Date: 9th April 2015 at 4:17pm
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A great debut blog by ‘Chelsea Debs’ on Chelsea’s title run-in…

I can sense a touch of nervousness with the Chelsea faithful at Stamford Bridge as we embark on the run-in at the business end of the season.  There seems to be tension in the stands as the weight of expectation sits heavily on the fans who, after five years, don’t want to see our best chance of the Premier League title fizzle out, or ‘slip up’ if you will.  But why is this? We have been top of the league all season and we are currently 7 points clear of a team managed by the ‘Specialist in Failure’ and with one game in hand. We have lost just 2 games. It’s nailed on isn’t it?

007 HAZARDLooking back to the start of the season we were rampant. Diego Costa was firing on all jet propelled cylinders, Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas were reading each other’s minds like a familiar married couple and Eden Hazard was being, as ever, Eden Hazard!  It was a brave pundit, red or otherwise, who would predict anything but a Chelsea title after just a few games in.

But while the chicken counters among us indulge in some pleasurable speculation about which game will finally seal the title, I want to consider why we are witnessing an apparent drop in form, not in terms of the results, but the decline in our early season invincibility.

I’ve heard a number of suggestions as to why this might be.  The squad is tired.  Yes, Jose does seem to favour a core of players who he trusts to do the job.  Nothing wrong with that.  But in doing so it means the team suffer from a lack of rotation and rest for those players who might need it from time to time, as well as some much needed game time for others.  I’m not suggesting that our most creative players head off to the Caribbean for a fortnight’s sun and sea a la Raheem Sterling! However, rotation will of course benefit those players on the fringes as well as our first picks.  We didn’t progress past the 4th round of the FA Cup in January, our claim of League Cup silverware was sealed on 1st March and we were eliminated from the Champions League at the round of 16 by mid-March. Since then we have been “concentrating on the league”. They are a very fit and well looked after bunch of young lads, so I’m not convinced by the tiredness argument.

Another suggestion is that the team might be feeling the pressure.  Not sure I buy this one either. We have a squad full of internationals, a number of them have been there and done it all before as far as trophies are concerned.  Some of them might be young but they have plenty of experience, while others like JT and Drogba were there when we last won the Premier League in 2010 and will no doubt be a calming influence where needed, as the elder statesmen they are.

In my opinion, our perceived malaise is more to do with our style of play and our current lack of attacking options.  Call me out of touch, but I’m a big fan of the 4458516
old fashioned wing back, someone who can bomb down the line and launch a fizzing cross from the by-line while the big guys up front rise like salmon to nod
home.  But that style of play seems to be consigned to a bygone age.  There was a time when Branislav Ivanovic could be relied upon to deliver such a ball but we rarely see that from him now.  It seems to me that whenever Ivanovic or Cesar Azpilicueta get hold of the ball out wide, they are forced inside, playing to feet, and often looking to find Eden Hazard.  Nothing wrong in that, but it has been clear that we can sometimes lack that killer final ball, that probing shot on goal following all the dancing about around the edge of the box, all a bit Arsenal for my liking.

But for all our creative play, we can lack variety and the opposition can easily line up their banks of defenders and know exactly how to defend against us.  And they do.  I’d like to see us mix it up a bit, throw in a few crosses and, dare I say, the occasional route one ball, just to keep the opposition on their toes. Take the recent game at home to Stoke. We started brightly enough, the tempo was good and we had some excellent creativity in and around the box, the goal looked inevitable. But in the end our goals came not from open play but a penalty and keeper error. It was clear that Stoke came for the draw, and it nearly worked. They managed to snuff out our creative forays towards the box. Oscar, Fabregas and of course Hazard all giving it a go, and Willian having partial success taking the ball as near to the by-line as he dare. But when a team know how we are going to play and, in Stoke’s case, willing to take it in turns to hack at our players, then we need to be less predictable.

Jose MourinhoBut thankfully we have the best manager in the world in Jose Mourinho who is paid handsomely for his services and has been in this position before. As a fan, I trust him implicitly, but my niggling frustrations are merely that, my wish for perfection, and my desire to see my team totally dominate, outclass and frankly, smash our opponents in every area of the pitch.

Are my expectations too high? Am I spoilt to wish for perfection? Probably yes!

But actually, how dull would perfection be? How un-Chelsea like would it be for us to win the Premier League by trouncing all who come before us? How could we possibly do this without doing it the hard way? We are Chelsea. At the end of the day, does it really matter how we do it, especially at this stage of the season, surely it’s the prize at the end that counts? Not to mention the all-important bragging rights and the sheer delight of the red media meltdown – I just hope my nerves and fingernails can hold out!

So I will dare to count my own chickens and go for us passing the finishing post at home against Liverpool – it would be the sweetest victory and I don’t care how we do it!

Follow Debs on twitter: @cfcunofficial and for more her blogs and great match photos go to cfcunofficial.com

 

6 responses to “Never mind the quality feel the width!”

  1. Keith says:

    I could have not put it better myself. I’m sure we will get there in the end but I better stock up with some Imodium tablets just in case !!

    • Debs says:

      I know what you mean lol! But I’m looking forward to that day when we can look back and think what a breeze it all was 🙂

  2. Nishant J says:

    Great article there Debs…i’ve seen that our dip in form has conincided with Oscars/ Fabregas’s dip too…we’re winning coz of hazard and some of our defensive players stepping up.
    I want to see Jose manage Oscar properly as i believe he’s world class and has it in him to be the star…but he seems to be the player who needs to be motivated most and/or a kick on his back!!

    • Debs says:

      Thanks Nishant. I think you’re right, I wonder if part of their problem is that the wised up opposition has stifled their creative play. The hackers out there (Stoke, Burnley etc) will close us down very quickly and not allow us to play the sort of game that suits us.

  3. ChelseaBird4 says:

    Brilliant piece Debs. Don’t know if I’m being naive but I feel totally chilled about this. I’d like to see Remy get some starts now in the absence of Costa. There seems to be a lot of very twitchy Chelsea fans at the mo, who are particularly nervous about tomorrow. It’s our year, I can feel it in my waters. Party time after Sunderland game but in the bag before then x

    • Debs says:

      Thank you 🙂
      If you look at it logically we’d have to lose as many games in our remaining handful of fixtures as we have done all season to blow this. I don’t see that happening. And while I’ll probably look back and think what a breeze it all was, at this stage it can get a bit nail biting while some of our wins are not as convincing as they could be. I just want icing and a cherry on top! x