Why Chelsea Will Bounce Back and Defend the Title?
Two games into the campaign and Chelsea already look like outgoing Champions, a stark contrast to few months back when Jose Mourinho’s side destroyed the competition on their way to the Premier League trophy. The convincing 3-0 drubbing at the hands of Manchester City left the Blues five points adrift of last season’s runner-ups and gave Jose Mourinho enough reasons to believe a defence of the title would be an uphill task with a dangerous City, a resurgent United and an exciting Arsenal side in the mix. While it’s too early to call it a crisis, there are obvious indications Chelsea don’t quite have the defensive solidity and attacking ammunition as they possessed last year.
A poorly managed pre-season is an excuse Mourinho would like us to believe for Chelsea’s stuttering start. While it is true to some extent, as the bulk of the team only returned to training a day before the squad flew to the United States, and after three matches in America which involved traveling to and from Canada on match days, Mourinho and his men only returned to London a couple of days prior to their Community Shield game. Jet lag, lack of match practice and then a midweek friendly against Fiorentina the following week added to the haphazard schedule, but nothing, least of all fatigue, can account for the lack of attacking penetration and defensive stability in the Chelsea team.
John Terry may have been rock solid last season, but as Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic regressed sooner than imagined, the England stalwart may be entering his twilight days and while many interpreted his departure at half-time at the Etihad as Mourinho urging Abrahamovich to open the chequebook, Kurt Zouma looked a better option with his pace and could well feature more prominently than Terry this season. Terry played every minute of every league game last season and enjoyed one of his most inspired and successful campaigns in a Chelsea shirt, but a player turning 35 later this year cannot necessarily be the player the team can depend on week-in-week-out.
Same applies for Branislav Ivanovic, who is arguably the best full-back in the Premier League on his day – a player who provides defensive discipline and those trademark lung-busting runs down the right flank, providing width to Chelsea’s play. But while he has an amazing engine, can he be expected to sustain the industry and quality every week? The Serb played 49 matches last season and looked fatigued towards the latter part, and has begun this season having been given a torrid time by Swansea City’s Jefferson Montero. Chelsea had the most stable and solid defence in England last term, but they are in serious need of one or two reinforcements at the back if they are to mount a serious challenge to retain their title.
And then comes the overdependence on a certain Cesc Fabregas – a player who returned to the Premier League with consummate ease as he forged a delightful partnership with Diego Costa and Eden Hazard and ran riot from his midfield role. Fabregas began the Campaign in blistering form putting balls on a plate for Diego Costa to finish off, but endured a dip in form around Spring, thanks to the ton of games he was involved in. And the summer doesn’t seem to have changed much, with Fabregas barely showing flashes of his best form and in fact letting down with his poor defensive work rate against City on Sunday. The Spain International needs to rediscover his touch soon, but whether the Matic-Fabregas combination can work against the big teams is a big question mark. Mourinho might just throw Ramires into central midfield allowing Fabregas to play further forward where he doesn’t look that effective. Fabregas is a big headache for the Chelsea manager – a player who can turn a match on its head at any moment, but it’s been a while since he has.
Eden Hazard was the only bright spark for Chelsea since the turn of the year as they labored through games with narrow wins but teams are well aware that Oscar and Willian don’t score and assist enough and Chelsea are overreliant on the barnstorming forays from the Belgian as he wriggles his way from a wider position to inside the box. Chelsea at times have just the one attacking outlet and much like the Community Shield and the opening game against Swansea, Hazard was the player everyone looked to find to create a chance. If Chelsea are harboring hopes of retaining the title, they need their other midfielders and wingers to step up and contribute.
Lastly, Diego Costa’s tryst with injuries and fitness. Radamel Falcao remains an expensive gamble and Chelsea’s top scorer last season is still their biggest hope this season as Mourinho doesn’t seem to have any other striker he can depend on to bang in the goals for fun. Costa on his day is a lethal goalscorer of the Drogba mould and perfectly suited to Chelsea’s title, but the Spain International had his injury problems at Atletico and played with injuries for much of the last campaign. Chelsea needs a fit Diego Costa at his very best, not one nursing a hamstring every other week.
The Premier League is not played over a fortnight, and there is still time for Chelsea to add to their squad, but the big players have to step up if they are to mingle with the big boys this season. The defence needs some refreshments, the midfield some bite and the attack needs some firepower. It’s not a crisis, far from it. But they are embroiled in a game of catch up with a tight squad and a frustrated manager. And that is hardly ideal.