The Manager's Unceasing Team Changes Leaves Chelsea Reeling.
While Chelsea didn’t completely torpedo their chances of ending up in the top eight of the European competition opening phase, they performed a precise, surgical strike on their own chances of strolling directly into the knockout stages. Of course, the good news is that in the short one-year history of the new and not-necessarily-improved competition, securing a top-eight finish may not be as crucial as it seems.
The Central Issue: A Monotonous Lack of Consistency
Sadly for Stamford Bridge regulars, the sole predictable element about Enzo Maresca’s side is a monotonously predictable lack of consistency, which has been widely discussed following their loss in Italy. Since seemingly confirming their quality with an commanding victory of a European giant, and then a feisty stalemate with a London rival, the team have been defeated by a Championship side, played out a dull draw at Bournemouth and have now lost against a average team from Serie A.
Although critics have been eager to point the finger on a team selection approach that appears to see the coach change his lineup incessantly, the manager maintains that, knack and naughty step permitting, the nucleus of his starting lineup for games against strong opposition is largely set in stone.
“In my view in that game, starting team, we had inside the pitch the majority of the team that play against Spurs, they play against Barcelona, they play against Wolverhampton, Arsenal,” he droned. “We had eight, nine players that are the ones consistently selected for matches of this magnitude. So if you look at the several alterations that we did compared to previous game, it’s different.”
What Comes Next
To have any realistic chance of avoiding the Bigger Cup playoff round, Chelsea will have to win their remaining two matches. First up, they welcome this season’s surprise package a Cypriot team, then travel back to the continent to face the Italian title holders, the Neapolitan side.
“Victories in both are required, otherwise, we will face the extra round and then progress to the following stage,” sniffed the Italian coach, whose following fixture is a match against an Merseyside team whose recent consistency has propelled them to the dizzy heights of the top half in the domestic league.
Other Notes
Notable Comment: “You know, it’s actually funny because his biggest dream was me becoming a professional golfer. That was his biggest dream. So when I was 10, he pushed me to start on golf. So I practiced every week from when I was 10 to 13” – a star striker revealed how, if his father had his preference, he could have been on the golf course rather than tearing it up in the Premier League.
Readers' Letters
“So, no wonder Wolves are in such a sad state. As any regular reader of this email will know, the only effective pre-match protests involve marching from a pub that the supporters intended to visit anyway, to the stadium that they were always going to. Just arriving 10 minutes late? That’s how long it takes fans to get to their seats anyway” – one reader.
“I see that one correspondent not only got the previous featured letter, but also a mention in another reader's letter. On a night where both Sheffield teams again surrendered points after leading, I am led to ponder: could Sheffield be proving that the regularity of representation in your letters section is inversely proportional to the success of anything our teams are accomplishing on the field?” – another fan.