It’s been two days since Chelsea took on Arsenal in Orlando, Florida for the final game of their pre-season tour of the United States. Arsenal won 4-0 with two goals in each half as Chelsea looked leggy, and confused for much of the game. It’s a result that has left many in the fanbase frustrated and rather than do a review of the game I thought I would tackle some of the points raised by the fanbase. Below I am going to go from who I feel is least responsible to who I feel is most responsible and then give a brief glimpse of what the near future could hold.
Todd Boehly and Consortium
I think its common knowledge that Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali and other members of the consortium are working their socks off to get Chelsea ready for the new season. In an ideal world we would have had Raphinha, and Koundé in alongside Sterling and Koulibaly but it has not been smooth sailing. Apart from the Lukaku who actually pushed to leave others have either been priced out or their wages are too high so their departures have been delayed.
I like the transparency with which our new owners are operating but they aren’t Directors of Football and they are two months in to a completely new sport for them. Having tier lists of targets is great but those tier lists are relatively public and as we continue to pivot to alternate targets those targets might feel why they are down the list compared to others. It doesn’t help that the three targets we have missed out on have been approached by Barcelona and Bayern Munich. I am not going to get into Barcelona’s situation but all I will say is that these players are going to be on sale in the near future because that club is not healthy.
According to reports Chelsea will appoint a DOF in time for the January transfer window which will be a massive step towards a more streamlined functioning of the club. Todd Boehly can then take a step back and take a more laissez faire approach to transfers, maybe only going into negotiate when a deal is close to being finalised. This window will continue to function in it’s current state and with around 37 days left they are under pressure to get four players in.
Player acquisition is one thing but selling is also of the utmost importance. Michy Batshuayi, Ross Barkley, and Kenedy are all in the final year of their contracts. These three players need to be sold and the club should cut their losses but none of these players got major minutes last season. Marcos Alonso, Cesar Azpilicueta, Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech; at the very least three of these four players should have left by now. With the defence already stretched I get why it’s one in one out for that area but in attack people need to leave. The season starts in less than two weeks and time is running out.
Thomas Tuchel
Before I come to the defence of Thomas Tuchel, which I find hilarious on its own because I shouldn’t be having to say anything at all, I will talk about where Tuchel needs to take responsibility. Its quiet clear that the tour in the US was disjointed, and Chelsea travelled around jumping from time zones which was completely unnecessary. While the tour is largely decided by the club and its main point is to parade the team for foreign fans it would have been wise to perhaps stay in Los Angeles and make it our base of operation. That is all I can think about in terms of holding Tuchel responsible for the problems at Chelsea.
Now come the accusations that have been levelled at Tuchel that I find ridiculous.
Responsible for bringing the fringe players on tour
Yes, factually Tuchel is responsible for bringing the players that should be leaving the club on tour. Fans are saying that he should have left them at home like Conte, and told them to sort out their futures. That’s all well and good but if people are using Conte as the benchmark for squad harmony they are being ridiculous. Also out of the players Conte left in London which one has been sold? None of them.
Leaving these players at home and bringing along the academy and younger players is great for the short term but what happens when you return to London and those players are still there. The players the club pay six figure wages to won’t want to be frozen out especially the ones that have actually played a part in the team. These guys will interact on a daily basis with the first team squad and that could cause disharmony. People also need to remember the club had to leave Loftus-Cheek, Kante, and Dujon Sterling in London for various reasons.
While I get people’s reasoning, and the fact that the players who were brought on tour still seem to have caused disharmony, I can’t blame Tuchel for a problem that has existed for several years. To ask the German to conduct a clear out of players who have somehow survived from 5-6 different managers is unfair.
Tuchel needs to get more out of the attack
This one makes me want to start laughing because I don’t get what some of the fans want. They say that our attack is useless and players need to be sold but then also demand that Tuchel should get more out of them. Pick one, you can’t have both. Tuchel tried for 18 months and gave these players a chance, he has now reached his limit and said that they might not be good enough. Out of the attack the two clear sales are Werner and Ziyech. I like both players but neither has made enough of an impact and even I have had enough. Havertz, Pulisic, and Hudson-Odoi are still on the younger side and they have potential but they need to step up. Tuchel can only do so much and no one can tell me they haven’t had chances or have not been in situations to score goals.
When Guardiola signed for Man City the forwards he kept from the squad he inherited were Sterling and Aguero. Klopp made Origi into a super sub but Firmino was the only player he kept in his attack on his arrival in 2015. Even Arteta has seen himself get backed in the market. Very rarely are managers asked to work with the existing set of players at a top level club.
Tuchel brought in Lukaku and he shot himself on the foot and caused his own demise. Sterling seems to be a good acquisition but the winger was a replacement for Lukaku. The club are yet to move on any of the attackers that were at the club when Tuchel arrived. In an ideal world we would have had Raphinha in by now but he chose to move to Barcelona and that was that. There are targets for the attack but these existing players need to be sold. This club can no longer carry any bloat.
The players
The players need to be put under more pressure to perform or move on depending on who they are. Under Abramovich Tuchel would already be facing the sack and maybe Pochettino would have been rumoured with the club but that is not the case under the new ownership. Tuchel had one of the meanest defences in the league when he came in and the team performed beyond their abilities. Let’s not make it seem like Rudiger, Christensen and others were elite defenders under the previous managers. More players need to step up though especially in attack.
There are some like Mason Mount, and others like Ampadu or Gallagher who at the very least look like they are trying to make an impact. Some like Pulisic have moments but there is no consistency and others like Hudson-Odoi are living on hype from their academy days. These players need to become more consistent and ruthless. In so many games we see that Tuchel sets the team up to win but our ability in front of goal is so poor that these players can’t finish the chances we create. Tuchel gave them 18 months and now it’s time to go for some of them.
The players that need to leave are on massive wages that they probably don’t deserve and no club is willing to pay. That makes it hard for them to find a new club but I say that they need to move on. There are players taking pay cuts left right and centre at the moment so our players need to do the same. I get why they aren’t doing it and its fair enough but they are only delaying the inevitable. Next summer several of their contracts will end and they will be released. They will then have to take pay cuts to sign for other clubs.
The fans
This is going to be relatively short but the fans are one of the key players going into the future of this club. A lot of fans started supporting Chelsea in the early 2000’s. That is a fact and there is no point denying it. I myself started supporting Chelsea at a similar time because like many other fans who support the big six teams, Chelsea were winning trophies at the time.
The Abramovich era was a ruthless one that brought great success but over time my point of view has changed. While I wasn’t bothered about the managerial carousel as a teenager and just loved to see the team win that changed as I got older. I remember being hurt when Jose Mourinho was sacked for a second time. Till date the 2016/2017 season is the most enjoyable season I have had as a Chelsea fan and when Antonio Conte left it was hard to digest. Sarri’s departure was premature and I felt Chelsea were going places under him. Lampard for obvious reasons was devastating and while being sceptical about Tuchel it only took one press conference for me to get onboard with him.
Chelsea fans have become complacent and Chelsea can no longer function as a club that is successful while being ruthless with their managers. Fans keep mentioning the Liverpool model or Pep’s Man City but they don’t want to be patient. On one hand fans say that we won’t be able to get all the positions sorted in one window but on the other hand they want 5-6 signings done. I know Todd Boehly has said that he intends for Chelsea to be competitive from the get go but we as fans need to be realistic and realise that this will be a process.
Arteta has been Arsenal’s manager since 2020 and gradually he has used the transfer windows to sell and buy players to put himself in a position where the club beat Chelsea 4-0. Chelsea I feel can be the best of both worlds under Todd Boehly, Thomas Tuchel and whoever we appoint as the Director of football. Fans will need to be patient though, if the fans are patient then it doesn’t matter what anyone else says or does. I will wait until my season preview to make predictions and set expectations but patience will be key.
The previous regime
The people most responsible for Chelsea’s current situation is the previous regime. They signed the players on exorbitant wages, they hired and fired managers for fun and they gave birth to this entitled section of the fanbase that feels that success is guaranteed. It is their mess that the club are now trying to fix but it will take time and patience and won’t happen in one window. Its a process but the signs are positive.
Chelsea have one more friendly on Friday against Udinese in Italy before we get ready for out trip to Liverpool to play Everton next weekend. That leaves the club and Tuchel with 14 days to get stuff done before the season starts. Will we get everything sorted? No. I expect us to be busy well into August and possibly even on deadline day. As mentioned previously I will wait until next week to preview the season ahead but as far as the next week is concerned one can can only hope to see players leave and players be bought. Wait for the whole picture to be painted before judging it.