constantly being in John Terry’s shadow, at not being treated as the big star that he believes he is.
His agent has told the media that the no-show was due to a misunderstanding – bullshit. You have your club telling you that no, you cannot take extra leave, so where is the fkn misunderstanding that allows you to think that ‘Gee, Crespo and Makelele aren’t coming, I wont go either’?
Chelsea’s recent moves – taking away his squad number and telling him to stay away from pre-season – are actions designed to teach Gallas a lesson. Problem is that Gallas is too full of himself to realise that he’s made a mistake by constantly pushing the club. Mourinho and Abramovich have been after Gallas for quite a while trying to convince him to stay, but he’s made up his mind – similar to Ashley Cole – that he has to leave Chelsea to go to another club where he will be able to get the respect that he deserves.
Like Ashley Cole, what Gallas does not realise is that respect comes from the fans and from performances on the pitch. Both players had the respect, and like Cole, Gallas is on his way to completely blow it.
He is, however, a damn good defender. I doubt that Chelsea would agree to sell Gallas or to a Gallas-Cole swap, but one thing is for sure – at the end of the day, Gallas will be the loser of this fight – if he doesn’t get a transfer, he’ll have to sit on the bench for long periods of the season unless he makes a big public apology to Mourinho and Chelsea.
With his ego, that’s not going to happen.
Damn, I’m beginning to sound like a Chelsea fan. I need to go take a shower…
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