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Have Chelsea 'overachieved' and is Palmer 'frustrated'?published at 15:01 18 February
15:01 18 February
Former Premier League striker Chris Sutton has highlighted some issues that he believes need sorting out at Chelsea, such as their need for "a recognised striker" and a resolution to their "goalkeeping situation".
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club, Sutton said: "They have tried Christopher Nkunku and Cole Palmer in forward areas, but their recent form has dipped and the manager looks unhappy.
"They also have a goalkeeping situation with Filip Jorgensen, who played against Brighton, and Robert Sanchez. Jorgensen is better with his feet and Sanchez is better with his hands, so you sort of want a mixture of both.
"I did get sucked into thinking they are pushing and being consistent, but recently they have just dipped."
Media caption,
Sutton added that Cole Palmer has "cut a frustrated figure in recent games", after scoring just three goals in Chelsea's past 10 Premier League fixtures.
'Things are falling apart pretty fast'published at 11:40 18 February
11:40 18 February
Will Faulks Fan writer
Image source, PA Media
For a long stretch of this season, it looked like Chelsea were finally benefiting from some much-deserved luck in terms of injuries.
The past couple of years were brutal for the Blues on that front, and even the couple before that saw key players like Reece James and Ben Chilwell constantly breaking down.
This time, things were going smoothly at Stamford Bridge, while so many of their rivals suffered from season-ruining spates of absences earlier in the campaign.
But the past two months have seen Chelsea's situation deteriorate.
Wesley Fofana's injury seemed to trigger the slide in form and mark a turning point. Fofana's nightmare spell at Chelsea has somewhat distracted from Benoit Badiashile's injury-proneness, which is now becoming a very serious issue.
Romeo Lavia cannot get fit and cannot stay fit, leaving the team short of any cover for Moises Caicedo in midfield.
Now, to top it off, both strikers and the team's most effective winger have all been lost to hamstring problems.
Meanwhile, the goalkeeper has been dropped for poor performances - for the second year in a row - and the team have tumbled from a point off top to sixth place in the space of two months, while also being been knocked out of both domestic cup competitions.
Things are falling apart pretty fast and there are growing doubts that Enzo Maresca is the man to stop the spiral.
He is losing the fans with his news conferences and his decisions on the pitch. He has got an increasingly limited group of players to choose from thanks to injuries and some January outgoings. And, most damningly of all, the team seems to be playing worse the longer he has to work with them.
'There is definitely a bit of heat on Maresca'published at 08:46 18 February
08:46 18 February
The Athletic's Adam Crafton believes Chelsea "cannot afford to be out of the Champions League again" next season and says it is going to be "a difficult few months" for head coach Enzo Maresca.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club, Crafton added: "They just shouldn't be finishing below Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth. As well as those teams have performed, with the level of investment that Chelsea have made, I don't think it's unreasonable for the owners to have expected Enzo Maresca to do better.
"Given the position they were in during November and at the start of December, they have got to finish in the Champions League spots. It is a bit of a disaster if they end up sixth.
"The club won't accept things continuing as they have been in their past few games - two wins in nine in the Premier League. There is definitely a bit of heat on him."
Is Maresca in danger of the sack?published at 12:38 17 February
12:38 17 February
Image source, Getty Images
BBC Sport's chief football writer Phil McNulty has been answering your questions, with one contributor asking whether head coach Enzo Maresca's job is in the balance.
Phil answered: I never, ever make predictions about what Chelsea will do when making decisions on managers. I've been burned too often in the past to do that.
I agree there has been a real slump in form because Chelsea have gone from being talked about as possible title contenders at one point to now dropping down to sixth place, although they are still only one point off the top four.
This has almost been a self-fulfilling prophecy for Maresca, who regularly talked down their title chances, and maybe the players have started to believe him. Has he given them an excuse?
It has also coincided with a drop-off in form for Cole Palmer, who was so brilliant earlier this season.
I do not see Maresca being in any danger of the sack - but this is Chelsea, so I won't say anything is certain.
Gossip: Blues target Isak could be available for £83mpublished at 06:46 17 February
06:46 17 February
Newcastle would be willing to let Alexander Isak leave for £83.3m (100m euros) this summer if they fail to qualify for the Champions League, with Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Barcelona among those keen on the 25-year-old Sweden striker. (Sport - in Spanish), external
'Our season is imploding' - fans on Brighton defeatpublished at 10:06 15 February
10:06 15 February
Image source, Getty Images
We asked for your views on Brighton's big win over Chelsea on Friday night.
Here are some of your comments:
Jon: What's the point of having the majority of possession but no idea what to do with it? Clueless and frustrating to watch a bunch of well-paid players who seem to not be able to play together. We are in need of help, our season is imploding and mid-table beckons.
Mark: Lacklustre. Devoid of ideas going forwards and frail at the back. We were ripping teams apart earlier in the season but managers worked out how to stop us a couple of months ago. Enzo Maresca needs a Plan B to change games rather than simply swapping the wingers after an hour of being up against two defenders each.
Tim: Chelsea are a team of misfits, with no idea how to gel. Will be lucky to finish top six. Very disappointed as a lifelong supporter. Missing the 90s and 00s.
Derek: Utterly woeful yet again from Chelsea. Maresca has the players drilled to play one way and one way only going forward. It's just boring and robotic. Let's not even start about the defence! The sooner he's gone, the better for the club. We aren't getting in the Champions League with him in charge.
Martin: I'm fed up of talk about a 'project' and Chelsea's strength in depth. Millions have been spent on mediocre players. No goalkeeper is convincing, there is no strong centre back pairing, the wide forwards waste more possession passing back than attacking a defender (none of them present a goal threat other than cutting inside to shoot which every defender knows!) and there is no proven goalscorer as a striker.
Ollie: After an excellent start and really looking like a force to be reckoned with, we've now unfortunately became a mismanaged laughing stock. We have spent over £1 billion on a team full of youngsters mid-table players. I think top eight is now somewhat optimistic. From our remaining matches, perhaps we win only two or three more games.
Has Palmer's coldness turned lukewarm?published at 12:57 14 February
12:57 14 February
Nat Hayward BBC Sport journalist
Image source, Getty Images
By his own lofty standards, Cole Palmer is enduring a relatively modest spell.
After beginning the season with six goals and five assists in his first seven Premier League appearances, Palmer has registered eight goals - two from the penalty spot - and one assist in the 17 league games since the October international break.
The second half of this run has coincided with a winter malaise that has reduced Chelsea from title challengers to merely top-four hopefuls.
However, despite the slight reduction in output, the creativity he offers his team has not deteriorated.
Palmer's 66 chances created is the highest in the division. The 32 chances he has created in the Premier League since 4 December is the most in any of Europe's top five leagues, external - yet he has not registered an assist in this period.
Despite what Fantasy Premier League says, his cross deflected into the net by Aaron Wan-Bissaka in the win over West Ham does not officially count.
An eight-game scoring drought from Nicolas Jackson has not helped, with the Senegal forward missing the most of these 32 chances [seven].
Over the course of the season as well, Palmer still averages a goal every 150 minutes of league football. Out of players who have started 10 Premier League games or more, this is bettered only by Erling Haaland, Mohammed Salah, Alexander Isak, Chris Wood and Bournemouth's Justin Kluivert.
When you take away penalties - a key facet to his output - the 22-year-old is only two goals behind the 13 non-penalty goals he got in his devastating breakout campaign.
Chelsea's inconsistency and chaos as a club has been juxtaposed by Palmer's coolness and relentlessly impressive performances since the moment he arrived in west London.
There is nothing in the numbers to suggest his slight dip in production is anything but temporary and, with some more clinical finishing by his team-mates, it would likely have gone unnoticed.
*All stats provided by Opta
How do Maresca's subs compare with the rest of the Premier League?published at 11:15 14 February
11:15 14 February
Joe Bradshaw BBC Sport Senior Journalist
Image source, Getty Images
Over recent weeks, Chelsea fans have told us they are frustrated with the lack of impact from substitutes at Stamford Bridge.
They have pointed to the performances of Chelsea's second string in the Conference League and wondered why boss Enzo Maresca is not, in their words, more proactive in making changes that will affect the game.
That is particularly irksome given the Blues have won only two of their past eight matches.
Maresca does make slightly fewer substitutes than most of his rivals, averaging 3.8 per game.
Then again, both Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola average fewer changes than Maresca and, really, is making four changes a match that much different than switching five players?
With regards to goal involvements, Maresca's side are middle of the pack. Five times substitutes have scored for Chelsea, with nine involvements in total - that's dwarfed by Bournemouth's success off the bench but better than Eddie Howe at Newcastle and indeed Manchester City's Guardiola.
With Chelsea's record middle of the road for the Premier League, it would be unfair to conclude their subs are doing worse than might be expected.
Another criticism the Blues boss has faced is whether he is too late to act- that by the time he turns to his bench, Chelsea's fate in matches is sealed.
The above graph compares average number of substitutions made with when that first change is summoned.
There have been times where the complaint seems valid. Waiting until the 75th minute in a listless performance at Everton was followed up by a 73rd-minute sub at home to Fulham, albeit Chelsea were still winning at that point before slumping to a 2-1 defeat.
He was also arguably late to freshen things up at Crystal Palace last month, when an 81st-minute substitute immediately followed by a Jean-Philippe Mateta equaliser.
When compared with the rest of the Premier League, Maresca is one of the latest to act, averaging 62 minutes to make his first substitution.
Compare that with Unai Emery at Aston Villa, whose average is virtually half-time - albeit he has had to make numerous early changes this season because of injury.
Southampton have been similarly early to react, but that is perhaps a result of their struggles this season.
So are substitutions an issue?
Maresca definitely could get more out of them and, given Chelsea's strength in depth, supporters probably are entitled to expect more from a bench that has had the likes of Pedro Neto, Jadon Sancho and Christopher Nkunku, among others, on it this season.
Managers talk regularly about the fine margins. Upping the goal involvements from the substitutes could make a big difference in the race for the top four.
Sutton's predictions: Brighton v Chelseapublished at 10:02 14 February
10:02 14 February
Brighton came out on top when these two sides met in the FA Cup last weekend, and Chelsea did not offer much in attack after taking an early lead.
Enzo Maresca's side just seem to be going through a flat period at the moment. They are still fourth in the table, but their performances have definitely dipped.
The Seagulls' results have been very up and down too, and it's hard to pick a winner - so I am going to go with a draw.
Is Maresca unable to make match-changing substitutions?published at 08:04 14 February
08:04 14 February
Image source, Getty Images
BBC Sport pundit and former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha has been answering your questions on your club.
Tim asked: Is Enzo Maresca starting to look like he is unable to make match-changing substitutions?
Nedum replied: I don't think so because he is making them based on who is available.
As a manager, you trust the players you start to have a moment in the game that can affect the team in a positive manner - so you don't really want to take them off.
It is sometimes better to freshen things up with substitutes, but those players on the pitch should be capable of playing 90 minutes as well. It is a tricky one.
I would not be too hard on Maresca because I do not think he is shy of making changes.
The players going on need to try to hit the ground running but that can also be difficult when you have been on the bench for a significant amount of the game.
If the players can make an impact then that's great, but I would never have the expectation that they can all do that.
Nedum Onuoha was speaking to BBC Sport's Katie Stafford
Maresca on coping without Jackson, first-choice Jorgensen and Brightonpublished at 11:11 13 February
11:11 13 February
Nat Hayward BBC Sport journalist
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game away at Brighton (20:00 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Nicolas Jackson, Romeo Lavia and Benoit Badiashile will likely be out until after the March international break. Marc Guiu will be out for "a while" with a hamstring injury.
Reece James missing the 2-1 FA Cup defeat to Brighton last weekend was planned and the defender is "OK".
Maresca spoke on whether Christopher Nkunku can replace Jackson, stating: "Christoph could be one of the solutions but he's not the only solution. I consider Christoph a very important player. He can try to help us."
Asked what the other solutions are, Maresca said: "We are trying to find different solutions, can be Christoph or a different kind of player. When you don't have a proper nine who can be a threat always you have to change. Pedro [Neto], Noni [Madueke] or even Tyrique [George] can try and maybe be the solution. Jadon [Sancho] maybe with different skills."
Maresca confirmed Filip Jorgensen is Chelsea's Premier League goalkeeper "at the moment", adding: "The Filip solution was also to give Robert some time to recover mentally and physically. The idea is not to go game-to-game. I spoke to Robert before West Ham. They know in this moment the situation."
On the Blues' dip in form and cup exits after a fine start to to the season: "Our journey in the Premier League and Conference League has been fantastic. We will try and finish in the best way we can. Don't forget in the last two years Chelsea have not been top four and this season all the time in the top four. This shows everyone we are in the right direction. This club belongs in the Champions League."
Maresca reasserted the club did not specify a target for this season, stating: "The club never said the target was top four. When I arrived the target was in two years we play Champions League."
On facing the Seagulls for the second time in a week: "I expect a similar one. In all the games they try to be quite aggressive. I expect a very similar game. It's fresh in your mind the way they attack and defend. You know what they do and try to do. It's probably better to face them immediately."
How do Chelsea cope with Jackson absence?published at 09:57 13 February
09:57 13 February
Nizaar Kinsella BBC Sport football news reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson is now expected to be out for at least six weeks with a hamstring injury.
The loss of the 23-year-old will likely be the main topic of today's press conference as manager Enzo Maresca will react to being left strikerless - as Jackson's deputy Marc Guiu is also out with a groin problem.
Likely replacements include Christopher Nkunku and Cole Palmer but options from the academy like Deivid Washington and Shim Mheuka could also be discussed.
But, although Maresca keeps denying it, Chelsea may also regret letting Joao Felix leave to join AC Milan on loan on transfer deadline day. That, incidentally, was the night when both Jackson and Guiu were injured.
Gossip: Chelsea and Bayern want Gittenspublished at 07:49 13 February
07:49 13 February
Borussia Dortmund expect to sell 20-year-old Jamie Gittens this summer. They have valued the winger at £66m-£83m, with the England Under-21 international attracting interest from Chelsea and Bayern Munich. (Bild), external
