Europa League Beckons for Chelsea next season.......

The next 10 days will arguably be the most crucial 10 days for Chelsea Football Club as they seek to finish in the top four of the English Premier League, reach the FA Cup finals and try to beat odds on favourites Barcelona to reach the Uefa Champions league finals.

This is no mean task for Roberto Di Matteo's side and one clearly beyond them if the last 3 games are anything to go by. Chelsea struggled mightily against Benfica, needed a stroke of luck to overcome Wigan and looked tired and jaded against a resolute Fulham side last night.

The fight for the fourth and final champions league spot not only looks ominous for The Blues due to the congested fixtures but will see them face Arsenal, Liverpool, Newcastle and West London rivals QPR in the run in. I can safely bet that Chelsea will finish outside the top four for the first time in the Abramovich era unless Tottenham self-destruct which is highly improbable.

Can Chelsea stun Barcelona and qualify for the Uefa Champions League final? This is also highly improbable considering that the tie will be two legged and it has proved impossible for teams to beat Barcelona over two legs. This leaves the FA cup as the only solace for Chelsea this season but they have to overcome a faltering Tottenham side that are looking to salvage a once highly promising season.

It's do or die for Chelsea in the next fortnight but what is the best way forward?

The main handicap for Chelsea this season has been their slow build up game which enables their opponents to easily defend against. This slow build up game has allowed opponents to launch attacks without fear of getting caught out and as a result has taken out the fear factor that once enveloped teams facing Chelsea.

Chelsea need urgency in its play and a major overhaul is eminent with the likes of Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou, Florent Malouda, Ferreira, Jose Bosingwa, Michael Essien, Obi Mikel and possibly Ashley Cole departing and leaving room for a younger and more hungry replacements. The million dollar question is who is the right buy for Chelsea and why? below are 6 players that I believe can not only bring pace and guile into Chelsea's play but will not cost an arm and a leg either;

1. The Athletico Bilbao Trio;

Javi Martinez: 6ft 3in 23 year old defensive midfielder known for his high energy game. He is arguably one of the best passers of the ball in the primera liga. His quick passing game will help bring about urgency in Chelsea game. He can also play as a central defender if called upon.

Can replace both Essien and Mikel while acting as a defensive cover if need calls upon.

Oscar De Marcos: 22 year old forward player with pace to burn. The 6 feet player is among the rising stars of Spanish Football and has been lauded for his versatility. He has been used in midfield as well as full back on several occasions this season and excelled. A ball player with a great engine.

Will replace Salomon Kalou. Can also be a defensive right back if called upon. Will highly supplement Juan Mata.

Iker Muniain: 19 year old winger/forward is one of the stars of the U-21 World Cup and has already earned 1 cap for the Spanish National team. He is not only pacy but full of trickery and just what the doctor prescribed for Chelsea.

Will replace Florent Malouda and bring a quick tempo to Chelsea's game.

The trio might cost a combined £80 million.

4. Alvaro Pereira: 26 year old Uruguay wing back currently plays for FC Porto. He is an all action wing back with a great engine. He has one of the best left footed crosses in European football and will add a new dimension to Chelsea’s game. A bid from Chelsea earlier in the year was rejected by Porto.

Ideal replacement for Ashley Cole.

Cost £18million

5. Axel Witsel: 23 year old Belgian international midfielder with an eye for a pass and a good work rate. Considered one of the best midfielders in Portugal and can easily play as an attacking midfielder. He will bring freshness into Chelsea's midfield and provide adequate long term replacement for Frank Lampard.

Cost: £15 million

6. Gonzalo Higuain: The prolific 24 year old French born Argentine international seems surplus to requirements at the Santiago Barnebeu but might just be the tonic for Chelsea. He has averaged a goal every other game and can be an instant hit in the premier league because of his quick feet and eye for goal. He will be the right partner for Fernando Torres upfront.

£20 million

£ 130 million might be too much for Abramovich but his Chelsea side need a breath of fresh air and the 6 mentioned above could revive their floundering fortunes.

Everyday Kenyans and why we need to think different....

Its 4:45 am in the morning in the outskirts of Athi River town and Mwikali, a single mother of one is lucky to find only 3 fellow tenants ahead of her in the queue outside the only bathroom serving 85 single roomed households. “If you do not wake up this early, you might be forced to go to work without a bath because the queue is sometimes as long as 50 people” she informed us.

Mwikali is 28 years old and works at the Athi River Export Processing Zone (EPZ) where she earns Kes 7,500 per month and is paid fortnighly in arrears. "I am forced to walk 8 kilometres to and from work everyday because i cannot afford the matatu fare” she said. She further informed us that she pays Kes 2,000 as rent and sends Kes 2,000 to her mother who is helping her raise her four year old daughter. She remains with Kes 3,500 per month for her personal use every month.

Mwikali never finished high school due to lack of school fees and has been working as a casual labourer for a few years. "Life has not been kind to me and my family, but I pray to God that our lives change for the best. Mwikali, has absolutely no saving and claims that she sometimes goes without food for a day or two every month.

40 kilometres north of Athi River in Nairobi, Wafula* a 31 year old living in Kawangware has also woken up and preparing for the day ahead. While he doesn’t have the problem of queuing for a bath, he is bracing himself for a 7 kilometre walk to work in the Industrial area. His wife and kids are still asleep at this hour of the day but he has already had his breakfast of 'sturungi' and 2 slices of bread.

Wafula works as a panel beater for a car body shop where he is expected to start work by 7:30 am hence his very early morning. "I earn a basic salary of Kes 10,000 but my boss sometimes adds us Kes 1-2000 if we work diligently and meet our customers’ expectations" he said. He further informed us that he is forced to walk to and from work because of the high costs of transportation, a whopping 84 kilometres per week.

His income is supplemented by his wife's 'kibarua' work in the affluent Lavington area, where she earns a wage of least 200-300 per day if she is lucky to get a 'kibarua. She mainly tends to household chores and gets at least 3 kibarua's per week. Wafula and his family's main meal is normally Ugali and sukuma wiki at around 8pm. "This is the time when I get to see my children and talk to my wife, such is life" he said.

These kinds of stories are not unique to Mwikali and Wafula but can be found in each and every part of Kenya. These are the everyday stories of Kenyans struggling to make ends meet and with no future to look forward to.The average life expectancy in Kenya is 45 years but is it a wonder when every day Kenyans go through life just like Mwikali and Wafula? 

CHANGE STARTS WITH YOU AND I. ITS TIME TO START THINKING DIFFERENTLY.

3 Reasons Why Sir Alex Fergusson  trumped Roberto Mancini.....

Manchester United are 5 points clear of their 'noisy neighbours' after 31 rounds of the English Premier League and set to meet  their next opponents QPR a few hours before Manchester City play Arsenal FC at the Emirates. It means that the Red Devils, if they defeat QPR will be 8 points clear at the top of the league before Manchester City Vs. Arsenal game.

It definitely looks ominous for Roberto Mancini’s team but what exactly did Sir Alex do right to put Manchester United in the driving seat? I will summarize my 3 reasons why Manchester United will win the EPL before they meet Manchester City at the Etihad in round 36.

1. Roberto Mancini's attitude

Roberto Mancini: While Mr. Mancini is known to be a disciplinarian and a strict Manager, he had too many bust ups with his players more than Sir Alex has had with his players this season. The public spats with Mario Balotelli, Gareth Barry, James Milner, Edin Dzeko and the much publicized spat with star striker Carlos Teves all points to a Manager who is not willing to compromise with his players in certain situations.

Sir Alex, a tough disciplinarian has always read situations and softened his stance on many occasions while not compromising the clubs values. The Wayne Rooney incident of 2010 - 2011 Season when he defied Sir Alex and handed a transfer request because of a wage dispute is a prime example.

Roberto Mancini is too rigid and alienated a lot of players as a result in the course of the season.

2. Lethargy

Roberto Mancini's claim after the Swansea defeat that his team looked tired and jaded was not only true but it was his failure to address the issue earlier in the season that led to Manchester City losing steam at the most critical juncture (Last 10 games of the season).

Manchester United has played equal number of games compared to Manchester City but why aren’t they fatigued? This is the genius of Sir Alex Fergusson because he used his players sparingly throughout the season so that they can save their energy for the home stretch.

Below is a summary of the Key players for both teams including number of games played this season.

Man City Players	Number of Games
Sergio Aguero	41
David Silva	40
Yaya Toure	43 (including AFCON)
Samir Nasri	38
Joe Hart	40
Gareth Barry	40

Manchester United Players	Number of Games
Wayne Rooney	35
Patrice Evra	39
Nani	35
Ashley Young	27
Michael Carrick	33
Valencia	31

According to the Opta English Premier League statics, a midfield player in the EPL covers an average of 12km per game while a Centre Forward and Defenders cover 10.1km per game.

On average Manchester United’s Key players have played a combined 200 matches while their counterparts in Manchester have played 242 matches this season.  Man City have played as a collective unit 42 games more equalling to 2,783 Km’s.

Is it a wonder then that Manchester City are faltering to the finishing line?

3. Tactics

Roberto Mancini is probably the only manager in the EPL who has used only one formation in the entire season so far. The deadly 4-2-3-1 formation was used to overwhelming effect earlier in the season but 8 months down the road, most of the other premier league managers conjured up ways to contain City’s ‘galacticos’. Why Mancini never used varying tactics depending on the opposition is shocking considering the talent in his squad of players.

Coaches and defenders found ways of containing Nasri and Silva because they never cross from the flanks but drift into the middle looking for a defence splitting pass hence City’s struggles in front of goal lately.

Thumbs up to Sir Alex for winning Manchester United’s 20^th league title through his sheer genius.

Arsene Wenger has been great but he will never win the EPL ever again......

In October 1996 Arsene Wenger breathed a new life into Arsenal FC, the iconic but faltering Islington based football club. Within six months of taking over, Wenger completely changed the way the club was run by introducing new training methods but most of all he eradicated the booze culture that was rife in English Football.

He revamped the medical team by bringing in sports physiotherapists and nutritionists of the highest calibre and embarked on an ambitious project of building a world class training facility at London Colney (Which later became a blue print for almost all other English Clubs). Wenger had a vision that no other manager in English Football had at the time.

Wenger had also built a reputation at Monaco (Where he was a coach) for unearthing youthful talent and grooming them for success. He did not disappoint at Arsenal either, Patrick Vieira heralded his revolution at the North London Club followed by arguably one of the best youth and talent spotting system in world football.

When he joined Arsenal he dreamt of building a bigger and more modern stadium to replace the historic Highbury in order to give the club financial stability. The Emirates Stadium at Ashburton Grove is by far, Arsene Wengers biggest coup at Arsenal. Currently the stadium generates 50% of the clubs income and has not only brought in financial stability but as a result helped increase its fan base.

While Wenger was building his legacy at Arsenal another revolution was taking place in English football where billionaire investors from as far as Russia, USA and Iceland were investing in Premier League clubs. Chelsea FC, Man United, Aston Villa, West Ham United and most recently Manchester City among others have been scooped by wealthy foreigners.

These billionaires invested hundreds of millions in acquiring the best talent in world football and lured them with astronomical wages and bonuses in order to bring instant success to their clubs. Abramovich's Chelsea FC led the way and was rewarded by back to back titles.

While the new moneyed clubs were busy investing on players and coaching staff, Arsene Wenger introduced austerity measures during the construction of the Emirates in order not to balloon the clubs debts further. He also introduced a strict wage structure and put a cap on transfer budgets. Seven years down the road, Wenger's policies are still in effect and resulted in 7 successive trophy-less seasons while at the same time haemorrhaging some of their best players in successive seasons.

With Arsenal's strict wage and transfer policies, will top players ever consider moving to the Emirates due to their low wage structure? Will smaller European clubs who depend on player sales to survive consider Arsenal? Will Arsenal's top player Robin Van Persie renew his contract with the knowledge that he can earn 2-3 times more his current wage and stand a better chance of winning some silverware?

Can Arsene Wenger do the same things over and over and expect a different result? I doubt the results would be different hence my prediction that Arsenal FC (Under Wenger) might never win the English Premier League ever again simply because their opponents are getting more stronger year after year.