A-40

lol.

I agree.
Cue Nations Cup 2008.
No creativity,no spark,nothing.Just a silly afro in the wind bobbing up and down.

@allboyz, EastBay,
I grasp you guys point but then there is every possibility that he can still be a success at Chelsea. When he joined, everyone said he wasn't going to be playing regularly. Is he not doing so now? Agreed Essien got injured and every chelsea supporter is expecting his return. I stated earlier than Essien is a power house. He turns defence into attack and that is what Mikel lacks. Again I repeat, he is NOT a DM.

Question is, which club will he go to? Why can't he stay put and fight it out. Everyone has been shouting that Henry made a mistake by going to Barca, did he not remain there? (I'm not trying to compare the 2 players pls, ok). He may look like the shadow of king Henry of Arsenal, but if you watch la liga lately, you will see that he still got it.

Ballack and Deco are both getting old and this is the time for Mikel to shine through. What is his agent doing for shit sake?

FBS,
Chelsea will not turn to Mikel.
It's that simple.
There are clubs all about.
The Spurs and Villas wouldn't be a bad place to relaunch your career.He could be a top player in any of those clubs easily.
In Europe,there are several sides he could feature in.
But my guess is the lad isn't humble enough to step-down from te "heights" he presentl enjoys at Chelsea.
You're asking about his agent?He's only looking for his own wallet and not the boy's career.If he was,a move to SB should NEVER have been an issue.
Henry is getting it right in Barca because he understands he's not the designated hitman.That role belongs to Messi/Eto'o.Henry operates from the left.Not centrally as he used to do in Highbury.

Then again,Mikel shows no forward thrust,hardly any vision to create openings in the opposing defence with a killer pass,or pick out a striker with a pass.That was in Ghanalast year.We all saw it.So he himself has a great deal to do before we can tout him as the finished material.

That is what I'm saying. It is Mikel that has work to work on himself and improve. Where we disagree is will it be at chelsea or not?
Remember Eto was supposed to have left Barca, but he also remained and showed Pep that Barca needs him. You have your points but I still believe he can be a regular in chelsea even with essien, ballack and deco in the squad.

Will he want to go to Spurs, Villa etc? I dont know and you must have noticed that I didnt say that he is playing at the top of his game but then he is clearly not over-rated. he has got age on his side and he should make good use of it.

I dont like his pattern of play because he's always sitting back to defend which he's good with but to attack nah wahala.

You cant compare him with Wilson Palacios of Wigan. He (Mikel) is gonna be rested (or benched) when Essien return to full fitness.

Look,Mikel would have improved his skill as an ATTACKING MIDFEILDER immediately at MAN U,if ONLY he had joined them initially after the Holland 05 success.

im not a MANURE fan and im not saying this tom please them,but im afraid its the TRUTH. . . rather he choose the money way,instead of allowing himself to play in his normal role.

at Holland, he was pretty an attacking Midfielder,with an eye at goal and dradly assist and creative passes.

in August 05,he joined Chelsea and hardly plays,even if he played,he played from DM.

at that point,he began to kill his skills as a OMF,because he wanted to please Jose Mourinho and get more play time,he hardly go pass the half of the field(for him that area is a no go area,its meant for Terry,Lampard,essien and other strikers).

he was not even allowed to go and take the dead balls from corner,instead he will go and cover up for terry at the posts. . . to bad.

at ACN. . .he was practically useless. no impact.

lastly,Mikel made a bad mistake in joining Chelsea initially,he would have accepted MAN U and grow,then Chelsea would come begging if he did well to replace their lampard or ballack.

Allboyz, I see your point but I still think Chelsea had anything to do with this. He made the decision to join them. Lets be honest, money is also an important factor, who no like money?

Hmm Money is important but not the necessary factor

if it were you what would you do? you will go for what is more important to you at that moment. yes?

That is called star power. You may be a good player but lacks star power and it do affects the media hype. Was Kanu Nwanko that good? I don't think so because he is just blessed and has star power.

earTHMama:

That is called star power. You may be a good player but lacks star power and it do affects the media hype. Was Kanu Nwanko that good? I don't think so because he is just blessed and has star power.

Kanu was that good. At least he won African footballer of the year-Twice. His Technique is world class.

I am a Manchester United Fan. Out of sentiments, i wanted and supported Mikel to Join Man U.
I had a feeling that Mikel Joining the Big money Chelsea will not allow him to develop into what he was promising to become. Mikel got confused as soon as he arrived to Chelsea. Maybe people didn't know that Chelsea is one club in England where you cant play the way you want Under Mourinho Precisely.
Mikel Obi as we knew him, was never a promising Defensive Midfielder. Mikel preferred to support the attackers from the Midfield. Rolling back however he wanted and Initiating attack. Mikel was converted because [1] Makelele was getting old and out of strength and focus [2] The likes of Lampards and Ballacks and Essiens were already there.

Mikel could have stopped Man U from buying many midfielders, whom i might add, are doing great today.
That means that he could have gotten more playing chances than he got last season in Chelsea.

I am not too good at blaming people about what happened in the past but all i am saying here is that Mikel was the best , They just changed our boy,

What u can say of Mikel right now U can easily say of the entire Chelsea midfield. Ballack is yet to be a big hit and my guess is that he would never be, Deco is already as ordinary as a midfielder in West brom. Lampard comes up with an odd goal or two but he is not really up to the standard he was last season.
Mourinho summarised it aptly when he said,,, I did not see Chelsea , I saw just Man U.

Having said that, i am really worried about Obi's future not only in Chelsea but in general. That guy is just going downhill like no man's business. Essien's injury presented a good opportunity for him to cement his place in that team. His performances a la the whole team makes fans clamour for Essien's recovery and return. He is sorely missed in that team. If and when Essien comes back, I dont see a place for Mikel in the starting line up. He would be lucky to end up like Olofinjana at Stoke city.

And the odds are not in his favours either. He started the last two matches for Chelsea but Chelsea were able to come up with the goals when he was substituted in those two matches. That makes me wonder.

I think Christian Obodo is better than Mikel as a defensive midfielder. Am I alone?

Highly overated this Mikel of a boy,
He is just a pedestrian when Chelsea plays.
We have other Defensive midfielders in the premiership that hold their own.
You can see them,
The likes of Jermain Jenas, Andersen and even Hargreaves when fit.
He does not seem to intelligent on the Ball most times.

Seeing Mikel play at times makes one imagine if one couldn't have done better on the field! I know this is just wishful thinking, but imagine that thought coming to the mind alone!! A midfielder that cannot hold ball for 3 seconds!!!

A defensive midfielder who cant tackle clean without bagging card, who can only pass backwards and sideways, who cant launch attack, who cant take shots, who cant hold the ball for more than 4 seconds.

Is football that difficult?

Pity, He joined the WRONG club is all, they changed his style of play and he has struggled since then.
Anyway, for the sort of cash he's paid, I'll gladly pass the ball vertically sef, not just sideways!!

One UNIted!!

FBS,

I agree with you.He could be a starter,with his age.

But the signs don't look good for him.
In the pecking order,he will not go above number four to take that attacking midfielder's role.
To me,my concern is he isn't showing any fire or desire to improve.I think he's content with the money he's making.There's no hunger or challenge to drive him out of his comfort zone

earTHMama:

That is called star power. You may be a good player but lacks star power and it do affects the media hype. Was Kanu Nwanko that good? I don't think so because he is just blessed and has star power.

earTHMama, you got it wrong. Kanu was THAT good. His technical abilities has no rival. Did you actually see him play? He is not a fast player, but once he bends those long legs of his, 3 defenders are already missing and looking for the ball.

Mikel needs to grow up, forget his DM roles (or at least stop his side/back passing) and drive forward. He is just playing to instruction but he needs to show his skills. He has them.

Since MIKEL join CHELSEA. He's wack! He shld ve joined MAN U, playing wit the Likes of C. Ronaldo, He wld ve improved alot with dribbling skills, shots and techniques but now is jst a living dead in chelsea, I hate him now, jst useless player, not useful for the club either the country,

The best solution is that he shld leave Chelsea asap so that he won't damage is CAREER!!

Its very painful MIKEL we knew at Holland, 2005 is playing like a pregnant player, sucks thou!

Why most African players do not make it in Europe is the inability to play to instruction or tactical indiscipline.

Mikel has not been found wanting in this area. Do this names ring a bell ? Emmanuel ebiede, Alfred Omoefe : excellent talents but have difficulty playing to instructions in European clubs.

I am too surprised at the majority verdict on mikel as overratted. First I think most of you guys should have learnt to keep quiet or rather take a second look at what he has in his game that almost every Chelsea coach admires. Most of you condemned mikel’s choice of Chelsea instead of Man U. the talk then was that Chelsea was too star-studded hence would remain on the bench/mat forever. But that has not been the case.

The major complaint against mikel before this season was the ease with which he got bookings . That has not been the case this season and I believe that has affected his marking . A DM role is not one where cards would be feared as plagues. It is a role for the dirty jobs.

While I admit that having to play in all of chelsea’s matches this season is having some effect in total delivery sometimes, I will be quick to state that aside lampard nobody has done better than mikel in Chelsea’s midfield this season. I just pray that essiens return does not turn an anti climax but I confidently will state that essien will return to take either ballack or deco’s place not mikel’s. Essien played some matches this season for Chelsea before his injury. They were not really outstanding displays.

Mikel has kept that position in Chelsea even when there have been challenges from players like diarra, sidwell, minero etc. please give the guy some respect .

The presence of senior midfielders makes it difficult for mikel to do more than just defensive cover and ball winning for other midfielders but that does not diminish the fact that he is still one of the cleanest passers of the ball available. HE IS NOT OVERRATTED.

All of una dey craze!! Mikel is not over-rated jorr. Bunch of internet soccer stars and coaches! Beer palour pundits!!

He can not hold ball for 3 second, he's an expert in back pass and side pass, he's not attacking, he's stays back for Terry during corner kicks etc. wtf? You're all this good technically while Rangers of Enugu and shooting stars are nowhere to be found continentally. You're all sick. that's my opinion

romeo, you dont have to insult anyone. This is a forum so just simple voice your opinion without insult.

Mikel is not a DM but AM in my opinion. Didn't you enjoy his defence splitting passes of 2005? now compare it to his side/backpass of now. He can do better than that. He is trying no doubt and has made some last minute clearance, but again, he can do better and at Chelsea. I dont think that he should leave.

@romeo

thank you jare. God bless u

Thank you very much Na.so .

JJ okocha was a very talented player during his playing time. But he obviously was not playing according to instructions of his coaches. Dribbling every dick and harry to his delight but at the expense of his team, He ended up in hull city for his actions and not in Man U or Chelsea.

FBS:

romeo, you dont have to insult anyone. This is a forum so just simple voice your opinion without insult.

Mikel is not a DM but AM in my opinion. Didn't you enjoy his defence splitting passes of 2005? now compare it to his side/backpass of now. He can do better than that. He is trying no doubt and has made some last minute clearance, but again, he can do better and at Chelsea. I dont think that he should leave.

I did not insult anyone Brother!!

It does not matter what position he plays at all, what matters is that he plays to his coach's instructions. He's an employee of chelsea and his teams wants him to do a specific job on match days. Who are we to change that? If he's not good they will put him on sale at 50% discount. Bad players don't play football in big clubs and mikel is playing.

romeo:

I did not insult anyone Brother!!

romeo:

All of una dey craze!! You're all sick. that's my opinion

thats does not sound like a compliment or does it?

romeo:

It does not matter what position he plays at all, what matters is that he plays to his coach's instructions. He's an employee of chelsea and his teams wants him to do a specific job on match days. Who are we to change that? If he's not good they will put him on sale at 50% discount. Bad players don't play football in big clubs and mikel is playing.

Look, there is what we call expectation and there is result. These 2 are different. The best option is the combination of both and that is what is eluding Mikel. Yes he plays to instruction but this does not exactly help him. You saw his display last year in Ghana, is that the Mikel you know?
Look, I am not saying he is overrated and that he should leave chelsea (don't mind all those saying that he should have joined MAN U, na their wahala be that). Age is on his side and this is the time for him to make the best of it.

FBS:

thats does not sound like a compliment or does it?

Like i lied when i call them crazy and sick people , It woulda been an insult if i lied.

FBS:

Look, there is what we call expectation and there is result. These 2 are different. The best option is the combination of both and that is what is eluding Mikel. Yes he plays to instruction but this does not exactly help him. You saw his display last year in Ghana, is that the Mikel you know?
Look, I am not saying he is overrated and that he should leave chelsea (don't mind all those saying that he should have joined MAN U, na their wahala be that). Age is on his side and this is the time for him to make the best of it.

Most people writing here say what they hear from sports channels they watch!! brain washed brothers.

romeo:

Like i lied when i call them crazy and sick people , It woulda been an insult if i lied.

meaning?

FBS:

meaning?

Concentrate on topic thanks