Chelsea fans will no doubt be very happy with the recent comments made by Ramires, not just because the player has stated that he will be staying at the club, but because of the evidence of new Manager Mourinho laying down his foundations for the team. Although Ramires is not a player who scores and assists consistently throughout the season, most teams I’m sure would appreciate a player with his athletic attributes which is combined with a superb attitude. A player who will always give 100 per cent for his team.
His recent comments are extremely encouraging and it seems that although Mourinho has not had face to face contact with his Chelsea squad, he is slowly but surely making his way around the team through calling them. Most recently, the reports suggest that Kevin De Bruyne will be staying at Chelsea this season after his chat over the phone with Mourinho. Fantastic news for all Blues who no doubt wondered what Mourinho had planned for him.
Ramires recently spoke to Globo Esporte stating ‘I am eager to start working with Mourinho, my phone rang recently and it was Mourinho’. After Mourinho told Ramires that he had personally requested his previous employers Inter Milan and Real Madrid to sign the Brazilian he said ‘That made me very happy, and I told him that he can count on me, that I’ll do what I can to help him be a winner’.
This is an early example why it seems that players are willing to run through walls for Mourinho, he simply communicates fantastically with his players and makes them feel important. Frank Lampard recently highlighted the same feeling, ‘what he does is he gets the best out of players and gets togetherness that I’d never known until he came’.
The Brazilian midfielder is player that any manager would want on their side; he is aggressive on the pitch by making tackles and bursting through midfield areas creating quick counter attacks. Some may argue this is therefore the perfect player for Mourinho. In the past two seasons, Ramires made the most attempted and successful tackles within the whole Chelsea squad, winning 75% of them. In the 2011/12 season, he won 164 ground duels, the most in the whole Chelsea squad. What is even more impressive is to remember whilst that towards the end of the 2011/12 campaign and the start of 2012/13, Ramires played out on the right wing.
Within his first campaign under the guidance of Carlo Anchelotti, Ramires amounted 1943 minutes but was able to make the second highest amount of tackles (85) to Ashley Cole. However, interestingly Cole played over 1000 more minutes than Ramires that season and this was his first season in England.
Within the premier league, Ramires has not been able to become an influential player by means of scoring and assisting, however, instead he leads the team by setting the tone by making tackling hard and making direct bursts from midfield. A perfect example would be his equalising goal against Manchester United in the FA cup at Old Trafford by bursting through midfield and neatly rolling the ball past David De Gea. In the 2011/12 campaign, Ramires made an impressive 59 dribble attempts, highlighting his confidence whilst running with the ball. His stamina makes him a valuable asset, especially towards the end of games where he is able to excel by making his bursts where others are struggling for fitness.
Of course Mourinho will not rely on Ramires to score goals or create them directly, he has his flair players to do that, but it is obvious why Mourinho has targeted Ramires to communicate too early. He is a player who will give his all to coach and team whilst always putting the team first, and ultimately fight. We all know Mourinho appreciates this.
After Ramires’ recent contact with Mourinho he concluded ‘I am even more motivated after finding out what he wants to work with me’. Mission completed as that’s what Mourinho would have wanted, to bring togetherness and clarity to begin to motivate Ramires and ultimately bring the squad together.
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