“Here we go again”, that must have rung in the heads of most Chelsea supporters as they saw their team succumb to their fifth defeat in ten games in the Premier League this season. The Blues lost 2-1 against West Ham United, the team suffered from the same problems that have plagued them all season. Poor defending, a misfiring attack and a lot of indiscipline cost Chelsea the game.
West Ham got the ball rolling by taking the lead thanks to a great strike by Mauro Zarate. Things got hard for Chelsea when Nemanja Matic was sent off for two bookable offences in the first half. Chelsea though rallied and equalised thanks to a strike from Gary Cahill but the 10-men could not hold on as substitute Andy Carroll headed in the winner for the Hammers.
Jose Mourinho was also sent off after the first half and as the season crumbles for Chelsea, we provide the five talking points from this game.
The Chelsea of old only when it comes to indiscipline
The one thing that Chelsea do know how to do, similar to last season is surrounding the referee. When Nemanja Matic was sent off for two offences, the Chelsea players swamped the referee akin to older and better Chelsea teams. Two other Chelsea players got booked, a coach was sent off and even Jose Mourinho was sent to the stands. Chelsea needed to keep cool heads but first Matic and then the rest of the Chelsea team went berserk, it didn’t help the team out and certainly had a role to play in Chelsea losing the game and the plot, yet again this season.
No excuses for Mourinho
Jose Mourinho has blamed almost everyone for the losses at Chelsea except himself and the team. This time around he has no excuses unless he decides to blame Rafa Benitez or UFOs for someone costing Chelsea the game. He will probably point out to the linesman for the offside against Fabregas when the Spaniard did seem to be level and had the ball in the back of the net or the Hawkeye not giving Chelsea the goal when Lanzini somehow kept the ball out from crossing the line. Mourinho’s time is running out at Chelsea and unless he turns it around, fast, he could be out of the Chelsea job pretty soon.
Europe beckoning for West Ham
West Ham could have made it into the Europa League this season but failed to make it past the qualifying rounds. Slaven Bilic didn’t play his strongest team in that competition but if they continue playing the way they have this season, they should make it back into a European competition next season. The question might be which one, West Ham or any other club would love to be in the Champions League but the season has another 28 games left and West Ham might not be able to continue playing at this level. Hopefully, they can continue in this fashion and at least make it into the Europa League proper group stages for next season.
Slaven Bilic has done a wonderful job
It isn’t just the signings which have worked extremely well for West Ham United this season; their manager has been a breath of fresh air as well. Everyone knew that Bilic had done a great job for Croatia but managing in the Premier League is a tough ask and Bilic has been exceptional. His team has beaten Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City; three of them have come away from home. Bilic is good at the press conferences and knows how to set up his team to ensure he gets the right results. Many doubted his signing but he has proved most people wrong this season.
Andy Carroll can come good
There have been a lot of West Ham strikers who have started well and ended up doing nothing much. Dean Ashton was one such striker who was one of the best in the league but injuries plagued his career, Andy Carroll would want to avoid that. The former Liverpool striker came off the bench for West Ham and scored the winner and if he stays fit for a decent number of games, he could even win his place back in the England national team. Carroll provided a great cameo where he harried and bullied the Chelsea defence at times; him staying fit is important though and for the sake of his career, let’s hope he does stay healthy for the rest of the season.