John Obi Mikel Back from the ‘dead’

Under Mourinho, Mikel saw regular action ahead of even more established super stars in the club. His exhilarating displays at the 2005 FIFA World Cup where he was voted second best player to Argentina’s Lionel Messi lent credence to Mourinho’s preference for the then jewel of inestimable value. The former Plateau United remained a regular […]

Under Mourinho, Mikel saw regular action ahead of even more established super stars in the club. His exhilarating displays at the 2005 FIFA World Cup where he was voted second best player to Argentina’s Lionel Messi lent credence to Mourinho’s preference for the then jewel of inestimable value.

The former Plateau United remained a regular at Chelsea even after the exit of Mourinho as he proved useful in his new role of ball holding midfielder which he was introduced to by the Portuguese coach.

However, the current season saw less of Mikel’s appearances for Chelsea as the recently sacked Manager, Andre Villas-Boas appeared less interested in working with him. Consequently, Mikel found himself more on the bench than on the field, a situation which was made worse by a nagging injury.

When it was rumoured that a Russian club, Anzahi Makhachkala was interested in him, many concluded that the player was surplus to requirement and his days in Chelsea were numbered. But with Roberto Di Mateo in charge at least for now, it appears Mikel’s resurgence is here.

Thus, it was a return from the ‘dead’ when Mikel saw full ninety minutes of action in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter final match against Benfica.

Playing his 17th match for Chelsea this season and earning a second starting berth in the Champions League, he helped snuff out the danger of Benfica play-maker Pablo Aimar. Aimar had to be replaced in the second half. Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, a former Manchester United defender, praised Obi’s part in securing the 1-0 away victory.

“As one of the players down-graded by AVB (Andre Vilas-Boas), Mikel showed today (Tuesday) what he can do and I must say that this is the best I have seen him play this season,” said Neville after the match.

“We knew what a great side they are and coming here we knew it was going to be very difficult,” said Mikel after the match. “What we did was to put in the hard shift, keep working, keep defending and hope we can have a chance which we did and after we got the goal, the game became easier for us.”

Mikel on his part said “This result will mean a lot when we play at home. We knew coming here that if we could get a draw or a win, we can go home and seal the game. We just have to keep playing and hope that when they come over, we can get a good result too,” said Mikel.

Chelsea will be hoping to make it their sixth semi-final berth in the Champions league in nine years when they host Benfica at Stamford Bridge in the return leg.