In his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, former Liverpool attacker Stan Collymore discusses some of football’s biggest talking points, including why John Stones should be the centre of England’s plans, Declan Rice’s future and why the Premier League’s recent decision to block Paramount+’s deal to sponsor Chelsea is a joke, plus much more.
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Gareth Southgate should build his England team around John Stones…
I know the Manchester City boys didn’t play for England against Malta last week, but we’ve seen enough throughout the 2022-23 season, as well as in the Champions League final, which is obviously the biggest game in club football, and the way John Stones played, especially when Kevin De Bruyne went off injured, was exceptional.
When given the freedom to play as a defender and midfielder, he hasn’t just picked the ball up and carried it into midfield now and again, he has dictated the tempo and made runs to support his front and wide team-mates – watching him, I have thought to myself ‘Wow – this is perfect for Gareth Southgate and England’ because a player as versatile as Stones is not something this country has ever really had.
A trio of him, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice, in my opinion, would make England’s midfield the best in the world. I genuinely believe that if Spain, Italy or France had the flexibility that Stones offers us, they’d build their team around him; I really believe that. So with the Three Lions still with a few Euro 2024 qualifiers, as well as two friendlies against Scotland and Australia, still to come before the end of the year, I don’t see why Southgate can’t replicate what Pep Guardiola has done with Stones at club level; do it, Gareth, be bold, be brave!
Andy Robertson would have been annoyed by the Erling Haaland hype…
On the subject of internationals, well done Scotland and Andy Robertson in particular. Not only did the Scots complete a brilliant late comeback to beat Norway 2-1 last week, but their left-back was exceptional, absolutely world-class.
The game was built up in a way that meant Erling Haaland was the centre of attention. It was almost like there was no way Norway were going to lose while Haaland was on the pitch and that would have annoyed Robertson like you wouldn’t believe. Of course, Haaland is going to get a lot of attention, he’s his country’s best player and he’s just won the treble with Manchester City, but Robertson has won it all too. He’s not a nobody, he’s also playing for one of the biggest clubs in Europe and is arguably one of, if not the, best in the world in his position.
When it comes to Scotland’s performance as a collective, I thought there were really, really good. It’s worth mentioning Aston Villa’s John McGinn too – he had a great game and looked like the McGinn of old, and of course, credit to Steve Clarke. It wasn’t so long that the manager was under pressure and coming in for criticism, but he’s hung in there and appears to have turned things around, so good luck to him and the rest of Scotland for the remainder of their Euro 2024 qualifying matches.
Kepa isn’t good enough to be Chelsea’s number one…
It’s crazy to think that Chelsea have spent nearly £700m in the last two transfer windows and yet here we are in Todd Boehly’s third and he now needs to buy a goalkeeper, a centre-back, a central midfielder and a striker.
Edouard Mendy looks to be on his way to Saudi Arabia so it seems Mauricio Pochettino is happy to go into the new season with Kepa as his number one, but that’s going to be a problem in my opinion because the Spaniard is weak – he isn’t physically or mentally strong enough to be the Blues’ outright number one.
Just like Manchester United shouldn’t be starting next season with David De Gea or Dean Henderson in between the sticks, Chelsea shouldn’t be playing with Kepa. Those two clubs, as well as Tottenham Hotspur, all need new number ones. I know Daniel Levy is in the process of trying to sign David Raya from Brentford, but while the Bees’ £40m asking price remains a sticking point, why on earth aren’t Chelsea and Manchester United trying their luck? – He’s a good keeper. Not only is he Premier League proven, but he has the qualities all of these teams need – the ability to play out from the back, for example.
The problem, especially with Chelsea, is that there is no spine to their team. They’ve got a lot of flair players and the majority of their best players play out wide, but the centre of their team, from back to front is really lacking, so once again, Chelsea need to make a lot of signings, and in my opinion, when the spine of your team needs rebuilding, it should always start with signing a new goalkeeper.
Declan Rice alone won’t make Arsenal guaranteed title contenders…
Declan Rice’s move away from West Ham United is shaping up to be one of the summer’s biggest sagas. It looks like it’s going to come down to a choice between Arsenal and Manchester City. Chelsea were once in the race to sign him, but the big catch there was that Rice could have moved to Stamford Bridge and played with his best friend, Mason Mount, but now Mount is closing in on a move to Manchester United and Chelsea don’t even have European football on offer next season, Rice is probably going to be sat there thinking ‘what’s the point in going back to Chelsea now?’
As for Arsenal, with Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey both likely to depart in the coming weeks, some fans may be concerned that losing both their first-choice defensive midfielders in the same window is risky, but I don’t think so. Xhaka is a great pro, and he’s been a wonderful servant to the club, but it’s time for him to move on, and if Partey isn’t in Mikel Arteta’s plans, then I think the Spaniard has done enough to warrant fans trusting his judgement. Selling both would also help to bring Rice in too, so I do understand why the club are taking that approach.
However, one thing I will say is that I am not sure signing Rice automatically makes the Gunners title contenders again. He’d certainly improve them, but he won’t turn them into guaranteed challengers; Arteta will need more, and unless he signs others, Rice alone will make Arsenal what they should have been in the season just gone – top-four contenders.
No to Paramount+ but yes to more betting, says the Premier League…
The last topic I want to talk about in this week’s column is the Premier League’s decision to block Paramount+ from becoming Chelsea’s new sponsor.
In comparison with some of the league’s sponsors, Paramount are one of the more respectable companies. They’re an entertainment company that produce films and series and they’re not allowed because the Premier League might not like it but random Chinese betting and crypto companies that have popped up, pretty much overnight, can splash their brand all over our team’s shirts. And these are companies that specialise in the one thing the Premier League have just admitted destroys lives…GAMBLING! – Make it make sense!