Nevin: Oscar key in next few weeks for Chelsea

Former Chelsea midfielder Pat Nevin says Brazilian midfielder Oscar is the club’s most important player ahead of the likes of Eden Hazard at the moment, per BBC Sport.

Oscar, 24, hasn’t quite established himself as a big player under boss Jose Mourinho and has been overshadowed by a number of teammates in the squad. He was linked with a move away this summer, with Italian giants Juventus reportedly interested (Express).

Oscar to return to No.10 role against Maccabi Tel Aviv

The Brazilian playmaker’s role in the team this year has been sporadic due to injury. Having played, and scored in the 2-2 draw against Swansea City on the opening day of the season, he picked up an issue in training and has not played since, but returned against Maccabi Tel-Aviv in the Champions League.

Oscar’s development over the past three seasons.

Nevin believes Oscar has a big role to play for the Blues this season.

“Hazard was the best player in the country last season, but only until six games before the end of the season. Since then he has looked unrecognisable and if he is not creating chances and Fabregas is not creating them, Costa is not going to score goals.

“I think the answer is closing down further up the field. They can’t do that with Hazard but I think they can with Oscar.

“I think Oscar might be the most important player over the next few games.”

Chelsea have conceded 12 goals in their five opening Premier League fixtures.

Chelsea have made a terrible start to their latest Premier League title defence, losing three of their first five games. After Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Everton and Manchester City’s 1-0 win at Crystal Palace, they are already 11 points off the pace.

Their success last term was built on a solid defence, conceding the fewest amount of goals in the league with 32. This term, they have already let in 12.

Oscar returns to Brazil squad with Neymar missing

The Chelsea midfielder joins Liverpool's Philippe Countinho in the 23-man squad that will face Chile and Venezuela in October's World Cup qualifiers

Chelsea midfielder Oscar will return to the Brazil squad for the October’s World Cup qualifiers, but former World Player of the Year Kaka has failed to make a squad that will also be missing captain Neymar.

Brazil begin their qualification campaign for Russia 2018 with a trip to Santiago to face reigning South American champions Chile before hosting Venezuela.

Barcelona forward Neymar is suspended for both matches after receiving a red card in Brazil’s Copa America group stage defeat to Colombia in June.

Midfielder Oscar has not appeared for his country since pulling out June’s Copa America squad through injury.

Orlando City star Kaka made a shock return to the Selecao for this month’s Chevrolet Brasil Global Tour victories over Costa Rica and USA, but has been left out in the cold despite Dunga’s insistence on brining more experience to the group.

Liverpool’s Philippe Countinho is back in the squad proper after he was originally left out of the group that travelled to the USA earlier this month, earning a return only after Oscar forced to withdraw because of fitness issues. 

Filipe Luis, who also missed September’s squad through injury, is back at the expense of Atletico Mineiro’s Douglas Santos.

Bayern Munich full-back Rafinha returns to the international scence for the first time since March 2014, while Corinthians defender Gil come in to replace Arsenal's Gabriel Paulista. Gil's club-mate, Renato Augusto, has made the Selecao for the first time since 2011.

Paris Saint-German defenders David Luiz and Marquinhos were also included, while Thiago Silva was once again left out in the cold.

Brazil technical coordinator Gilmar Rinaldi also confirmed that former World Cup-winner Cafu will accompany the coaching staff as guest assistant for the two international dates.

Brazil squad in full

Goalkeepers: Jefferson (Botafogo), Marcelo Grohe (Gremio), Alisson (Internacional).

Defenders: David Luiz (PSG), Miranda (Inter Milan), Marquinhos (PSG), Gil (Corinthians), Fabinho (Monaco), Rafinha (Bayern Munich), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Marcelo (Real Madrid).

Midfielders: Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Elias (Corinthians), Renato Augusto (Corinthians), Douglas Costa (Bayern Munich), Lucas Lima (Santos), Lucas Moura (PSG), Willian (Chelsea), Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool), Oscar (Chelsea).

Forwards: Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Hulk (Zenit).

Oscar: Don't rule Chelsea out the title race

The Brazilian netted a penalty to help lift the gloom around Stamford Bridge with a 4-0 Champions League win over Maccabi Tel Aviv.

But Arsenal visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday in what will be a much stiffer test of Jose Mourinho’s side and their current state of form.

Chelsea have won only one of their opening five league games, leaving them 11 points behind City and just one place off the relegation zone in their worst start to a season in 29 years.

But Oscar, Chelsea’s best player on the night, said: ““We have not lost the title. It’s so early. Last season we were eight points in front of Man City in January and then City came back to have the same points as us.

“We need to come back strong now. We need to try again.”

Goals from Willian, Oscar, Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas gave Chelsea a win they desperately needed, and Oscar said: “Everyone has been sad before the games because we haven’t won and we needed to win.

“Now we have won and we are happy. Everyone has changed and is confident now. This team won the Premier League last year - we need to take the confidence from that.

“Everyone been lacking in confidence before the games because of our run. We changed a little bit. But all the players are important for us. We need everyone.

“Chelsea have a lot of really good players. We won on Wednesday night, but we haven’t played well in the Premier League - we need to win against Arsenal now.”

Jose Mourinho slams Juventus boss over Oscar and Ramires amid Paul Pogba Chelsea links

JOSE MOURINHO had a dig at Juventus manager Manager Massimiliano Allegri and claimed he wouldn't follow in his footsteps by trying to unsettle players at other clubs.

Mourinho was unhappy after Allegri publicly declared his interest in signing Chelsea's Brazilian pair Oscar and Ramires.

Juventus star Paul Pogba has been the subject of intense speculation linking him with a move to Chelsea, but Mourinho refused to use his press conference before the clash with Crystal Palace as a chance to discuss the rumours.

“He is a Juventus player,” Mourinho said.

“I did a little critic at my friend Allegri because I didn’t like him speaking during the summer about Oscar and Ramires.

“I’m not going to be like that with Pogba. He is a Juventus player.”

Jose Mourinho refused to talk about the possibility of signing Paul Pogba

A deal for Pogba could still be on the cards, however, as Mourinho refused to rule out dipping in to the transfer market before the window closes on September 1.

The Blues have also been pursuing John Stones but Mourinho was equally tight-lipped when asked if he would continue to pursue his interest in the Everton defender.

Tough tackling Oscar ready to come to Chelsea's rescue

Oscar is due to return from injury following the international break

It is fair to say that Chelsea have not had the best of starts to the season in their defence of last year’s title. Their 2-1 loss at home to Crystal Palace means that they have the second lowest tally of points after four games by any reigning champion in Premier League history. As well as the obvious problems in defence they also have headaches in other areas of the pitch too.

Eden Hazard has been extremely quiet compared to fantastic campaign last year and Cesc Fabregas seems to have lost his metronomic like passing ability. Meanwhile, up front, Diego Costa seems more interested in finding fights then finding the back of the net.

One player whose reputation has been spared during this slow start has been midfielder Oscar. The 23 year old has been on the sidelines due to a muscular injury picked up in training meaning he has missed the last three games. The only game Oscar has played is the 2-2 opening day draw against Swansea in which he scored the opener.

The wiry midfielder has been somewhat forgotten as the signature of Pedro and the struggles of John Terry have been highlighted repeatedly. There is a reason why Jose Mourinho resisted the attempts of Juventus to sign Oscar and that is because he is a vital part of Chelsea’s midfield.

Let’s take a look at the start of last season for example. Chelsea started last year’s campaign like a train and won seven of the first eight games. During this time Oscar scored three times and provided two assists but it was not only his attacking that contributed to Chelsea’s flying start. The Brazilian had made 26 tackles during those first eight games to really stamp his authority on the opposition midfield. Compare this to Jack Wilshere who made only 5.

Oscar’s tackling is a trait that not a lot of people pick up on.  The thought of such a slim, technical player having an aggressive side is hard to imagine for some but Oscar is tougher than he looks. Evidence of this could be found in Brazil’s quarter final win over Colombia in the 2014 World Cup. Oscar gave as good as he got as a real battle unfolded in the battle for a semi final place.

The advantage of having such a player playing just behind a striker cannot be overstated. Chelsea were so successful last year because of the way they closed down the opposition so quickly. Pressing teams high up the pitch allowed them to retrieve the ball quicker and bully teams such as Tottenham who limped away following a 3-0 defeat.

This year Chelsea  are not as dynamic and it may not be a coincidence that Oscar has missed most of the poor start. The great thing for Chelsea fans is that when he returns he will be fresher than ever. During the summer, Oscar missed the Copa America with a thigh injury which allowed him to have a summer of rest for the first time in five years! Maybe the constant football of previous summers can be cited as a reason for Oscar waning in influence towards the end of the last two campaigns.

At one point it seemed that Oscar would be playing in Juventus this year as Chelsea chased the signature of Paul Pogba. For fans of the London club it is a stroke of good fortune that such a player has remained at Stamford Bridge. It seems that the 23 year old is also content with where he is in what will be his fourth season at the club.

“I know there has been a lot of talk about Juventus,” Oscar told the Daily Mail. “But I am very, very happy at Chelsea.”