John Terry, Petr Cech, Didier Drogba, and Frank Lampard couldn’t do it. Since Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea, the Blues rampaged through football. But the old guard hung up their boots missing one trophy: the Club World Cup. Chelsea’s current captain, Cesar Azpilicueta, did what the old guard could not.
With the old guard, Chelsea stood firm on their principles. If a player was over 30, they would only be offered a one year contract, often making less than their last contract. That policy saw most of the old guard depart to finish their careers elsewhere.
Since then, the Blues have broken that policy both directly and indirectly. Olivier Giroud was one example of a signing coming in with a longer deal. For whatever reason, David Luiz was a player at the club that the Blues broke their policy for. They tried to do the same for Willian. But if any player was deserving of finishing his career at Chelsea, it is Azpilicueta.
The Club World Cup final had a perfect moment to show exactly why Azpilicueta is needed at the club. With a game winning penalty opportunity given, Azpilicueta stepped up. It seemed almost poetic that the player that could be the first to win it all with Chelsea would score the winning goal. But it was a ruse. Azpilicueta took the abuse, and when the time to shoot came, he passed the torch to Kai Havertz. With a cool, calm head, the German scored. It was a fantastic bit of gamesmanship and leadership in the heat of the moment by the captain.
Beyond that, where was Azpilicueta during much of the celebration? The same place he was after winning the Champions League: with Marina Granovskaia, Petr Cech, and Roman Abramovich. The old guard had a fantastic personal relationship with their superiors and, though that didn’t always make things easy at Chelsea, it did help to get the Blues where they deserved to be in the end. It’s not a mistake that Lampard would eventually become manager, Terry would return to help the youth team, Cech would end up as a technical advisor, and Drogba would remain close to the club. That connection over time is important. It is just as important that Azpilicueta remained connected as well.
The Spaniard’s contract is expiring this summer, with Barcelona interested in his services. It would be a mistake to allow him to leave. Azpilicueta is Chelsea. Though a new crop of leaders needs to be molded eventually, Chelsea’s mistake after Terry was letting the captain go before the new crop was ready to lead. One day, the likes of Mason Mount or Reece James may be captain. But they aren’t ready for that yet.
Furthermore, Azpilicueta has shown that he can still compete for a first team spot. He may not be the best wingback or fullback for the style Chelsea is looking for, but he can certainly get the job done and rally the team to do the same. Allowing Azpilicueta to leave wouldn’t just weaken the team on the pitch, but all over.
Azpilicueta is a legend. The Blues messed up how they dealt with their previous legends by the end. That lesson should be learned as they extend Azpilicueta for whatever he asks for. If the board does so, this won’t be the last piece of silverware Azpilicueta lifts.