Mourinho’s Ba block shows Arsenal as real threat to Chelsea

With the signing of Mesut Ozil, Arsenal have set down a real marker. The German international midfielder transformed what was looking like an underwhelming and frustrating transfer window for the Gunners into an exceptonal one, and it is the signing that has really set journalist’s keyboards tapping and tongues wagging, but it was so close to being even better. A report in the Daily Mail explains that the new Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho blocked a deal that would have seen Demba Ba come to the Emirates at the last minute, when Arsenal thought the deal was done, because he was seriously concerned about Arsenal as rivals. Mourinho said, “We didn’t accept Arsenal’s offer for Demba Ba because the signing of Ozil makes them title contenders. “Ozil is unique. There is no copy of him – not even a bad one. He is the best number 10 in the world.” The Chelsea boss knows all about the ability of Arsenal’s new star, of course, having been his manager at Real Madrid. I suppose we could take it as a compliment, but the timing of the decision by Chelsea to call off the transfer could also be seen as sabotage, leaving no time for Arsene Wenger to bring anybody else decent to the club. As long as Giroud can stay fit for the next couple of months, giving Sanogo and Bendtner time to get up to speed, and Podolski to recover from his hamstring problem, the loss of Ba should not hurt us too much. I am sure that Wenger will be trying to sign a striker in January. Having had no such qualms about letting players go to Liverpool, Mourinho does not seem to think that the Anfield club will provide the same sort of challenge, despite their strong start. It is encouraging to know that Chelsea are worried about the mighty Arsenal, and I’m sure that the other big teams will be concerned as well. The stability and quality of the first team, and the continuity of keeping our manager could still be decisive in the title race.