Good start: what does it mean?

As we break for the internationals, we can have a look back on the beginning of the season, and some will already be making predictions on the winners of the Premier League. The 4-1 win at Norwich on Saturday typified a strong start to the season for the blues. Only 2 points dropped after 7 and a goal advantage of 11 isn’t too shabby at all.

We have, however, had our blips this season. To start with, we didn’t take either of our two trophy chances this season. I’m not too worried about the Community Shield; to me it’s nothing more than a pre-season match. The European Super Cup on the other hand is a slight cause for concern. It showed our goal can still be battered if we aren’t on our game. Radamel Falcao is an incredible player – he reminds me of what Drogba was for Chelsea in the second half of Chelsea’s Champions League campaign – but no player should be scoring hat-tricks against the newly crowned champions of Europe.

19 points from a possible 21 certainly isn’t bad, and nothing short of spectacular in such a competitive league. However, we can’t get ahead of ourselves. Many of these victories were against the likes of Reading and Wigan. Despite this, I think it bodes well for the season. If we can consistently put away awkward teams like Stoke then we are doing well. We have, however, managed a win at the Emirates, one I’m sure everyone will remember. It was important we got that victory to spurn on the squad for the next few games.

LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 06: Juan Mata of Chelsea in action during the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Norwich City at Stamford Bridge on October 6, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

I have been particularly impressed with Juan Mata and, surprisingly, David Luiz. At the beginning of the season it is fair to say Mata wasn’t playing his best. Maybe it was because of the Euros or something else, but to be honest, I don’t really care what it was because he is back and better than ever before! He has been at the centre of many of the goals in the last few games – and was man of the match against Norwich for his stellar performance among many other players who played well like Torres and Hazard. I still cannot believe that he wasn’t selected for the Spain squad, but at least we know he will be fresher for when we return to the Premier League

David Luiz is a player who (I feel) has been performing above-par also. Despite criticism for his performance against Atletico at the beginning of the season, he has really stepped up his work rate and his goal against FC Nordsjealland (I hope I spelt it right) was stunning. There are so many other players who have been performing well recently, like Mikel, Oscar and Torres but these two have been the pick of the bunch.

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK – OCTOBER 02: David Luiz of Chelsea scores a freekick during the UEFA Champions League Group E match between FC Nordsjaelland and Chelsea at Parken Stadium on October 2, 2012 in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

The next few games are certainly key ones. We play Spurs and then Shakhtar Donetsk, both away, and then we take on Manchester United twice, in the Premier League and the Capital One Cup, both at home and then we have the likes of Liverpool and Man. City in November. If we can take four points from our next two League games, I would be more than happy.

Overall, I think our strong start to the season bodes well, and possibly indicates we will be in with a real chance of getting silverware come the end of the season. The next few games will, however, be a good indicator how we will do this season. I fully expect us to take all three points at Stamford Bridge against Man Utd, but Spurs away is a tough match so I wouldn’t be too unhappy with just a draw. I’ve got to say, I’m really looking forward to the rest of this season.