Chelsea 4 Wolves 0- New wonder boy worth all the fuss as Blues canter to win
22 Nov 2009 - 00:20:38
Gael Kakuta, a teenager entrapped in a controversy involving the mandarins from Fifa, delivered a 31-minute cameo on a rainswept afternoon that shone a bright light on the future havoc he can be expected to wreak in a Chelsea shirt.
He was comfortable on the ball, fast, intelligent in his decision making and could easily have marked his debut with a goal, as Chelsea dealt with the absence of Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Michael Ballack with comfort at Stamford Bridge.
Perhaps it is as well that Kakuta looked more than a shade decent; it would have been an awful embarrassment to report otherwise considering the trouble his arrival caused.
Double act: Essien notched a brace
Frenchman Kakuta, 18, was allowed to play yesterday as thefour-month ban imposed on him by Fifa in September - after Chelsea hadbeen found guilty of inducing him to break his contract with Lens twoyears ago - has been lifted while the leaders of the Premier Leaguepresent an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Critically, under the appeal, Chelsea will also be permitted toundertake business in the transfer window in January, having beenoriginally banned from registering new players for 12 months.
Kakuta has been wisely managed and counselled, by Chelsea managerCarlo Ancelotti through circumstances that must be overwhelming for ayoung player in a foreign land.
'For two or three weeks, Kakuta had some difficulties with the ban,'said Ancelotti. 'But we took him with the first team and he trainedwith us. In 30 minutes today, he showed a very big talent.
'But we have to stay calm with him; he's very young and we hope and believe he will improve and be a big player.'
His introduction showed a young man intuitively aware on a footballfield and he had been barely involved for three minutes when he swervedpast Richard Stearman inside the penalty area only to sweep aleft-footed shot into the side netting.
Nine minutes from time, Kakuta unleashed a drive from 25 yards thatflashed narrowly wide of an upright. He had shown us a glimpse of theoutstanding promise Ancelotti has identified.
Back to first team action: Joe Cole scored his first goal for 13 months
Yet the driving force at the heart of another comprehensive Chelseavictory was Michael Essien. He scored twice after Florent Malouda hadput them ahead, in between running the game with his strength, powerand inventive mind.
Ancelotti recognised the enormity of Essien's contribution throughthe season, not merely against a Wolves team staring at a long winterto survive in the Premier League, when he said: 'Michael is one of themost important midfield players in the world.
'He can play on the right or in the centre, with the same results.He provides a lot of continuity for the team; he maintains a goodphysical condition, he's strong, but he also has a lot of quality.'
Ancelotti's ability to allow two other young players, Nemanja Matic,a 21-year-old, 6ft 4in Serb and 18-year-old Italian Fabio Borini, tohave some valuable game time, as well as Kakuta, brought himencouragement that Chelsea's strident football need not be seriouslycompromised when Essien, Drogba, Salomon Kalou and John Mikel departfor the African Cup of Nations in January.
'We had a lot injuries before this game today, but our play was thesame,' he said. 'In January, we may not even need to buy other players.'
Much-anticipated: Gael Kakuta made his first appearance in the Premier League
At least the return to fitness of Joe Cole is akin to having a new, hugely skilled attacking player.
He scored Chelsea's fourth goal, his first in 2009. With guile, hardwork and an ability to play the game at great pace, Chelsea have nowestablished a club record with 12 consecutive victories at StamfordBridge.
And for good measure, this was the 10th game they have played atStamford Bridge without conceding a goal, an effort comparable to theChelsea team of 1927.
Wolves manager Mick McCarthy said: 'We are in a relegation fight,make no bones about it. I've just said to the lads, you might as wellrealise that now rather than a few weeks.
'We came here full of hope, tried our best, but got slapped. Butthis ain't going to knock the spirit out of them; because it's notright to judge us against a side like Chelsea.'
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