One word to sum up Chelsea Football Club’s title-defending season so far? Disastrous.
Why, though? Is it our lack of activity in the transfer window? Are all of our players just out of form at the same time? Has Jose Mourinho forgotten how to win football matches while on holiday? Has he lost the faith of his players?
I could go on asking questions all day. The thing is, we’ll never know the answers, and that’s what is the most frustrating part of this miserable season.
How do we get out of this rut? The truth is, I don’t think anybody, even Mourinho himself knows. Well, here’s what I think…
Drop Eden Hazard, put Kenedy directly in the starting lineup.
Kenedy is one of the only players in this Chelsea team that I’ve seen show some passion this season. There are too many players who have strolled around the pitch and looked unbothered in each and every match. The first step towards solving this issue is getting Kenedy in the lineup.
While obviously a raw product, the young Brazilian is built like a sack of bricks, aggressive, and has a boatload of flair in his locker. He is always looking to push forward and play direct, attacking football. Kenedy has constantly and confidently strode towards proving his ability to us, the fans, and Mourinho, the manager with every minute of game time he’s received. Throw him in the starting lineup, and send Hazard to the bench.
Hazard looked good against Stoke City last week, but that’s about it. He didn’t do much else. Against Liverpool, he fell back into the pattern he’s been suffering all season, which is being invisible. We’ve given him enough chances. He needs to get himself together.
Also, where has Ruben Loftus-Cheek disappeared to?
At this stage, why not start throwing in our youngsters? Loftus-Cheek will definitely show more passion on the pitch than Cesc Fabregas, who seems to be undeservedly gifted a spot in the team week in and week out for no apparent reason.
Let the Englishman slot into midfield next to Nemanja Matic on Wednesday night. Give him a chance to prove himself. A youngster like Loftus-Cheek displaying his determination to earn a place in the team could be exactly what the rest of the squad needs to fire themselves up and get a win on Wednesday.
Chelsea’s defensive situation this season should honestly be marked in a book somewhere as the eighth Wonder of the World. No matter what back four Mourinho has opted for, and no matter what adjustments he’s made, the results have been the same. Awful, leaky, dreadful, embarrassing, pathetic, lazy, and painful to watch are terms that spring to mind.
The club’s biggest mistake was not completing the signing of John Stones as the end of the summer transfer window approached. Chelsea Football Club had plenty of free funds to spend last summer, and we all know it. Why didn’t we just make Roberto Martinez and Everton an offer they simply could not refuse?
I have no idea what Chelsea can do to temporarily improve their defence. Watching Gary Cahill and John Terry try to defend is nothing like what we’ve seen the last two seasons under Mourinho. Our two English boulders in the centre of defence have become tiny, powerless, and insignificant pebbles.
Mixing in Kurt Zouma with one of them has not provided convincing results either. It’s just an awful situation. It’s only going to get worse when Branislav Ivanovic comes back from injury and provides us with a second, ineffective, right-winger alongside Willian and leaves us with an exposed back three each match.
Something must be done, and the purchase of a world-class defender is in order. I believe that if Mourinho adds one very good centre-half to the squad, Chelsea can turn things around and stop conceding such an alarming amount of goals each match. Watching Everton and Southampton bang three goals past us made Chelsea fans across the earth want to collectively gouge their eyes out.
There are a pair problems with the picture above, actually. The guy on the left can’t score a goal to save his life, and the guy on the right is being virtually ignored by his manager.
Okay, maybe Diego Costa hasn’t received the most amazing service from his teammates this season, I get it. There’s no doubt that when a chance comes his way, he’ll smash it home, even when it’s only half a chance. For example…
Costa needs to get back to being a legitimate goalscoring threat. His tendency to rough up opposing defenders and cause trouble isn’t enough when he’s not doing anything that is actually helpful or productive on the pitch. It will be better for him if he tries to stay central and get himself opportunities to have shots on the other team’s goal instead of drifting out wide and rendering himself useless.
Time and time again this season, Oscar has been fully fit for matches and not even been selected. Why? Is Mourinho forgetting that the Brazilian is capable of things like this?
And this?
Oscar can be an absolutely magnificent player. That is, if he’s given the chance and played in the correct position. Chelsea has almost lost more matches in the Premier League this season than Oscar has made appearances. In all competitions, we’ve only seen the Brazilian on the pitch in a Chelsea shirt eight times this season.
Finally, on Saturday against Liverpool I rejoiced when seeing Oscar’s inclusion in the starting eleven. That joy didn’t last for long, though; he was being played on the left wing. Just play him in the centre of attack and let him spread the ball around and create chances. Leave blazing down the left wing to Hazard (or Kenedy, I suppose).
I have tons of problems with the way my club has represented themselves this season. The 2015/2016 campaign was supposed to be the start of our dynasty under Mourinho. We were supposed to be the kings of English football for years to come, and the Champions of Europe a few more times as well.
I hate to say it, but at this rate, we’ll be in the Championship, not the Champions League, come next August.
