The season is fast approaching and any leniency showed towards Jose Mourinho in his first season back in charge of Chelsea will have disappeared this campaign as Roman Abramovich will expect silverware to return to Stamford Bridge. He has again backed his managed in the transfer market and will expect them to be winning the title this season, especially as the teams around them have yet to strengthen as much as the Blues. Chelsea certainly have the strongest squad going into next season and will go into the campaign as favourites to regain the Premier League crown.
Last season, many expected Chelsea to triumph due to the Mourinho factor and they were leading the way for a long time, until they dropped silly points against West Brom, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Sunderland. This is an area which will need to be improved this season as they will not win the league if they continue to lose frequently against the less talented sides in the league. It was on their travels where Chelsea were most vulnerable as shown by early defeats against Everton, Stoke and Newcastle. They will need to transfer their home form when on their travels, if they manage to do so, they will be shoo ins for the league title.
The influence of Mourinho was evident when it came to the big matches in the Premier League as his side didn’t lose in any of the six matches against the other three sides that finished in the top four. His victories at the Etihad Stadium and Anfield showed his tactical awareness and that he could outsmart both Manuel Pellegrini and Brendan Rodgers. It will be interesting to see how he deals with Louis Van Gaal when Chelsea face Manchester United as the Dutchman is well known for his brash personality, similar to Mourinho himself.
Strengths/Weaknesses
It’s obvious that Chelsea’s main strength is their options in attacking midfield, which they utilise using a 4-2-3-1 formation. Eden Hazard is key to the system as he scored 14 goals and assisted 7 times last season. Oscar and Willian are normally the two favoured by Mourinho, due to their hard working playing styles. However Andre Schurrle’s impressive World Cup may see him find his way into the Chelsea starting line up. Mohammed Salah, Marco Van Ginkel and Victor Moses remain at the club too, so they are other options for Mourinho, although Moses is expected to depart this summer.
The main weakness in the Chelsea side last season was the lack of a proven goalscorer. They have attempted to rectify the problem with the signing of Diego Costa from Atletico Madrid. He is joining off the back of an incredible season after winning La Liga and being a Champions League runner up with Atletico. He scored 27 league goals last season and will hope to transfer his form over to the Premier League, but his performances at the World Cup suggest that he is far from certain to be a success in England. They will also have Fernando Torres and Romulu Lukaku to call upon, while Didier Drogba may return this summer to add some experience to the strikeforce.
Transfer Business
Chelsea have splashed out around £75m already with the signings of Costa, Cesc Fabregas and Felipe Luis, all of whom are arriving from La Liga. Costa and Luiz, both signing from Atletico Madrid, will need some time to adjust to the Premier League as it is very different from the Spanish top flight, but Fabregas will know the Premier League well after his lengthy spell at Arsenal. The former Gunners man will add creativity and goals to the Chelsea midfield. He has all the tools to replace Frank Lampard adequately. Meanwhile Luis will add a quality option at left back after Ashley Cole moved to Roma on a free transfer, but he will be in competition with Cesar Azpilicueta, who was one of Chelsea’s top performers last season.
The big departure was David Luiz who has joined PSG for £50m, which is an incredible fee given his unique style at centre back, but it was a great deal for Chelsea, who used the money to fund their own moves. Meanwhile Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole left on free transfers after a number of years at the club. Samuel Eto’o also left the club on a free transfer, despite being a decent player for the Blues last season. In the last week Demba Ba left Chelsea to join Besiktas, the former Newcastle striker never managed to nail down a place in the side’s starting eleven despite showing flashes of his ability at Stamford Bridge.
Players Coming Through?
Chelsea have a number of talented youngsters on their books, which makes it very hard for any of them to breakthrough into the first team. They normally have to impress on a number of loan spells before given a chance at Stamford Bridge. Lewis Baker has been impressive so far in pre season, with many fans wanting him to get a chance this season. Kurt Zouma and Patrick Bamford are other names that Chelsea fans will be excited about ahead of the forthcoming season, but both could be loaned out. Two players who have already been loaned out to top European clubs could make their breakthroughs this season for Chelsea. Romulu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois both have the necessary quality to shine for Chelsea this season if they are given a chance.
Manager
As already discussed, Jose Mourinho offers the team a lot when it comes tactics and mind games with other managers as he often gives his side the best opportunity to win matches. He is arguably the best manager in the league, with Arsene Wenger and Manuel Pellegrini lacking trophies in recent seasons, while Brendan Rodgers and Mauricio Pochettino both lack experience at the highest level. Louis Van Gaal will be an interesting proposition, but he has more failures on his CV than Mourinho. Although he has had a couple of under par campaigns in recent seasons, Mourinho has still performed well and has only disappointed due to his high standards. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he wins the Champions League with a third club this season as Chelsea’s squad looks incredible and will only be better for Mourinho’s man management skills.
Verdict
Chelsea are favourites for the title this season and understandably so, given their impressive squad, which has had quality added to it this summer. Cesc Fabregas is a particularly impressive signing as he will be able to step straight into the line up and add all action midfield displays which Chelsea lacked at times. Meanwhile if Diego Costa does manage to replicate his form from last season, then Chelsea will have the only thing they lacked last season, a quality striker. After a transitional season, Chelsea will be far better this season as some of their young players have more experience under their belts. Furthermore with the departure of Luis Suarez from Liverpool, there is a vacancy to be considered the best player in the league and Eden Hazard could be the man to fill it. He has had two years at Chelsea and has improved a lot. It is his time to show himself to be one of the world’s best players and if he does, Chelsea could be unstoppable this season.