Dear Nicolas:
After closely watching your game this season, I felt the need to review past posts where I mentioned your name. I found one here where I wasn’t really nice to you and another one here where I attempted to apologize. But it was a weak, half-hearted attempt, especially since you’re the leading scorer in the English Premier League right now. Because of this, I’m using this post to give you a proper mea culpa:
You play for Chelsea, of whom I am a die-hard fan. No matter how much I still have to learn about football, I know what it takes to wear a title like that. It takes staunch loyalty, season-long commitment and most all, patience. But patience is a virtue that American sports fans don’t abundantly possess.
We used to though: we knew that teams and individual players would have good years and bad years. We also knew that really good teams would have championship seasons one year while barely squeaking by the next. And while we would have loved it if our fave teams and players won every prize every season, we knew that they would sometimes lose. And we accepted it.
Michael Jordan changed all that. After getting picked third overall by the Chicago Bulls in the 1984 NBA draft, MJ changed basketball as soon as he finished his first preseason Bulls game…and looked real pretty doing it. He created dunks from 20 feet out. He made all-net jump shots look quaint. Most of all, he was a leader. While Jordan didn’t take Chicago to the championship that first season, his on-court performance carried a promise that he would. A promise that he delivered on in 1991 as he led the Bulls to their first of six NBA titles.
Since then, American sports fans are looking for the next Michael Jordan. Or the next Wayne Gretzky. Or Joe Montana. Maybe not carbon copies of them, but we’re looking for those that get the results as soon as they sign the contract. The Jets expected it from Brett Farve. The Yankees have expected it from a seemingly endless parade of pitchers. This type of mindset, I believe, will always exist in American sport fandom on some level.
So when I started watching footie, I came in with this American mindset. And if my above theory is true, then the absolute worst thing that could’ve happen to me happened…I got instant results the day I started watching the game.
The results were delivered courtesy of your current teammate, Didier Drogba. It was during that 2007 FA Cup Final when he spanked that goal past the Manchester United keeper, giving Chelsea the win. They say that you shouldn’t look for a club to support, the club will find you. Chelsea found me the second Didier’s ball found the back of the net that day.
With Didier’s win and the instant gratification I received, I just assumed that Chelsea would always be winning and DD would be the reason why….like it eventually was with Jordan. This built up such a bias in my head, that I felt threatened by you when you came to my beloved Blues during the January transfer window of the 2007/08 season. Drogba was hurt so you came in to pick up the slack and I thought you were being primed to take his place. So I subconsciously said to myself, “He’d better get results immediately and lead this team to victory.” In short, I demanded that you be better than Michael Jordan.
You weren’t. To be fair, you sucked that first season with Chelsea and that’s why I started to write you off has a has-been. But as I said yesterday in my observation of the rumored-Thierry Henry move out of Barcelona, I’ve learned that all players must be given proper time to acclimate themselves to their new football club. And in your case, I’ve watched you acclimate yourself to Chelsea brilliantly and have therefore, learned and this lesson too late. I put harsh words on you and you’ve made me eat every one of ‘em.
And you know what? you’ve looked real pretty doing it. Despite Chelsea’s current cold spell, you’ve scored 14 goals for my club, more than anyone in the league right now. You’ve to taken the role of center forward and commanded the position quite nicely. The Blues are currently in fourth place…they have you to thank for not being in sixth place.
But now your club manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, isn’t starting you up front. Instead, he’s starting Drogba, who’s been a lazy-a**. Neither his teammates, his coach nor his club’s owner know whether or not this fool wants to stay with Chelsea or split. Oh, he said he wanted to stay last week, but he likes to change his mind. And while he’s doing that, you’re all ready to go.
You’ve got my respect, but Mr. Scolari needs to give you his after all you’ve done for Chelsea this season. And he needs to do it now. Otherwise, he may be forced to deliver a late apology for his mistakes…like I had to.
So Sorry Nick,
kaidez