Chelsea ended the last Premier League campaign with a 1-0 defeat at Everton, and without silverware for only the second time in six years. Since then,we have seen a change in manager at Chelsea, with 33-year-old Andre-Villas Boas replacing Carlo Ancelotti, despite the Italian’s domestic double just the season before. Comparably, Villas-Boas is a relatively inexperienced manager, but made a name for himself after an impressive season at Porto in which he won the Protuguese league, cup, and the UEFA Europa League. His Porto side also went unbeaten in the Portuguese league, scoring 73 goals in just 30 games in the process.
Despite an impressive CV, Villas-Boas will be fully aware that neither time nor patience is guaranteed at Chelsea with Roman Abramovich desperate to see a return on his heavy investment. While domestic glory is always going to be a target for Chelsea, the Champions League has become Abramovich’s most coveted prize and failure to deliver it may see Villas-Boas out of a job. Chelsea fans will be hoping for consistency at the Bridge and will want the new manager to be given time to build a team that can challenge on all fronts, if not this season, then the next.
Villas-Boas’ biggest task will be to find a formation that suits the whole team, and with Drogba, Torres, Anelka, Sturridge, and potentially Lukaku, all competing for a place in the side, the manager will face a tough challenge in identifying the most effective strike force.
Premier League:
In recent years Chelsea have been the only club to mount any real challenge to United in the league, and have been crowned champions three times in the last seven seasons. John Terry has claimed his side are still hurting after seeing United lift the trophy in May, but has insisted this has only given them more motivation and desire to try and win it back this season. The summer period has seen the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool strengthen their squads significantly, while Arsenal look set to lose two of their key players. I think City may struggle with the demands of European football while trying to challenge for the league title, while Liverpool’s priority will be a top four finish. Between United and Chelsea, I think the new manager could cause an upset this season. Villas-Boas has promised attacking football at Chelsea, and should his players replicate the kind of form of two seasons ago then they will certainly be a force to be reckoned with, and could pip United to the title this time around.
Prediction: 1st (just)
UEFA Champions League:
Sir Alex Ferguson last year claimed that the Champions League had become an “obsession” for Chelsea, an assessment that seems fair when you consider how previous managers have fared after a lack of success in the competition. Chelsea came within a penalty kick of European glory back in 2008, but have failed to reach the semi-finals since then. While this competition may be seen as the priority for Abramovich, Villas-Boas will be hoping to compete on domestic fronts just as strongly as in Europe. Despite Europa League success last season at Porto, the new boss will come up against some of the European greats this season, and I can see Chelsea struggling at the semi-final stage as they have done so many times in previous years. For the sake of Chelsea fans, I hope this does not spell the end for Villas-Boas, but I feel domestic success may be crucial if he is to remain in charge at Stamford Bridge.
Prediction: Semi-Finalists
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The FA Cup:
The FA Cup is renowned for being one of the most unpredictable tournaments in football, and has turned out some of the greatest upsets in recent years. Chelsea tend to fare well in the competition and have taken the trophy back to Stamford Bridge three times in the last five years. The unpredictability of the tournament does obviously make it difficult to ‘predict’ how Chelsea will fare this time around, but should they avoid any early upset, then they will almost certainly be one of the favourites to reach the final. The depth of Chelsea’s squad will allow them to field strong teams throughout the tournament, and should they reach the final, their success rate at Wembley will give them good reason to think they could lift the FA Cup once more.
Prediction: Finalists
League Cup:
The League Cup is generally seen to provide the younger or reserve players at the big clubs with an opportunity to play competitive first team football. This season we can expect to see the likes of Josh McEachran, Daniel Sturridge and Oriol Romeu leading the way for Chelsea in this competition, though these names are also likely to feature in the other competitions as well. Chelsea have been finalists three times in the last eight years, and winners in 2005 and 2007. However in more recent years success has been limited in this tournament, as it is perhaps not considered as important as the others. Though the League Cup will give us the chance to see what some of Chelsea’s younger players have to offer, I am skeptical as to how seriously Villas-Boas will take the tournament, and therefore cannot see Chelsea pushing to reach the final, or even the semi’s.
Prediction: Quarter-Finalists
Breakthrough season: Josh McEachran
At just 18 years of age, Josh McEachran made a name for himself at Chelsea last season, making 17 first team appearances for the Blues in all competitions. His performances earned him Chelsea’s young player of the year award, and the midfielder has been tipped to become one of England’s finest in the years to come. McEachran is highly rated at Chelsea and is likely to feature regularly this season, with Villas-Boas reported to be hugely impressed with what he has seen so far from the youngster. I think this season will see McEachran really establish himself in the Chelsea side, and he may even earn himself an international call up to England’s senior squad.
Player to watch: Daniel Sturridge
After a loan spell at Bolton last season in which he scored 8 goals in just 12 games, Daniel Sturridge has returned to Chelsea desperate to fight for a place in the starting eleven. Villas-Boas has refused to let the forward go out on loan again this season, which would suggest first team opportunities will arise for the 21-year-old. Sturridge will face fierce competition up front from the likes of both Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba, however he has been deployed on the wing in pre-season which is likely to boost his chances of regular football. If Sturridge can replicate the kind of form that he showed at Bolton last season then he is certainly going to be a player to watch at Chelsea, and I think he could well provide the goals needed to mount a serious challenge both domestically and in Europe this season.
Buying teenagers with limited experience is the way to go for the future, but right now Chelsea needs some ready-made youngsters who are proven at top clubs. Lukaku is a good example; he can play right away, but we need a few more, especially in the winger, right back, and central defence positions. Someone must be phased in to fill John Terry’s shoes this year; and I would volunteer Neven Subotic for that. I am not totally sure that Van De Wiel would be the best option to replace Ferreira or Bosingwa, but I am sure that a replacement is needed. But a top winger is perhaps the most interesting consideration; I think most Chelsea fans are eager to see a player that can make a difference when the opposition parks the metaphoric bus across goal. Here we need a player with the vision and tricks to send defenders the wrong way, and the skill to lay on a perfect pass or attack alone. And here only one name springs to mind and that is Neymar. For all the concerns I and others have about him I still think he would prove to be an extraordinary weapon (He is a striker, winger, and central midfielder). Perhaps Di Matteo was watching him in Germany this week for similar reasons. If I had the money I would go for it.
Umm haven’t made the semi-finals since? The very next year we made the semi-finals and got screwed over by the Norwegian referee Overebo against Barcelona, where we would have gone through with ease if we had been given at least two of the obvious penalties..