7M Review - Could Chelsea get back on track?

Posted Thursday, September 29, 2016 by 7M Sport

Chelsea had an underwhelming 2015-16 season by only ranking 10th in the EPL table, and their boss Roman Abramovich brought in Antonio Conte in order to guide them back to the Champions League place, even to strive for the EPL trophy. In this summer transfer window, the Blues also spent a large sum of money to build up their squad, and they did impress the fans after winning the first 3 league games.

However, Conte's team suffered a slump in form recently. They failed to grab a victory in their last 3 matches in the league, including 2 successive defeats against Liverpool and Arsenal. Currently they are 8 points away from the league leaders Manchester City. After their crushing 3-0 defeat to the Gunners in last Saturday's London derby, Chelsea's latent problems had been exposed and this had drawn strong criticism from the fans and experts. What's wrong with Chelsea? This may be a question many supporters want to know.

7M Review - Could Chelsea get back on track?
Kante under huge pressure in the midfield

After helming Chelsea, Conte experimented with different formations. Finally he adopted 4-1-4-1 as the Blues' optimal formation in the league. It almost proved right at the early stage of this season. However, facing strong sides like Liverpool and Arsenal, Conte's men got a beating with this formation. In 4-1-4-1, N'Golo Kante serves as the single defensive midfielder. When he fails to intercept the ball, the opponents' attackers can easily run with the ball till the box, which will cause huge trouble to the defensive line. It seems that double defensive midfielders would be smarter tactics when facing tougher rivals. With double stars protecting the midfield, Chelsea's defensive intensity will be strengthened and the pressure on the center backs can also be relieved.

7M Review - Could Chelsea get back on track?
Fabregas failed to satisfy Conte

The use of Francesc Fabregas has also puzzled Conte a lot. When the Blues visited London rivals Arsenal, Conte listed Fabregas in the starting line-up for the first time in this season's league. However, Fabregas only let Conte down, and he was substituted by Marcos Alonso in the 55th minute. During his playing time on the pitch, he produced 40 passes, without creating any chance for the front. Conte put Fabregas in the position of attacking midfielder. But under the crazy pressing from the Gunners' defenders, he could not build up attacks freely. Perhaps attacking midfielder is not his favorite position. How to make the most of Fabregas and unleash his full potential remains a question for Conte.

7M Review - Could Chelsea get back on track?
Cahill's mistake resulted in Sanchez's goal

The poor performance in the defensive end should also be to blame for Chelsea's terrible records recently. Conte's men have conceded 9 goals in their last 4 games of all competitions. In the clash with Arsenal, it is Gary Cahill's mistake that results in Alexis Sanchez's early opener. Eden Hazard also has complaints about Chelsea's defensive line. He told the club's official website after the match: "Every weekend at the moment we were having to come back and score. We did it at Leicester but against Arsenal, who were playing at home, it was not possible." It is true that the Blues have brought in some defenders in this summer transfer window. But David Luiz is not Conte's first-choice defensive target, and he is often denounced by his shaky form. Besides, Conte also can not expect too much from Marcos Alonso whose playing time is limited this season. So Conte's current back-four does not have the effects he envisaged in pre-season. With captain John Terry and Kurt Zouma's return from injury, Conte may have more choices in the defensive line.

Conte has also realized Chelsea's problems. He confessed his team was "only a great team on paper". However, their boss Abramovich turned to support Conte despite criticism from the fans. He promised to give Conte more time to make adjustments to his squad, and also to give him a certain amount of money to bring in new blood in the next two transfer windows.

Maybe we should also be more patient about Conte and his Chelsea, given the fact that it is his first season in charge of the Blues. Without European match this mid-week, Conte may have more time to think about these problems and his men can have a break. The away clash with Hull City this weekend is Chelsea's best opportunity to get back on track.

(7M / Oliver)