How Chelsea got the blues: injury list, creativity black hole and boardroom revolution

Things aren’t exactly rosy for Chelsea manager Graham Potter at the moment.

The new boss saw his 10th-placed Premier League side beaten 4-0 by Manchester City in the FA Cup, suffering a long list of injuries, struggling to create goals and with things at the club shaky. after a revolution in the boardroom.

Beneath, sports mail‘s Adrian Kajumba looks at how the Potter team got sad and what they can do to fix the issues currently derailing their campaign.

injury problems

By far the biggest handicap Graham Potter has ever faced and it has had an impact in a variety of areas. Along with the number of absent players (10 missed Sunday’s loss to Manchester City), there is also the quality of the absences.

N’Golo Kante last played in August against Tottenham, when he shone and Chelsea impressed, somehow only leveling the game. Reece James suffered a recurrence of his knee injury against Bournemouth last month.

The difference he made to Chelsea’s appearance before he was substituted was remarkable.

Unfortunately for Potter, that’s the only time he’s had James available in Chelsea’s last 13 games. He and Kante are the two most influential players at Chelsea, so they have been big misses. Ben Chilwell and summer signing Wesley Fofana, both likely starters if fully fit, have missed significant parts of the season.

Many others have also been sidelined for various spells along the way, an injury crisis Potter called the most challenging period of his career.

The injuries have really piled up at a time when Chelsea is reviewing her medical department, having laid off several staff members since the change in ownership, making the topic an additional talking point.

Fofana and James have been injured again while working to get back to full fitness after knee injuries. Some of the problems couldn’t be avoided, but Potter has also refused to chalk them up to bad luck. Either way, injuries have been an unavoidable theme of the past few months for Potter.

tactical tweaks

Since returning from the World Cup break, there has been an element of consistency in Potter’s line-ups with a back four emerging as his preference.

Before Qatar, a variety of formations were used as Chelsea’s new head coach tried to figure out what worked best with the team he inherited.

Using Raheem Sterling at full-back drew attention, although he did perform well there, scoring in Potter’s first game in charge against RB Salzburg.

Potter argued that Sterling was not subject to the same defensive responsibilities that normally come with the role and, for balance, there was no problem with line-up changes as he began his Chelsea reign on a nine-game unbeaten run. Such tactical flexibility is what Potter is famous for.

However, no obvious playstyle has emerged yet. A manager from one of Chelsea’s Premier League rivals explained how there is a lack of certainty about their most likely route to goal. Injuries, once again, have hampered Potter’s attempts to implement his methods.

A man with a reputation for doing his best work on the training ground, he showed with his Brighton team what time can achieve and players who can produce what he wants.

creativity concerns

There were groans and signs of frustration on the sidelines more than once on Thursday during Chelsea’s home loss to Manchester City, when opportunities to move forward were rejected in favor of backing down or going sideways.

Kai Havertz was particularly guilty, failing to spot runs from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, among others.

Havertz is said to be a player capable of doing amazing things in training and of course he scored the winning goal in the 2021 Champions League final.

However, there have been no sustained streaks of form from a striker who has started most of Chelsea’s games this season. But he is far from the only one in the spotlight. Chelsea lack consistent creativity in central areas.

Potter’s side have scored just 20 Premier League goals this season, the joint lowest tally in the top 11, rank 16th in the shots on goal table (186 compared to Manchester City’s 301) and 14th in great chances created (27 compared to City’s 61). This explains his desire to sign midfielder Joao Félix from Atlético de Madrid.

Their problems generating chances have been compounded by the absences of full-backs James and Chilwell, both of whom pose a major threat on the wings.

rocky results

Which should come first: players carrying out their manager’s instructions without question or being engaged by the boss with positive results?

The common expectation may be the former, but the latter becomes more of a problem the longer you wait for tangible proof that the chosen path is the one to follow.

Especially, sources say, in a dressing room like Chelsea’s that contains some serial winners who have already been there and done it.

Potter is liked as a person and his players support him, but despite everything, faith can wane, confidence wane and spirits drop without results.

Since beating RB Salzburg to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages, Chelsea have lost six of their last nine games, drawing against Nottingham Forest.

There was discontent in the stands during the FA Cup humiliation at Manchester City with chants from the Chelsea winger calling out to former manager Thomas Tuchel. However, the results will drown out all of that and make everything seem right again.

owners review

Chelsea’s new owners have gone in a different direction to the club’s past and there is much to admire about their desire not to simply do business as usual.

But one concern raised is that, in doing so, they dispensed with a number of figures at the top of the club and other important areas, who knew what it took to meet Chelsea’s required standards and had a track record of compliance.

This included former president Bruce Buck, technical director Petr Cech and director Marina Granovskaia.

When it comes to recruitment and important decisions, the new owners have assembled a team of high-level experts to guide them.

Some sources have explained how they may have created a situation where there are simply too many people involved in the process.

Others, however, insist that the personality of the new additions off the pitch has been important and there is a belief that once everyone has put their feet under the table, there will be no stepping on the toes and harmony and success will follow.