Fresh off of becoming world champions with a 3-0 demolition of Paris Saint-Germain, expectations among fans have skyrocketed. With Chelsea now being discussed as title challengers, we will discuss why the Blues absolutely should not be considered favourites….yet.
Chelsea Are Not Premier League Favourites
UEFA Champions League
For the first time ever Enzo Maresca and the majority of his players will have to endure the gauntlet that requires some seasoned veterans to navigate. A number of teams have fallen away in past years due to their attempts to compete in both the domestic league and in Europe’s premier club competition.
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Balancing high-intensity games every few days for an 8-match group stage on top of the league season, the FA Cup, and the League Cup will catch up to the Blues eventually. We saw it impact Aston Villa and just last year when their form dipped until they were eliminated from the competition.
Liverpool Are Absurd
Arne Slot’s team romped to the league title last season and have spent the summer strengthening their squad in a number of areas. While yes, their core is ageing, they managed to keep hold of Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk while adding fresh names like Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, and Jeremie Frimpong.
With the Reds reportedly now in the hunt for Alexander Isak or Hugo Ekitike, they’re going to get even stronger, especially if they can add the reliable goalscoring output of the Newcastle man. Unseating the current holders will be very difficult for Maresca and his young crusaders.
Manchester City Strengthened
Pep Guardiola watched his team play poorly for a few months and has decided to get revenge. Despite big defeats to Crystal Palace and Al-Hilal in knockout ties, the Cityzens ended the season on a very strong run of form that indicated they could be nearing their best form once again.
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Since then, they’ve gone about adding a lot of quality in Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri, and Rayan Cherki. With some time to get those newcomers settled and Rodri back fighting fit, there’s no reason whay Guardiola can’t make a comeback next term.
Exhaustion
It may seem pretty obvious but the Blues squad will no doubt be hanging by a thread by the halfway mark of the season. Key players like Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella have been playing almost nonstop for a full year after reaching the final of the Euros in 2024 and now the Club World Cup in 2025.
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Beyond just those two, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo racked up mileage and minutes by starting a lot and flying to South America regularly, where they’re key players for their countries. There will come a time for Chelsea, likely in December, where fatigue catches up on them, how they navigate that will be key in deciding the outlook of their season.
