Ex-Dutch captain and midfield maestro Wesley Sneijder is rumoured to be drawing attention from the newly appointed Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho. Mourinho and Sneijder were part of the Inter Milan team that won the Champions League in 2010 while tactically dominating Barcelona and Bayern Munich en route to lifting the trophy and Sneijder was the lynchpin of the Nerazzuri. Sneijder’s international career was also at a high as the Oranje missed lifting the FIFA World Cup by a whisker as they lost in extra time to the Spanish in the finals.
Sneijder’s recent past had seen him falling out of favour with Inter due to disagreements with his contract and this subsequently saw him lose his place in the starting lineup. A move to Turkish giants Galatasaray revived his career as he teamed up with Didier Drogba – a formidable partnership that helped the club win the Super Lig.
Sneijder’s reunion with Mourinho at Chelsea, if it materializes, might be a intimidating one again as the Special One looks to rebuild the club and take it closer to its glory days of old under him. The free kick specialist might or might not get regular playing time if he ends up at Chelsea, but he could line up perfectly alongside Juan Mata and contribute to an incisive attack. As Sneijder looks to regain his lost captaincy in the national side, a move to the Premier League and particularly to a club of Chelsea’s stature could greatly benefit his national ambitions as well.
At 29 years old, Sneijder has a few more years of top quality football left in him. With Chelsea poised to battle the Manchester clubs again for honours in the league, Sneijder’s experience could come in quite handy as the Blues look to transition smoothly from the era or Terry and Lampard to the exciting young crop of players in Luiz, Oscar and Hazard.
Source: DSG
