JAMIE CARRAGHER is not convinced that Chelsea have developed enough as a team since Todd Boehly took over in 2022.
That was the message he gave to his CBS Sports co-presenter while discussing the Blues’ loss to on Wednesday, much to the chagrin of his co-hosts.
Jamie Carragher started a heated exchange with co-host Micah Richards over Chelsea
The debate left fellow hosts Thierry Henry and Kate Adbo shocked
Todd Boehly took over at Stamford Bridge in May of 2022
The legend was , and went on a rant about the club’s lack of progress in recent years that left co-hosts and stunned.
He began: “There’s no right or wrong way of going about running a club and trying to be successful, it doesn’t matter about the system.
“The point I’m trying to make is we can’t pretend that this has been a success so far after three-and-a-half years.
“They came into a club and the manager was , he’d won the Champions League at that club.
“Manchester City and Liverpool were possibly the best two teams in world football, alongside , so it was very difficult for anybody to win the Premier League, but were the third best team. It wasn’t , it wasn’t , it was Chelsea.
“They then change that manager, they then take a team who were very close to competing and winning trophies like they did the Champions League, and they go and spend £2 billion.
“They are no closer, they are further away than what that manager was doing three-and-a-half years ago in terms of competing with the top teams in the Premier League, they are further away having spent two billion pounds.”
Co-host could not believe what he was hearing, and responded in what would quickly become a fiery debate.
He replied: “But there’s been progress, hasn’t there? If you finish in the league in his first season, 12th, and then you finish sixth, and then you finish fourth, and then you win the .
“We’re talking about where they are now. Yes, he has spent a lot of money, but there has been progress.
“They beat the best team in in . They did ever so well, I’m not saying Chelsea are going to win the , but you can see progress.”
Carragher interjected saying: “Let’s not forget where Chelsea have come from, Chelsea are a winning machine.”
But Richards was having none of it, doubling down: “Man United have been a winning machine, Man United in this period of the last six or seven years have spent an awful lot of money.
“Man United have finished 15th, 16th, 17th last year, nowhere near the Champions League, so if you go back and say 12th, progress.
“You mention a way of doing it, at this moment in time Man City and Arsenal and Liverpool have got a better squad than Chelsea. I think it’s very clever the way that Chelsea have done their business.
“I don’t think their squad is as good, I’m talking about in the Premier League, I think they could buy more quality rather than quantity.
“But has been a good signing, did well at Dortmund, and if you’re looking at what they’re trying to do, they’re trying to buy young players.
“Man City have waited too long before they can sell anyone, Chelsea are very good at selling on an asset, because they buy them young, , , [£48.8million].
“I just think Chelsea are going about it in a different way, whether we agree with it or not.”
Chelsea’s star man this season has been Joao Pedro, brought in over summer from Brighton
They made almost £50million from the sale of Noni Madueke to Arsenal
The Blues won two trophies last season, the Europa Conference League and the Club World Cup
Chelsea have had a w as they spent massive sums to overhaul their squad, while utilising the loan market and affiliate club Strasbourg to maintain value for players while they develop.
The back and forth descended into a fast exchange of arguments as Carragher diminished the significance of Chelsea’s Club World Cup victory earlier this year.
Carragher questioned: “Are Chelsea here to transfer players or to win trophies?”
To which Richards replied by pointing out that they won two trophies last year , before Carragher sensationally labelled the accolade as ‘a Mickey Mouse trophy.’
Richards responded: “? They’ve just beaten PSG, European Champions!”
But Carragher got the final word in, cornering Richards by saying: “You’ve just said they haven’t got a squad better than the other teams in the Premier League. How is that possible when you’ve spent £2 billion on a squad?” To which the former man had no response.
The pundits’ sparring was watched in awe by the pair’s other co-hosts, with both Abdo and Henry sitting wide-eyed as the back and forth drew to a close.
It was an unusual sight for audiences to see Richards shed his smiley and relaxed personality and defend Chelsea so staunchly, but the pair quickly reverted to pally grins when the debate was over.
