There is reported unrest at The Bridge as Chelsea show cracks appearing in the team spirit that was such a strong part of Jose Mourinho’s time at Chelsea.

I had previously suggested that though Avram Grant has proved everyone wrong with such a good record since taking over from Mourinhno at the end of September 2007, he now faces his toughest test in team selection and bonding a large group of players with egos the size of water melons!

If Chelsea had won the League Cup on Sunday Grant would be king. As it was, Grant has been slated for his team selection. It has been reported that four Chelsea players were furious over Avram Grant’s Carling Cup final team selection. Claude Makelele, Joe Cole, Ashley Cole and Michael Ballack are believed to be seeking an explanation. Ashley Cole wasn’t even named as a substitute which suggests there’s no smoke without fire.

I was pleased to see Wayne Bridge picked ahead of Ashley Cole, surprised to see Frank Lampard chosen ahead of Michael Ballack; and absolutely shocked to see Nicolas Anelka accomodated in a 4-3-3 formation ahead of Joe Cole.

Adding fuel to the fire, is a report in the Mirror newspaper stating John Terry had a heated face-off with coach Henk Ten Cate in front of Roman Abramovich and all the players at Chelsea’s traininig ground in Surrey, on the eve of the League Cup final.  It is repeorted that John Terry was angry about tactics and preparation for the Wembley final.

I believe the team selection was as big a mistake as Claudio Ranieri’s tactics when Chelsea lost to Didier Deschamps ten-man Monaco 3-1 in the first leg semi-final of the Champions League in 2004.

I now believe Avram Grant needs to make some big decisions. He cannot play Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka together in a 4-3-3 formation without leaving a top midfielder out of the team to accomodate Anelka and Drogba.  This is not a debate as to whether Drogba and Anelka can play together, even though I never thought they could.

I am still confident that Drogba will leave in the summer; and if Frank Lampard and John Terry leave too, it will be a remedy for Avram Grant’s team selection headache. But if Chelsea win no silverware this year, Grant may be booted out before the others decide on their future.