Ranieri fattar pennan
Hans engelska i intervjuer är inte alltid den bästa. Men med lite översättarhjälp har Claudio Ranieri skrivit sin första krönika.
Chelseatränaren gör det i The Times i dag och krönikan i sin helhet följer nedan:
"LAST June, if a genie had come out of a bottle and told me what would happen at Chelsea in the next few months, I would not have believed him. Never in a million years. At the time I was mainly concerned with finding a way to keep Gianfranco Zola at Stamford Bridge and worrying about how to strengthen the squad for the Champions League with little money available. The last thing I imagined is that someone like Mr Abramovich would materialise out of thin air. And when he arrived and invested so heavily in the team, I quickly realised I was in a unique position.
Very few managers have been in this situation, with an owner who can and will buy them just about any player they request. Arrigo Sacchi at AC Milan in the late 1980s was one and Vicente Del Bosque at Real Madrid over the past few seasons was another. Plus, of course, Sven-Goran Eriksson at Lazio in the late 1990s. He was able to go out and get whomever he desired.
I think, however, that there is a fundamental difference between them and myself. Sacchi, Del Bosque and Eriksson already had successful teams at their disposal. It was just a question of adding to the squad, which they did little by little, integrating the newcomers into the existing framework. In my case, I have effectively to create a whole new team. Or rather, I have to merge two teams: my starting XI from last season and this summer's new arrivals 12, 13 players who could form a competitive team on their own.
How do you do that? I have a plan.
Everyone knows we have a big squad with two alternatives for each position and, in some cases, three. When you have so many players, at some point you must decide. You either have a hierarchy, a first-choice XI and a group of squad players able to back them up and come in when needed, or you continually rotate your squad. After all, with two domestic cups, the Champions League and a long Premiership campaign, there are plenty of matches.
Most successful clubs go for the first option. Real Madrid, for example, had many superstars, but there was very much a first XI and a second XI. This was made possible by the fact that those who weren't part of the first XI were intelligent enough to accept their role. This is crucial because I really believe that you win championships with 22 players, not 11. The men on the bench are often just as vital to the success of the club.
At Chelsea I am under no illusions: we won't be able to have a hierarchy right away. Right now, it's a learning process I'm learning how certain players work together, they are learning how to fit into this team. At some point, perhaps by the middle of the season, we will have a clearer picture and some players will find themselves playing fewer matches. That is inevitable. But it doesn't take away from the fact that the squad as a whole will have to work together and that those who are left out will be just as important.
I like to tell my players: "I make the team, you make the group." In other words, I decide who starts, but they have to create a strong, united group which includes those who don't play regularly. I accept that not everyone will be able to handle this. There are so many great players, so many internationals here, that it may well be that someone decides that they suffer too much when they are left out. And if it happens and they tell me they want to go elsewhere so that they can play regularly, I'll deal with it accordingly.
In my first column, I also want to talk about two of my players who this afternoon are likely to start for England in Macedonia: John Terry and Frank Lampard. Needless to say, I am extremely proud of them.
I remember the first time I saw Terry play. I had just arrived at the club and he was involved in a reserve game. I was immediately struck by how, even at his young age, he exuded confidence from every pore. I told Ray Wilkins, who was acting as my assistant and interpreter: "This kid must train with the first team, right away." And John was up to the challenge. He was not fazed at all. You could actually see how our own strikers, for all their experience, seemed to want to avoid him in training matches. They immediately respected his presence, and that is rare in football.
As he gets more experience he will only improve in terms of his ability to read the game, which is already very good. He has proven equally effective playing alongside William Gallas or Marcel Desailly and that tells me he can do well for England, regardless of whether he partners Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand or anyone else.
As for Lampard, I signed him to replace Gus Poyet, to be that goalscoring midfield player. He has the innate ability to time his runs into the box perfectly, a rare quality he shares with players such as Paul Scholes and Michael Ballack. But he's also a fighter, a man who will run for 90 minutes. In fact, sometimes I need to tell him to slow down. As a footballer, you must learn to budget your energy to ensure that you are still fresh late in the game.
Of course, being an Italian manager, I'm also going to be concerned with the defensive side of things and I will confess there are times when I worry when he comes forward. But Lampard is continually improving in that department and, with his tremendous work ethic, I'm sure he will do well.
I think Terry and Lampard can be key players for England for a long time, though Frank faces serious competition in his role from Paul Scholes. I'm not sure they can play together every time, but I do think that Lampard has shown the ability to adapt to wide positions well. He's not going to be a natural winger, but he can make the type of cutting runs inside which can wreak havoc in the opponent's half. Either way, I'm confident both will be around for a long time yet."
Translation by Gabriele Marcotti
