SALOMON KALOU has told Manchester City they cannot buy this season’s Premier League title. The Chelsea winger has watched his club act slowly so far in the summer transfer market, although they are on the brink of a €22 million deal for the Benfica midfielder Ramires, whereas City have spent €97 million, with the promise of more to come.
But Kalou believes the sense of continuity and togetherness at Stamford Bridge makes them a formidable proposition. He said Chelsea, the champions and FA Cup holders, will be the team to beat this time out.
“Manchester City did the same thing last summer,” Kalou said, reflecting on the spending spree at Eastlands.
“I don’t know if they’ll be stronger, I’m not sure. Just because you bring in 10 new players, it doesn’t mean you’re going to be on top of the table.
“There are still teams like Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool who will always be at the top. Manchester City can do well because they have brought good players in this year but the reality is on the pitch. You can have 10 new players and it doesn’t guarantee you anything.
“This is the squad that won the league and FA Cup double last season. We know how to win. We’ll try to bring some youth players through and they will show their quality. We will have a good squad ready for the Premier League and Champions League.
“We are still the team to beat; we are the champions. But everyone will come hard to try to beat us. Since I’ve joined Chelsea (in 2006), we always fight with Manchester for the title. This year, we will be fighting with four good teams – Manchester, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City.”
Chelsea face the prospect of having their squad trimmed by the Premier League’s new rule which states clubs must name at least eight home-grown players in a senior squad of no more than 25.
The manager Carlo Ancelotti has only five home-grown players (John Terry, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole, Michael Mancienne and Ross Turnbull), meaning he stands to start the season with a senior squad of 22.
The arrival of Ramires, the 23-year-old who played for Brazil in the World Cup finals, would force Ancelotti to get rid of one of his 17 senior overseas players, with the expectation it would be the midfielder Deco, who is poised to move back to his native Brazil.
The Benfica president, Luis Filipe Vieira, said that Ramires’ sale was not only down to him but to the third party who hold a 50 per cent interest in him, and are keen to cash in.
“There is nothing yet,” he said, “but Ramires staying doesn’t depend solely on us. There is a partnership and we must respect that. If there is a good proposal, we will do everything we can to make it work for us. We are prepared for everything and have options to fill all the positions to make sure we strengthen.”
Ancelotti would have been able to include a sixth home-grown player in Joe Cole but the midfielder was released at the end of June, with Michael Ballack and Juliano Belletti.
The Premier League rule, though, permits an unlimited number of under-21s to supplement the squad.
Despite the restraints Kalou remains confident. He said,“It’s possible we can win the lot this season. We have the squad and the players to do it.”
- GuardianService
