If I told you that we could cause havoc in next season’s Champions League, you’d probably be thinking that I was crazy. However, I have two reasons, why Chelsea could go further than many expect them to in next season’s Champions League.
The first reason is the lack of pressure on the shoulders of Chelsea. With the inability to sign players due to a transfer ban, nobody expects a team who are unable to make new signings to be much of a threat in such a big competition.
However, as Chelsea have shown in the past, their best results come when not much is expected of them. Most recently, Chelsea quite stunningly sealed the Premier League title, despite being a mass eight point behind after just six games under former boss Antonio Conte. Not much would’ve been expected from Chelsea then, as the club went on to have a record-breaking season. Chelsea became the first team to break the 30 win-barrier in the Premier League.
The second reason has made for quite stunning viewing in the Champions League in recent seasons, the failure of major European clubs.
Last season, three of the last four in the Champions League was Liverpool, Ajax, and Tottenham Hotspur. Liverpool had lost all three group games away from home, Ajax were drawn against Real Madrid and Juventus in consecutive rounds, and Tottenham Hotspur were five minutes from going out until an 85th-minute equaliser from Lucas Moura away to Barcelona in the final group game.
That is a surprising trio to find in the semi-finals of the competition and shows the weakness of major teams in Europe. Manchester City, Real Madrid and Juventus all lost to what many would call ‘inferior’ opposition, and there’s no reason Chelsea can’t draw inspiration to compete next season.
The Champions League has been quite unpredictable in recent seasons, and that suits Chelsea. We, as fans, have come to realise just how well our team performs in scenarios that don’t necessarily suit us. Chelsea could yet surprise many people in next season’s Champions League.
