May 24, 2015. Chelsea beat Sunderland 3-1 to confirm an eight-point gap as Premier League champions. A Capital One Cup double to boot, and Chelsea were flying high. Jose Mourinho changed the identity of Chelsea at the time. A top-loaded, tiki-taka prototype became a defensive juggernaut. John Terry revitalised his career, Matic and Fabregas became a league-leading pair in the double pivot, and Chelsea were a powerhouse again.
Chelsea Losing the FA Cup Final is Actually a Good Thing
Fast-forward eight months and Jose Mourinho is out of a job, and Chelsea are well on their way to their worst season in decades. Chelsea were a team in transition. Winning the league before the transition was complete stopped it dead. For all the support Roman Abramovich has provided, it was a poor transfer window by Chelsea standards. Antonio Conte was brought in this year to transition the team into a new era. Winning the Premier League this year is a big advancement in the time-line, but losing the FA Cup might actually be a good thing.
Chelsea had a horrific day out at Wembley on Saturday, but there are plenty of positives to take away. Victor Moses struggled, looking weary at the end of a long season. Nemanja Matic, despite Antonio Conte’s post-match comments, seemed off the pace. Both are positions available for upgrade next season. Diego Costa was back to his terrific best, giving the Arsenal back-line problems the entire second half. His passion and ability, despite everything else going on, are crucial to Chelsea’s success.
Arsenal bossed the midfield for most of the match. The movement of Ozil and Sanchez, coupled with Xhaka dropping deep, gave Arsenal an almost “four vs. two” in the middle of the park. This prompted Pedro and Hazard’s movement much further inside to balance the match up. As Chelsea pivoted to a pseudo-3-5-2, it must provide food for thought on Conte’s preferred system both with Italy and Juventus.
Deepening the squad
As they romped their way to another Premier League title, Chelsea were the least rotated side in Premier League history. After the match, Conte said “Next season, we must pay great attention to understand that we have to improve in terms of squad numbers and also in quality. We must be very cold to analyse the situation.” With a poor performance from key squad members, Chelsea could be headed for a big spend.
Some appropriate targets include Djibril Sidibe and Tiemoue Bakayoko. Given Alonso and Moses are the only two first-choice wing-backs, Sidibe would be a top-choice addition. Bakayoko adds mobility and steel to a midfield lacking in both. With the additional fixtures of the Champions League, and the potentially huge outlay of other title rivals (see Manchester City’s capture of Bernardo Silva), improvement is mandatory.
Retaining Diego Costa
Prominent transfer source Gianluca Dimarzio reports that Chelsea have begun negotiating Diego Costa’s contract extension. One of the best strikers in the world, Costa fits the bill at Chelsea. A goal to his name, Costa seemed to will chances to happen on Saturday. Despite his drop in form amid Chinese Super League interest, retaining Costa is crucial to Chelsea success.
Names like Romelu Lukaku and Alvaro Morata have been suggested to fill the void. But Chelsea should be looking to add, rather than replace. Replacing Costa would be a mistake, regardless of the financial merits.
Shift to 3-5-2
Chelsea have shown a number of different faces this year. 4-3-3, 4-2-4, 3-4-3, and occasionally even 3-5-2. Given the need for midfield control, especially in the bigger European matches, 3-5-2 might be the way to go in the future. This shift requires some personnel changes in midfield, as well as adding a top-choice striker. Hazard has shown some success up top, both in a 4-2-4 and in the 3-4-3. But a dynamic duo of Costa and Lukaku could do some serious damage.
The 3-4-3 has its merits. Given the current squad make-up, it makes sense as Chelsea’s primary system. But the final quarter of the season has been riddled with difficult matches. Having the option to match “two vs. two” against someone playing 4-4-2 in the middle is great. But often times, Kante and Matic have found it difficult to cope with the extra man.
A potential move to a 3-5-2 makes their job easier, as well as allowing the deployment of Fabregas in the characteristic “Pirlo” role. With his exceptional passing range, it is conceivable that the Spaniard will have a late career Renaissance if this is the case.
Building a legacy
Recent champions have followed the path of “it was good enough last year” and failed to invest following title-winning campaigns. The Premier League has not seen a repeat champion since 2009. It is unlikely that any team will have the same success United had under Sir Alex Ferguson. This, despite being the ultimate goal of every club, is a sad truth. But Ferguson constantly rebuilt his teams, moving on from winners and proven goalscorers.
A comical anecdote once read, “Last year Berbatov set benchmarks in the league, this year he’s got them on his bum”. For a team to see continued success, they must continually improve their squad. Adapt their tactics, become more flexible and versatile.
So, lest Chelsea think a League and Cup double is sufficient, maybe losing the FA Cup was not such a bad thing.
Main Photo:
