Football Icon: Chelsea and English Football
Posted by Blue Champion in Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Chelsea, England, HOT Topics, Jose Mourinho | 17 November 2006
Half of the England National team is from the Chelsea first team. If this is not enough contribution to English football, Chelsea is going miles ahead in promoting English football by scouting the best English talents and giving them a fantastic opportunity.
Football Icon is a British television programme shown on Sky One. The programme gives young unsigned football players between the ages of 16 and 18 a chance to win a contract with Premiership champions Chelsea. Thousands of players who enter are whittled down to twelve finalists, all of whom are put to the test at their Cobham training ground. The players are eliminated week by week until only the final three remain, when José Mourinho and his staff select a winner.
Football Icon 1 began in June 2005, and 5,000 young footballers took part. The series was won by Chelsea fan Sam Hurrell who idolises Zola and Terry. Football Icon 2 is currently being aired on Sky One at 8pm on Fridays. 14 Boys, out of 7,000, won a trial with Chelsea with two boys currently being eliminated each week. Please do visit Chelsea’s football icon website to know more.
While we are in the circumstances where none of the starting eleven in Arsenal happens to be English, I’m really proud of what Chelsea is doing to English football. Arsenal have their own weak arguments like ‘they want to win irrespective of the players passports’ which does not hold good as they win nothing. But Chelsea’s strategy seems very clear. To buy quality players and top quality manager and win some titles and establish a name. Then in phase 2, buy a lot of quality youth players (Sahar, Obi, Kalou etc) and bring up youth British talent as well. Few years down the line we would have team developed in our own ranks.
Fifa and the international players’ union have proposed a quota whereby a side must name six players eligible for the club’s national association. The first manager to pull the trigger at FIFA was ‘hard-hitting (literally)’ Frenchman Arsene Wenger. While he has insulted English football by saying that FIFA is trying to protect mediocrity by bringing this quota system, he looks completely shattered looking at the impact this might have on his Le Arsennielle team.
While we can discuss and argue on the number of home players in starting eleven, I would prefer that this rule stays, even if it is 2 or 3 players. Anyway there exists a quota for European players already and this has not brought in mediocrity but if you do for the national players, it does?
I’m happy that Chelsea is investing in the future of English Football and bringing up the English talent while whingers keep whinging.
