18 Yard Box completes the Premier League series of the mid season reviews by looking at the Blues.
Chelsea need a hard-working, physical, and tall entity in the midfield. And this 6’ 5” Belgian in the central midfield with the same attacking flair could prove to be a master-stroke. He could in fact be an excellent replacement for the outgoing Lampard, with his box-to-box play, ball holding and finishing. Moreover Fellaini would also be cheap by Chelsea standards, with a £22 million release clause. Fellaini himself has indicated his wish to move away from Goodison Park and will be a wonderful option all over the midfield.
The Blues went in for Schurrle during the summer but they couldn’t persuade Bayer Leverkusen to part with their star man for only £16 million. However, the 22-year-old is said to favour a move to the Premier League and he would complement the forward line perfectly as well. A bid in excess of £20 million and the German international could well be heading to Stamford Bridge. This is important even after the Ba move as Chelsea do not have a proper back up, should either of Ba and Torres get injured.
FA Cup and
Champions League winners Chelsea had set their sights on retrieving the league
title they last had won in 2009-10. They also strived to bring in younger
players to replace their aging team. While stars like Drogba have proved to be
as yet irreplaceable, Chelsea instead have gone and packed their midfield with
diminutive attacking stars like Hazard, Oscar and Marin. However, they are
still short of the striker who can fuel their aspirations. They have been good
in quite a few games together, but losses in form have been in clutches of
games too.
Title
Chances
Chelsea made a strong start to the
season with a 9 game unbeaten run in the league. First season flop Torres too
was among the goals and assists. The dip in form that followed the home defeat
to Manchester United has put the title- challengers in 3rd place, 11
points adrift of the leaders. United have a 5-points cushion over second placed
City and the task for Chelsea to catch up with either is difficult, but not
impossible. So, it is still too early to write this spirited team off.
Woes
 |
| Torres has been nothing short of woeful |
Chelsea’s
woes this season were initially oddly in their defence. The Blues let in 21
goals in the last 10 matches in all competitions under sacked manager Di
Matteo, not suitable for a defence that couldn’t be broken down by teams like
Barcelona last season. The 3 mid-fielders Hazard, Oscar and Mata, with their
superlative attacking prowess, did not cover their fullbacks when under attack.
This made the overall formation very narrow, and teams with strong wingmen
easily exposed this chink in Chelsea’s armour. In fact, this defensive frailty
saw them relegated from the Champions League to the Europa League. The string
of terrible results then brought forth Chelsea’s biggest woe, which lay in the
confines of the boardroom. Using his much maligned ‘hire and fire’ policy,
Abramovich further unsettled the team, bringing in new manager Rafa Benitez.
While the Blues have put in good performances under the new management, a
significant new problem is Eden Hazard’s flagging form. The Belgian is surely
an important cog in Chelsea’s wheel and this is sure to be a cause of concern
for the new manager. Chelsea’s midfield is often found lacking aerially,
especially during setpieces. This though, could be attributed to the relatively
short heights of the midfielders.
Tactical Overview
 |
| Much can be expected of the holy trinity |
While Di
Matteo stuck to his formation, Benitez has experimented quite a lot.
Recognising the attacking instincts of the midfield trio, he has moved Hazard
wide on the left, started Moses on the wings to provide space while launching
attacks and also to help launch counter-attacks. He put David Luiz in the DM
position, played Mata behind the striker in 4-4-1-1 formations, gave the midfielders
added defensive duties and also played Torres a bit deep, or even a bit wide at
times. That has given him 7 goals in 11 games. Oscar was also paired with
Lampard against Leeds in a pivot position. A majority of the experiments have
shown good results with the team recording 8-0, 4-0, 3-0 victories and a hard
fought 2-1 win over the Gunners. What is alarming for the fans is that the
aging legend Lampard’s place in the team is no longer indispensable. The
veteran’s departure from Stamford Bridge is imminent with their being no new
contract offered to him. The addition of Demba Ba has given Torres competition
and the Chelsea attack now has a new dimension.
18YB suggests
In this section 18 Yard Box suggests the players that could help Chelsea strengthen themselves. (These players need not be linked with the club and are purely suggestions)
Marouane
Fellaini
 |
| Could he be a replacement for Super Frank? |
Chelsea need a hard-working, physical, and tall entity in the midfield. And this 6’ 5” Belgian in the central midfield with the same attacking flair could prove to be a master-stroke. He could in fact be an excellent replacement for the outgoing Lampard, with his box-to-box play, ball holding and finishing. Moreover Fellaini would also be cheap by Chelsea standards, with a £22 million release clause. Fellaini himself has indicated his wish to move away from Goodison Park and will be a wonderful option all over the midfield.
Andre
Schurrlé
 |
| The German is being linked once again with the Blues |
The Blues went in for Schurrle during the summer but they couldn’t persuade Bayer Leverkusen to part with their star man for only £16 million. However, the 22-year-old is said to favour a move to the Premier League and he would complement the forward line perfectly as well. A bid in excess of £20 million and the German international could well be heading to Stamford Bridge. This is important even after the Ba move as Chelsea do not have a proper back up, should either of Ba and Torres get injured.
Radamel Falcao
 |
| Remember his three against the Blues? |
After he ripped the
Blues apart in the UEFA Super Cup, Falcao is on the wish-list of possibly every
team that can afford his £48 million price tag. And Abramovich is not known to
back out when given the chance to take the best. Though there have been reports
linking the Columbian to Santiago Bernabeu, Manchester City, PSG and a move to
Italy, a move to Chelsea won’t be too far-fetched either.
Luke Shaw
The 17-year-old Saints’
left-back has shown plenty of promise this season. With Ashley Cole considering
a move to PSG (after his 1 year extension expires), Chelsea could end up battling for Shaw with Arsenal.
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