Mikel Obi Slams Chelsea Board After Premier League Loss to Manchester City

• Chelsea lost their opening Premier League match to English champions Manchester City
• Enzo Maresca’s first league game as Blues boss was a defeat to former boss Pep Guardiola
• Former midfielder John Obi Mikel has hit out at the club's management and recruitment

Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel is unimpressed with the Chelsea board following their opening day of the 2024/25 Premier League defeat to Manchester City.

Chelsea crumbled to a 2-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge in Enzo Maresca’s first league game, with City’s goals coming from Erling Haaland and former blue Mateo Kovacic.

The performance and results indicated that the majority of the problems from last season are still there, particularly in defence and the attacking department.

Mikel slams Chelsea board

Former midfielder Mikel Obi, a pundit for Bein Sports, berated the club's board for their team composition with players who don't uplift the squad despite heavy spending.

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“When I look at this team, Dewsbury-Hall, nothing against him, it's not how fault, it was the club, he cannot help Chelsea,” he said.

“We knew the problem was from last season, get a striker who could score goals. Jackson, he does a little bit here and there, but we need a top striker, back in our days, we had Didier Drogba, whom we knew would convert chances, we've seen Haaland.”

He claims that he talks about the club passionately because he loves it and wishes to see them back up to where they were during his 11-year spell.

“We don't want to become a mediocre club who finishes 10th, ninth every season, that's not who we are, we compete to win the Premier League, always in the Champions League, the more this goes on, the more we drift into a situation whereby we get comfortable in it,” he said.

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“We want to get back to where we were, and that's why we need to start signing the right players and getting a top striker would help us this season,” he added.

His consistent opinions on what is happening at the club are becoming uncomfortable for some fans, who claim he is getting angry unnecessarily and talking too much.

As noted by Transfermarkt, the club has spent over £1 billion on incoming transfers since the summer of 2022, yet it lacks an elite striker and a world-class goalkeeper.

Chelsea fans clamour for Osimhen

Legit.ng reported that Chelsea fans asked for Victor Osimhen to be signed after watching their team miss chances after chances during their defeat to Manchester City.

They agreed with Mikel Obi, who constantly berated Nicolas Jackson as a player who could not take Chelsea to the next level in front of the goal.

Source: Legit.ng