Whilst there is no doubt about Marko’s budding talent, the time and space that would have otherwise afforded him the freedom and opening to fully polish his artistry to the hilt, have unfortunately been remote in Chelsea colours this season.
Not long ago, we were all moaning about the dire need of attacking midfielders/wingers in the mould of Silva, Modric, Ozil & co, creativity-personified with a burst of pace and astuteness to come with it. Now we have the likes of Mata, Moses, Marin, Hazard and Oscar, not forgetting the future stars, Thorgan Hazard, Kevin De-Bruyne and Piazon who were loaned out to free up some space for a position that was once desolate. Crazy ‘kung-fu’ stunt from the Board huh?
The influx of these natural talents has undermined Marin’s chance of further developing and exhibiting his guile. The quartet of Mata, Moses, Hazard, Oscar, whose innate technique and refined flair has been proven and demonstrated time and again, are obviously first-choice ahead of Marko Marin, that is until recently.
As fortune(if that’s actually what it is) would have it, the little German, who has been restricted to bit part roles in the squad, can now heave a sigh of relief as the fearsome competition he has had to contend with is gone. Temporarily. Eden Hazard is suspended for 3 games and possibly more, Moses is in SA with Nigeria for the AFCON games, which could run for a while depending on Nigeria’s perfomance.
So, essentially the ball is in Marko’s court to break into the team if he impresses, and going by the few games he has played so far including the Brentford game, there is still much left to be desired. He should be doing more than passing to the closest teammate by now. I expect him to start influencing games by making incisive passes, dribbling 1 or 2 players, getting assists and scoring vital goals just like his superior partners. That’s what gets you in the starting eleven at a team like Chelsea.
Chelsea haven’t been imperious of late, and tempers are running high, patience is the last catchword you want to associate with the club now, hence it is all up to Marko to dare and venture into that zone of suavity he is capable of reaching, or risk losing the faith of fans and ultimately the coach, if he hasn’t already…
By Salako Aramide
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