Chelsea’s loss to Manchester City on Saturday was probably to be expected, but that doesn’t make it any less frustrating.
Their win over Wolves on Monday night proved to be the exception to the rule of their poor run since Christmas, and the City game saw them slump back to the worst aspects we’ve seen since then.
Listless, lifeless, lacking in energy or belief, without trusted players to come on and change the game – not that the manager would use them before the 80th minute, of course.
After such a strong start to the season, this team are starting to look like the team of last year, or the year before. Making the Champions League places has gone from a sure thing to a real battle.
Looking at betting sites like it becomes clear that the bookies are starting to feel the same way that we are. Even through the first few games of this slump, our odds for the top four were very narrow. It was just a blip – and the teams around us were bound to slip too at some point.
But not it’s more than a month of poor performances, and it’s a run which shows no sign of ending. Meanwhile Bournemouth and Newcastle continue to look good, Arsenal keep picking up points, and we’ve just given City a big boost in their attempts to get back into the conversation… the competition looks hotter than ever while we’ve run out of petrol with months still to play.
There are a few things Enzo Maresca can do to change things of course, but he seems as frozen in his thinking between games as he does when he stands on the sideline and watches a good result drift away from him as he did on Saturday.
His philosophy doesn’t change. No matter how many mistakes Robert Sanchez makes, no matter how many chances Nicolas Jackson misses, no matter how knackered the midfield looks or how closely marked Cole Palmer is, Maresca sticks with the formula.
There are winnable games coming up, of course. There’s always the sense we could click back into gear and start playing like we were in the first few months of the season. Then we really would cruise to an impressive final position.
But just as likely is a continuation of the slide as morale continues to decrease. What a time to face our old friend Graham Potter, now managing West Ham…
