Salomon Kalou: One of football’s great riddles

Unquestionably one of the best back-up strikers in the Premier League, many football fans may wonder why Chelsea’s Salomon Kalou has not sought a new challenge away from Stamford Bridge. The view of the Ivorian is mixed among the Chelsea faithful however he does come as a bit of a puzzle to football as one of those players that you feel aren’t quite fulfilling their full potential.

Kalou, often eclipsed by his brother Bonaventure, whom people believed to have the more potential of the two, began to make a name for himself with notable performances for Dutch outfit Feyenoord. The striker was then snapped up by Chelsea early into the Abramovich revolution after an impressive goal scoring record as the Ivorian left the Dutch club with 35 goals in 67 league appearances.

You can clearly see from Kalou’s record in Holland that his best role is as an out and out striker, and this is where much of his issues with the London club arise. For seasons now Kalou has often been forced to play out of position, in a Chelsea team that for years executed a 4-3-3 formation, Kalou was forced out wide, on the left or the right. It is a dilemma similar to that of Liverpool’s Ryan Babel, another player who undoubtedly has the potential to reach great heights and although it is a demonstration of Kalou’s versatility and work ethic that he experiences success in that role, it is also a hindrance on a player who is underused.

The Ivorian holds a more than average goal scoring record for the club, considering many of them come from off the bench, averaging around ten a season in all competitions. He is often given opportunities in competitions such as the Carling and F.A Cups as a front man and this is where he gains the majority of his goals, again illustrating that when used to his full potential, he will score goals. Having said this he is no stranger to chipping in with important goals in the league, think of Manchester United at home in last year’s campaign, a goal that in hindsight may have appeared more important than it proved to be but nevertheless was still against the League champions.

Kalou does however have the added bonus of the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti. Ancelotti famously favours the 4-4-2 diamond formation and when utilising the Ivorian, is likely to do so in an out and out striker role. This has already paid dividends as Kalou has bagged 4 goals in 13 appearances so far this season, a ratio better than his previous campaigns. He has showed his potential in this role with an impressive brace against Atlético Madrid in a recent Champions League tie, a game I was at myself and can safely say that it could easily have been a hat-trick. Kalou does, like any other back-up striker, suffer from the fact that he is expected to instantly perform when given a chance and this is not healthy for a striker’s confidence. I am of the firm belief that given a run in the team, for instance in the scenario of a Nicholas Anelka injury, Salomon Kalou could stake a claim for a regular starting place for the Blues and rid himself of this tag as a bit of a puzzle.