Three More for the Chelsea Platoon

There’s more than a hint of Dad’s Army about Chelsea these days – not that Jose Mourinho could ever be regarded as being as pompous as Captain Mainwaring.

It all started with the long-awaited capture of Andriy Shevchenko from AC Milan – a world class striker who at 29 is approaching the twilight of an illustrious career. The fee is an estimated £30 million (quite big pocket money even for Chelsea) and the player apparently believes he has joined the Champions “at the perfect time” (well, at his age he could hardly have been able to afford to leave it much later).

Still further into the twilight is Real Madrid’s Brazilian legend Roberto Carlos, rated by the Chelsea C.O. as the best left back in the world (presumably because Ashley Cole, who has the disadvantage of not being 33, isn’t considered mature enough).

And there’s more. Rumour has it that the Special One has also lined up 30 year old Portuguese goalkeeper Hilario. No kidding.

Of course, Mourinho’s summer spending spree is sure to attract comments about pensioners and senior citizens, but he doesn’t mind. In a new twist to Arsene Wenger’s insistence that he doesn’t care about a player’s passport, the Chelsea manager is quoted as saying: “I am not one of those who looks at a player’s birth certificate.”

Well, it’s a relief to have confirmation that he isn’t one of those anyway.