Where it’s all gone wrong for Chelsea from Cole Palmer’s slump in form to club legends lashing out at Enzo Maresca

CHELSEA’S rubric credentials were the speech of the municipality 2 months ago.

A beardown tally from precocious October to mid-December saw Enzo Maresca’s men spell unbeaten successful 8 league matches, picking up six wins on the way.

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Enzo Maresca has seen Chelsea descent down the array implicit the past 2 months[/caption]

But since then, Chelsea person won conscionable 2 of their past nine.

It’s seen them spell from joining Liverpool astatine the apical of the array to being 17 points disconnected archetypal place.

But what precisely has gone incorrect astatine Stamford Bridge?

Here, SunSport’s Anthony Chapman looks astatine the main issues bugging the Blues…

PALMER SLUMP

LAST season’s Young Player of the Year should arguably person won the apical prize.

He helped himself to an unthinkable 22 goals and 11 assists successful 34 league outings.

And Palmer’s state to drift from the close arsenic team-mates ran their legs disconnected played a immense portion successful his numbers.

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Cole Palmer has been acold from prolific successful his caller outings[/caption]

His signifier this play has inactive been good, with 14 goals and six assists truthful far.

But Palmer has trailed disconnected large clip successful the past 11 games, coinciding with Chelsea’s barren run.

He has conscionable 3 goals successful that time, on with ZERO assists.

And Palmer’s relation arsenic the Blues’ cardinal No10 looks to beryllium stifling his creativity alternatively than exposing it.

As Chelsea’s prima antheral and playmaker, helium present finds himself being closed down by opponents from each angles of the field.

Lining up done the centre is making things easier for defenders and midfielders, who are not acrophobic to treble up arsenic different teammates screen gaps, to bounds abstraction successful and astir channels.

Chelsea whitethorn present person to deliberation astir mounting him up connected the close again, which would springiness Palmer much clip to enactment portion besides having to woody with little opponents.

But that would necessitate immoderate flexibility connected Maresca’s part, which volition beryllium explored aboriginal on.

Chelsea person looked disjointed arsenic Palmer has struggled to get into games

NO STRIKER

FORGET Chelsea not signing a striker successful January – this occupation dates backmost to past summer’s transportation window.

The Blues were crying retired for a focal constituent contempt a decent debut play from Nicolas Jackson.

He bagged 14 goals and 5 assists starring the enactment nether Pochettino.

Yet his penchant to drift wide and chopped successful showed that Jackson was arsenic susceptible of playing connected the wing.

That opened the doorway for Chelsea to motion a due scorer similar Victor Osimhen and Viktor Gyokeres.

Instead, the hierarchy decided to proceed with Jackson arsenic striker – portion making him the undisputed No1 to boot.

That saw conscionable kid Marc Guiu join, portion 2 caller wingers successful Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto were besides added.

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Some would reason that Nicolas Jackson is much effectual starting connected the wing[/caption]

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Chelsea person nary strikers disposable with Jackson and Marc Guiu injured[/caption]

Fast guardant six months and Jackson has conscionable 9 league goals.

There has been cipher to situation him each season.

And now that helium and Guiu are some injured, Chelsea bash not person a azygous ‘recognised’ striker successful their squad.

January marked the accidental for the owners to close the wrongs of past summer, adjacent with conscionable a indebtedness signing.

Any effort oregon effort would person been welcomed by fans, adjacent if that subordinate turned retired to beryllium different Gonzalo Higuain oregon Alexandre Pato.

But much negligence successful the attacking departments means Chelsea look adjacent little apt to deed the target successful each passing match.

The Blues person dominated possession this play but often not made the astir of it

RIGID SYSTEM

SOME Chelsea fans inactive person sleepless nights remembering the days of Maurizio Sarri.

But for each his faults, the stubborn, chain-smoking Italian managed a third-place decorativeness portion besides winning the Europa League.

Maresca is conscionable similar his compatriot successful that helium refuses to shingle things up from his chosen strategy and benignant of play.

Yet helium volition request a occurrence if helium is to execute a akin league finish portion besides bagging a European trophy successful the process.

Maresca has shown helium has nary volition of moving distant from his 4-2-3-1 shape, which astir often sees a full-back drift into midfield.

At archetypal the strategy worked rather good arsenic it helped Chelsea physique up with efficiency.

But conscionable similar Sarri’s 4-3-3 was yet recovered out, it feels similar teams person yet figured precisely however to halt Maresca’s men from playing.

Now it’s Palmer, and not Jorginho, who is the focal constituent for dictating the tempo.

And, arsenic explained earlier, helium is present being shunted retired of the crippled and needs to beryllium moved if helium is to revitalise his season.

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Maresca loves sticking with under-performing players similar Enzo Fernandez[/caption]

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Christopher Nkunku is not successful the squad connected merit and it’s showing successful his form[/caption]

Maresca besides intelligibly likes to instrumentality with his preferred radical of players, with under-performers similar Enzo Fernandez and Noni Madueke regularly commanding starting spots.

Joao Felix was 1 of Chelsea’s astir awesome forwards contempt being constricted chiefly to the Conference League.

But a deficiency of chances saw him shipped disconnected to AC Milan connected loan, wherever Felix has already cemented a spot successful their starting XI.

Renato Veiga was different newly-signed endowment who pushed for a winter exit aft being near connected the bench.

He is present starring successful his preferred presumption of centre-back for Juventus, with manager Thiago Motta hailing the Portugal planetary arsenic a signing who has instantly revolutionised their benignant of play.

Elsewhere, Christopher Nkunku did not get his determination distant contempt involvement from Bayern Munich and Manchester United.

He has present been thrown successful arsenic a striker pursuing injuries to Jackson and Guiu.

But with the Frenchman’s caput intelligibly elsewhere up of a apt summertime exit, helium has unsurprisingly failed to marque immoderate benignant of interaction successful his past fewer appearances.

And unless Maresca tin deliberation extracurricular the box, Chelsea are apt to proceed dropping down the array arsenic opponents artifact them retired with ease.

The Italian has signifier for this benignant of slump. Last season, contempt Leicester being promoted, they were acold worse successful the 2nd fractional of the campaign.

History is repeating itself astatine Chelsea, with a triumph complaint of conscionable 30% since Christmas.

GOALIE WOE

SIGNING Brighton’s third-choice goalkeeper was ever going to beryllium controversial.

But Maresca’s insistence connected sticking with Robert Sanchez until precise precocious has played a large relation successful Chelsea’s mediocre form.

The Spaniard has kept conscionable 4 cleanable sheets successful 21 outings this term, conceding 27 goals successful the process.

He’s besides made a monolithic 5 errors starring to goals.

And astatine the property of 27, Sanchez is not going to get immoderate amended – contempt those wrong Chelsea reportedly believing helium yet will.

Pochettino rapidly saw Sanchez was not reliable and alternatively plumped for Djordje Petrovic.

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Robert Sanchez arsenic No1 has been an unmitigated disaster[/caption]

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Filip Jorgensen needs to spot retired the run betwixt the sticks[/caption]

The Serb was an contiguous upgrade yet was bizarrely loaned retired to Strasbourg past summertime aft Maresca sneered astatine his evident deficiency of prime connected the ball.

Sanchez has surely not shown helium is an upgrade successful that section either.

His walk accuracy is conscionable 69.8 per cent, with Sanchez besides showing a wide inclination to hoof the shot up tract erstwhile Chelsea’s defenders person been pressed backmost into their ain box.

Maresca appears to beryllium yet beryllium seeing consciousness aft starting Filip Jorgensen successful Chelsea’s past 2 league games.

However, the Dane has shipped 4 goals successful that clip – including 3 successful the past decision by Brighton.

Jorgensen indispensable present beryllium fixed the accidental to commencement for the remainder of the play to spot if helium is susceptible of being a semipermanent No1.

But arsenic agelong arsenic Chelsea proceed to wobble betwixt the sticks, they volition ne'er find the antiaircraft stableness that fans crave.

LEGEND BACKLASH

IT’S 1 happening for supporters to commencement shouting the likelihood implicit the mode their nine is being run.

But erstwhile nine legends are openly slamming the situation, it tin lone mean that things truly are successful a atrocious state.

These players cognize the ins and outs of the club, having won trophies portion playing astatine the highest level there.

Yet the further negativity from those who person been determination and done it could beryllium having an effect connected the existent squad’s morale.

Former defender Frank Leboeuf is 1 who has not been shy erstwhile it comes to talking astir Chelsea successful caller years.

And helium took purpose astatine the Blues pursuing their decision by Brighton, criticising the deficiency of strength and combat from players.

He said: “I saw a squad that gave up aft the 2nd goal. We didn’t privation to combat and didn’t cognize what to do.

“That was truthful atrocious and truthful unprofessional.”

William Gallas hadn’t adjacent waited for the play to commencement erstwhile helium badmouthed the prime of Chelsea’s squad portion insisting they WON’T decorativeness successful the apical four.

He bellowed: “I’m looking astatine this squad of players and I don’t spot astir capable quality.

“There is nary mode they’d get into the champion Chelsea teams – fractional wouldn’t adjacent get connected the bench.

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William Gallas is among the Chelsea legends who person blasted the club[/caption]

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John Obi Mikel knows each astir playing astatine a winning club[/caption]

“They aren’t bully capable to triumph a title, which should ever beryllium the purpose of a nine similar Chelsea.

“Are they bully capable to prime for the Champions League? I person superior doubts.

“I don’t recognise this mentation of Chelsea anymore.”

The biggest professional of Chelsea has been two-time rubric victor and Champions League victor John Obi Mikel.

He has openly blasted their nine and their caller owners this season.

And aft Maresca claimed that finishing successful the apical 4 was the extremity end of a TWO-YEAR project, Mikel exploded with rage connected his podcast.

The erstwhile midfielder yelled: “Who the f**k has told them that? Are you f*****g kidding me? This is Chelsea Football Club.

“No disrespect to Leicester wherever he’s coming from, this is f*****g Chelsea. We are a Champions League club.

“We’ve ever been successful the Champions League. I’ve ne'er watched a f*****g crippled successful the Conference League. I don’t care, that’s not who we are.

“For me, for him to travel retired and accidental we’re up of schedule, nary you are not. We should beryllium there.

“I deliberation that remark the manager made that we are not contenders to triumph the title, that has got into players’ heads and the full happening since past has been a f*****g disaster.”