What's gone wrong at Chelsea this season?
Chelsea went trophyless in the 2021/22 season but the campaign was far from a disappointment. The Blues finished third in the Premier League and reached two cup finals, only losing both on penalties.
After a summer of extravagant spending that saw players like Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella, Raheem Sterling and others arrive at Stamford Bridge, the Blues seemed ready to take the next step and challenge for the league title.
While the firing of German coach Thomas Tuchel came as a surprise, Graham Potter's incredible work at Brighton had many hoping the Englishman would find similar success in London.
However, things haven't quite gone to script. 21 points from 14 games prior to the World Cup break saw Chelsea languishing outside the top six places.
The Blues registered a convincing 2-0 win against Bournemouth following the resumption of the season, and many thought the West London club were finally on an upward trajectory to make a run for the top four.
But a 1-1 draw against relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest has once again marred the sense of optimism around Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are currently 10th in the table and are the lowest-scoring team in the top half with just 20 goals in 16 games. Apart from a lack of attacking threat, many other issues also surround the club.
Here we take a look at a few:
#3. Key departures and panic signings
Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, Timo Werner and many others have left Chelsea this season. Losing a large number of players can be damaging for any club.
Initially, the club did make some good signings like Raheem Sterling, who is Chelsea's top scorer in the Premier League, and a few young stars like Omari Hutchinson, who is lighting up Premier League 2 with five goals in 11 appearances.
Nevertheless, there were also some questionable signings. The club chose to bring in an aging Koulibaly and splashed the cash on Cucurella. A last-minute transfer for another aging star in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Lastly, the most puzzling has to be bringing in Denis Zakaria on loan, with the Swiss midfielder making only four appearances so far.
Unsurprisingly, none of these players have made a mark, and Cucurella and Koulibaly are struggling to adapt. Aubameyang's goals have dried up with one goal in eight Premier League appearances while Fofana continues to struggle with injury, with his last game coming in October 2022.
@Stamfxrd RLC hasn’t been great, hasn’t been bad either, just forgettable. Chukwuemeka has played 3 games, 4’, 28’ and 11’ in draws vs Wolves, Brentford and Man Utd. Zakaria has played bad for a while and has only made 1 appearances for Chelsea which was a great game. Not much else
These signings are all examples of panic buying. As the club lost numerous valuable players, they chose to replace them with anyone half decent, spending and gambling unnecessarily on struggling and aging stars.
#2. Behind-the-scenes drama
The whole process of selling the club has been dramatic to say the least. Late last season, all the club's accounts were frozen, naturally deterring the focus of the players and back-room staff at the time.
Eventually, the club was taken over by American billionaire Todd Bohely but things still did not go swimmingly. There were multiple reports of disagreements over signings between owner and then manager Thomas Tuchel, most noticeably over signing Cristiano Ronaldo.
#CFC
More: youtu.be/eg2-jfJy8ls
Thomas Tuchel wants different kind of players and project, this is why he decided against Cristiano Ronaldo deal. 🔵 #CFC
Cristiano has turned down a formal, lucrative proposal from Saudi and an approach from MLS club.
Ten Hag, waiting for him.
📲 More: youtu.be/eg2-jfJy8ls https://t.co/9yZpgdA5Wq
There also seemed to be differences in how both of them envisioned the future of the club; with the latter being the highlighted reason as to why Tuchel was given the sack after a mediocre start.
The reason given by Todd Boehly for sacking Thomas Tuchel. https://t.co/9NHkSH81sR
While the behind-the-scenes situation does not directly impact the results on the pitch, the constant change in backroom staff and uncertainty over the future has largely impacted the players.
Tuchel was an imperious figure within Chelsea and his departure is one of the major reasons why Chelsea are currently struggling.
#1. Poor decision making all-around
Chelsea's poor decision-making over the last few seasons has had a direct effect on their dire situation this season.
Since Russian billionaire Roman Abramovic took over in 2003, Chelsea have been driven by short-term success. Any manager who goes through a period of poor results is subject to the sack; as evident in the club appointing 17 different managers in the past 20 years.
While this method has delivered success in the past, there seems to be major issues with it now. The primary one being a manager being financially backed in the transfer window and then being sacked.
Frank Lampard was heavily backed in 2020, with the Englishman spending north of £200 million, yet after a disappointing set of results, he was sacked.
Similarly, two years later we see the same pattern. Tuchel was given a war chest to spend last summer and was sacked a little over a month into the season.
The fundamental errors made by the club are what have kept them in transition.
Every manager likes to implement their system and not giving them time to use their signings is simply a waste. At Chelsea, every incoming manager has to work with the players they have been given and this hardly works in the long run.
Arsenal and their treatment of Mikel Arteta is an excellent example of what giving time to a manager can do to ensure success in the long run.
This point was also highlighted by former Arsenal striker Theirry Henry when Tuchel was sacked. "I wasn’t actually surprised given how the game is at the minute. What I was surprised about was why do you allow him to bring in all these players and then sack him after?"
This brings us to today, where Graham Potter now has to recover an ailing team. This season of recovery is long due, but for Chelsea's sake it is important Potter is given time and is allowed to work with the players he wants, otherwise the club will be in transition for another couple of years.