How Good Is Victor Moses

With all of the rumours linking Victor Moses with a move away to Chelsea, I decided it would be interesting to focus on just how good a player he really is, and whether he is good enough for a team like Chelsea. I’ll take into account how his career has evolved so far and how much further it can go. I’ll talk about whether his style of play will fit into the Chelsea side and whether he could realistically break into the starting 11 at a big club. Finally I’ll talk about his consistency and whether he was really as good as everyone says he was last season.

Moses began his career at Crystal Palace as a youngster where his talent shone out greater than his teammates. He was at the club for four years, and in that time he had drawn interest from the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Wigan. It was Wigan who managed to beat those big names to get his coveted signature; a signature forced out of Palace’s hands due to Administration looming over them. So in 2010, Moses made his debut for the Latics as a substitute in a 1-1 draw. He went on to make 14 appearances that year, scoring once and assisting three times. This was the start of player going to be crucial in the clubs fight for survival in the coming years. This showed that the mental application to make the step from Championship to Premier League wasn’t a problem and that his has the mind frame to succeed.

So, we’ve established that Moses has what it takes to succeed mentally, but is he technically-gifted enough to reach to the top? Well last season for Wigan, he put in many a man of the match effort, earning constant plaudits for his pace, skill and ability to go past several players with consummate ease. However, I and I’m sure a lot of other people think that Moses has a long way to go before he reaches his full potential, although moving to a bigger club might just be the way to coax it out of him.

Last season, Moses was considered one of Wigan’s best players, but it was also claimed he only really shone during the end of season run-in. I thought it would be good to take a statistical look at how consistent he was through the season. From those stats shown, I’d say that in the first 10 games Moses played, he had a bigger influence on the game from the Wing. He was creating more chances, completed more accurate passes and was able to take on more men. When looking at the stats on the right however, I’d say all in all, he influenced the game just as much, only this time in an individual way. He was unable to create as much for his teammates, and his ball retention was poor in comparison to the start of the season, but he managed to score 3 goals this time, and he also had more Shots on Target.

Here We Go Again

As the new Premier League season draws ever closer, we will get our first taste of competitive action between two of the top sides in England. Yes, that's right, the Community Shield is upon us, with Manchester City facing Chelsea today at Villa Park. This game is usually seen as a mix between a Pre-Season game, and a game to give some clue as to how the big clubs may do this year.

Another thing that's interesting to see, is just how well the new signings will adapt. In Chelsea's case, this means Eden Hazard and Marko Marin (Oscar being away due to Olympics). From what I have seen of Hazard, I think he will have no problems fitting into the Premier League, although a cold night at the Britannia may be one step too far. However in general, I think that the trickery, and quick footedness of Hazard will be too much for most defenders. As for Marko Marin? Well I think that he also has the necessary attributes to succeed in England. He's another creative player, who loves to get inside and test the 'Keeper. However, where all of the new boys will fit in at the Bridge, is the important question. With Hazard, Oscar and Marin all coming in, and Mata and Ramires at the club to begin with, it's going to be a tough job keeping them all happy.

Well, from the excitement of new signings at Chelsea, to the lack of activity at the Etihad. Yes, City's inability to do any business in this window may have some fans considering their chances of glory with a little more pessimism this year. But, if you ask me, their current squad is still good enough to compete with the new additions at Man United, Chelsea and Arsenal. When you consider that a new, inexperienced team could edge out United last year, surely a more, gelled team, with title experience can make just as good a push this year, and who knows, with 3 weeks to go, they can still improve on this team sufficiently.

There has been plenty of questions as to how the sides could line up tomorrow. Well let's start off by looking at City. Firstly, one thought is that City may start with a back three. We saw Italy use it to start the Euros and several Italian clubs have used a back three in the past couple of years. So has Mancini decided to join the revolution, and bring it to the top of Premier League? Well we may soon find out.

Now for Chelsea, and it seems highly likely that they'll line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. This should see the likes of Mata, Ramires, Hazard and Marin contesting to play in the line behind a striker, most likely being Torres. However the big question, is not who'll play, but more how will they play with no Drogba? Personally, I think that although having Drogba benefitted the club hugely, the lack of him can now allow the club to move forward towards a new era, one following on from the Champions League win. If this is to work, then undoubtably, how Fernando Torres plays is going to be a major decider in the success. He now has a chance to kick on at the club, and having ended the season well, and winning the Golden Boot at the Euros, his confidence should be sky high, allowing his Chelsea career to finally reach the highs his Liverpool one did.

So finally, who's going to win it? Well, this is clearly a one that could go either way. The big question is just how seriously will the sides take it? And in my opinion, the new signings of Chelsea will definitely feel they have a point to prove, and a way of forcing themselves into Roberto Di Matteo's starting XI next week. However I'm not ruling out City by any means either. I think that they'll certainly run Chelsea close, but the Blues with they're attacking prowess, will have just too much.