Chelsea assistant Michael Emenalo: Fernando Torres missing ‘juicy passes’ of Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso

Chelsea assistant coach Michael Emenalo (Getty Images)

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By Kingsley Kobo

Chelsea assistant manager Michael Emenalo has admitted that Fernando Torres has struggled since moving to Stamford Bridge because he is missing “juicy passes” from the likes of Xabi Alonso and Steven Gerrard.

The Spain international has scored just one goal since joining the club for £50 million from Liverpool in January.

Emenalo insists the striker still needs time to adjust to the Blues’ style of play before he is back to his best form.

Goal.com: Many African fans still wonder how a former Nigeria international found his way to the coaching staff of a top club such as Chelsea.

Michael Emenalo: Those African fans who are surprised that a former Nigeria international rose through the ranks in an elite club like Chelsea are just limiting their potentials with the colour of their skin. Better still, they should go and ask the US President Barack Obama how he rose through the ranks to occupy the White House.

Goal.com: What was really your job behind Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea?

Emenalo: I was appointed by Chelsea’s owner to be his assistant.

Goal.com: Chelsea became a renowned club in Europe with laudable successes after its acquisition by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. What has been sustaining the team: money, top players or good coaching?

Emenalo: Quite right the money is there. The same money will be needed to get seasoned hands which will in turn assemble quality players to form a great team, so I can say that the three, combined, have been keeping the club going.

Chelsea training session | Emenalo in discussion with Carlo Ancelotti

Goal.com: You have just overcome a very trying season during which many were predicting the probable demise of Chelsea’s continental prestige. What went wrong during the nosedive and how did the technical staff revive the momentum?

Emenalo: Undue pressure from within and outside the club contributed to the nostalgia about us losing our prestige, but once we noticed where the problem was from, we just checkmated it and the rest is history.

Goal.com: Why do you think so many Chelsea players underperformed this season: Michael Essien, Florent Malouda, Jon Obi Mikel, etc?

Emenalo: High expectations from fans and management made them play the way they played, in the sense that they didn’t perform as usual because they were playing under pressure. 

Goal.com: Why is Fernando Torres still struggling at Chelsea since his arrival?

Emenalo: I can say he’s still adapting to the pattern of Chelsea at the moment due to the fact that he’s still missing the juicy passes being served to him by the likes of Xabi Alonso and Steven Gerrard, but with time he will adapt.

Goal.com: Ancelotti has gone, what does the future hold for you at Chelsea?

Emenalo: It is in the hands of God Almighty and Roman Abramovich, the owner of the club.

Goal.com: We have just seen Barcelona’s scintillating performance over Manchester United to win the Champions League. Could your side have done better than United?

Emenalo: The English representation of Barcelona can be likened to that of Arsenal FC in the sense that a better way to checkmate the excess of such free flow of football is trying your possible best to force the team to play your pattern, which can be achieved by being more physical in your approach to the game. The likes of Inter Milan that are more physical applied that principle and overcame Barcelona the last time both sides met. I strongly believe that our physicality could have helped us checkmate such excesses.

Goal.com: Do you believe Didier Drogba will leave this summer?

Emenalo: Not at all.

Goal.com: How involved is Abramovich in team matters?

Emenalo: As any other owner of a club side would be.

Goal.com: What happened to former assistant coach Ray Wilkins at Chelsea?

Emenalo: He left through mutual agreement between employer Roman Abramovich and the employee Ray Wilkins.

Goal.com: What would be Chelsea’s main objectives for next season?

Emenalo: A Champions League crown priority, that is the only silverware missing in our archive.

Marking Maradona | Emenalo during his playing days with Nigeria

Goal.com: Having played alongside Samson Siasia, what is your personal view of the coach? Is he the right man to lead Nigeria?

Emenalo: (Sigh) Nigeria is a country that will shout hosanna hosanna when the result is not forthcoming. They will shout in unison and crucify him Siasia. They lack patience, which is a sine qua non for success. With his stint with Nigerian teams, I can say he has known what is expected of him.

Goal.com: What is your opinion on Peter Odemwingie’s first season in the English Premier League? Do you think he could fit in at Chelsea, or should he stay at West Brom?

Emenalo: At present West Bromwich Albion is just a perfect start for Peter in the Premiership in the sense that the pressure at Chelsea to deliver and compete with elite clubs is just too demanding for a player that is just arriving in the league. Perhaps with time, after garnering enough Premier League experience, he can now switch, but for now West Brom is okay for him.

Goal.com: Personally, where do you wish to land from Chelsea, coaching a European club or an African national team?

Emenalo: African teams are not always in competition as club sides are, in the sense that it is a once-in-while action. I will prefer a club side in Europe where the modus operandi is transparent. I am not in any way trying to say that African teams are not transparent in their dealings, it’s just that European clubs provide a more enabling environment for you as a coach to deliver.

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