Chelsea’s splurging over the winter transfer window has divided football fans all over the country.
On the one side are fans of just about every other club barring Chelsea, who are unable to fathom how the London club is going get away with the exorbitant spending and not trigger FFP backlash.
On the other side are the fans of the club itself, who are undoubtedly happy, ecstatic even, with the influx of new faces in the squad.
Joining this second set of fans is a pretty familiar face in London, Daniel Finkelstein.
Finkelstein is a British journalist and politician, a chairman of a political think-tank called Onward, a member of the House, an OBE, and, adding to his illustrious list of positions, was made a director of Chelsea FC on 22nd June 2022.
He celebrated the last of his positions by posting a picture of a younger version of him in the Chelsea kit.
I’m so proud to have been named a director of @chelseafc. Serving on the Board of the club I have always loved is a privilege I take very seriously. I will read & reflect on fan messages, but it will often not be possible to indicate assent or dissent. https://t.co/l8wkqfdp1Upic.twitter.com/sxFUHBcKkC
Daniel welcome the last of the winter singing, Enzo Fernandez, by re-sharing Enzo’s post with the caption “Welcome Home”.
An unsuspecting Tweeter replied asking what he means by “home”, to which came a pretty iconic reply.
Home of great football. Home of Osgood and Nevin and Zola and Vialli and Hazard and Lampard and JT. Home of the team that’s won it all and is going all out to win it all again. Home of the Shed End and Matthew Harding. Home of the Pride of London. Home.
Finkelstein goes on to list the legends that have graced the club, like Peter Osgood, Pat Nevin, Gianfranco Zola, Gianluca Vialli and others.
He also mentioned the names of two of the stands of the stadium, Shed End and Matthew Harding, the latter named after the ex-vice chairman of the club.
The tweet was so well-written and poetic, it almost felt like it was said by Peter Drury, an English commentator well-known for doing justice to the beautiful game with some beautiful words.
But it wasn’t Drury, it was Finkelstein, who himself is a well-known writer and author.
Daniel Finkelstein – The Author
In the early 90s, he was the editor of a newspaper called Connexion, which was Britain’s first internet and data communications paper.
In 2001, Daniel joined The Times. He went on to become the Chief Leader Writer in 2008.
Apart from these, he is a regular columnist in The Jewish Chronicle and his football statistics column, the Fink Tank, which began in 2002, still runs in The Times on Saturdays.
Daniel Finkelstein – The Politician
Daniel’s political career began in the 80s when he became a member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He became the Chair of the Young Social Democrats in the 1983 general elections. His ideologies led him to become the spokesman for a group of young SDP members who joined the Conservatives.
Finkelstein has been a member of multiple think tanks over the years. He was the Director of the Social Market Foundation for three years, wherein the UK politicians were introduced to US policies for the first time. He also became the chairman of Onward in 2018.
Whilst in the Conservative Party, between 1997 and 2001, he was a political advisor to Willian Hague, the Leader of the Opposition.
Daniel Finkelstein – The Awardee
Finkelstein was awarded the OBE, or the Order of the British Empire, in 1997. He was also awarded the PSA 2011 Journalist of the Year Award.
He was created Baron in 2013 and furthermore, given an honorary Doctor of Science degree by City University London in 2011.
Every supporter would want someone of Daniel’s calibre in their corner, who is not just a fan for the sake of it, who understands the club, who knows the legends who have graced the pitch, who calls their stadium ‘Home”.
