CRISIS? WHAT CRISIS?

“WE ARE SANDWICHED IN THE MIDDLE OF THOSE TWO AND YET EVERYTHING SEEMS ROSY THERE”

Chelsea football club has been the home to some of the biggest stars in the English game as well as some of the best managers in world football. But with such great stature comes great expectations, and with back to back defeats in recent weeks, Antonio Conte’s managerial qualities were questioned. What better way to answer your critics and silence the doubters than 2 wins in a row, scoring 7 goals and claiming 2 clean sheets.

In a recent interview with the London Evening Standard, Chelsea skipper Gary Cahill laid into the teams critics claiming they were they were quick to hail sides around them on the contrary. The 32 year old said “we are sandwiched in the middle of those two (Liverpool and Tottenham) and yet everything seems rosy there and it’s all drama and a disaster here”. Cahill is optimistic for the future though, he referred back to the 2016 season when Chelsea finished 10th in their title defending season and the reaction the players had to that short coming. “When there has been a down at this club, we have bounced back in a fantastic manner. Going forward I see no issue” the Chelsea skipper said.

It makes you wonder what the difference between clubs like Chelsea and clubs like Liverpool or Spurs is. And Cahill is right, the expectation at Chelsea is a lot higher than Tottenham and Liverpool. The bar is set that much higher, they are expected to compete with both the Manchester clubs for all silverware up for grabs in England and then with the worlds best in Europe. The only way this is possible is with suitable investment. And now I do understand you may be thinking, this is Chelsea, they have Abramovich so money shouldn’t be a problem. But these last three or four transfer windows have got me wondering to Chelsea have the funds to compete with the Manchester clubs spending? But it turns out that in study in 2017 shows that in the last 5 years Chelsea sit third in spending with both the Manchester clubs occupying the top 2 spots (City 1st, United 2nd). With such huge spending in mind, in the region of £600M, it is a wonder why Chelsea haven’t skyrocketed as an outstanding force in both domestic and European competitions. Amongst this huge bill, not much in the way of world class has been brought to Stamford Bridge, with exceptions being Ngolo Kante as well as Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa on their best days.

Chelsea face a tough couple of fixtures in the coming weeks with opposition like the two Manchester clubs away from home, as well as Barcelona home and away in the Champions league.

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