Four reasons why Chelsea won’t win the Premier League
The 2017/2018 English Premier League season is shaping up to be the most exciting and unpredictable season to date. Any of the top 7 from last season have a real shot at winning the title and this makes Chelsea’s title defense very tough.
Besides the fact the other 6 teams have improved their squads and are significantly stronger than they were last season; here are some are other reasons why the blues won’t be Champions of England come May 2018.
1. Second Season Syndrome
Chelsea go into this season as the team to beat after such a brilliant title winning season. They equaled Arsenal’s record for the longest Premier League win streak and ended the season winning 30 games and scoring 85 goals. Conte set up the team to be compact and disciplined. They played with so much so much energy and literally bullied teams week in week out.
This season, they have to deal with the pressure of being champions. Some teams would have also figured out effective ways to play Chelsea. There is also the Champions League to compete for. Will Conte and his boys be able to step up to the challenge?
2. The Diego Costa Situation
At the end of last season, Conte sent a message to Costa saying he was no longer wanted at the club. We are not aware of what truly went on behind the scenes, but that wasn’t the best way to treat one of the most committed Chelsea players. Diego Costa has been a loyal servant to club and his departure will leave a void. Alvaro Morata is expected to fill this void, but Conte’s comments about his physicality suggest he might not be ready.
Morata will also have to face stern competition from Michy Batshuayi, who has been in fine preseason form. The Costa situation has definitely left Conte with a little conundrum of who to lead the line. Does he stick with his record signing, or give Batshuayi a chance? Maybe he adopts a new system and plays two strikers.
3. Hazard to miss the start of the season
Teams that have to play Chelsea in the first few weeks will be so grateful they don’t have to deal with the terror that is Eden Hazard. Very few players can take control of a game the way Hazard does, as he is Chelsea’s creative spark and was arguably the best player last season. Hazard is practically indispensable to this Chelsea team and starting the season without him might put a dent in their chances of retaining the title.
In the last 24 hours, there have also been rumors about Barcelona interest in Hazard as a replacement for Neymar. If he does leave, then Chelsea can kiss the title goodbye.
4. A weak bench
Chelsea played with pretty much the same starting 11 for most of last season and rarely had to look to the bench for inspiration. While this worked to their advantage, this season is bound to throw different challenges their way that will require the squad to have depth. Nemanja Matic was the 8th player to be sold this summer with 2 more players going out on loan. The squad is very thin and there are injuries to a few key players. Conte has also come out to say the club needs to sign more players because the season will be very tough.
“We need to improve the quality and improve the squad because next season will be very tough for us,”
“We are 16 players, without the goalkeepers, and to face four competitions in a good way we need more players.”
“We are in a moment where we have to create solid foundations for this club, we have lost a lot of big players that were fundamental at Chelsea.”
One thing is certain, the boss is not oblivious of the huge task ahead. We wait to see if Roman whips out his cheque book a few more times before the transfer window closes.
