Chelsea must find ways to win in the Premier League following UCL matches

Chelsea have struggled this season in the Premier League, with the additional workload of the Champions League standing out as a source of stress and fatigue.

Last campaign, Chelsea were able to capture the Premier League title without the distraction of midweek football. Antonio Conte had much longer to prepare his players for each game, and the players were much fresher, with no European excursions. There was no hierarchy of games, with each Premier League match attracting the squad’s full attention.

Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to West Ham means that Chelsea are now firmly out of the title race, a fact even Conte admitted in the aftermath. The result also continues a worrying trend this season: the Blues faltering in games directly after Champions League ties. Chelsea have now won two, drawn two and lost two of the six matches following a European game. In comparison, Chelsea have won eight and lost just two of the 10 other Premier League games this season.

Whether this is fatigue or an inability to motivate themselves adequately is unclear, but Antonio Conte needs to address this trend before the knockout stages of the Champions League get underway later on in the season. Chelsea’s round of 16 games against Barcelona will come either side of away matches against the two Manchester clubs in the Premier League. This fortnight in February could decide Chelsea’s season, making it vital they improve their ability to play multiple times a week before then.

The Blues have been a bit unlucky in the fixtures they have had to endure. They played Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool, all after a Champions League game.

Most worryingly is the way Chelsea started these games slowly. They were behind against Watford before turning it around in the second half, and trailed Liverpool until a late Willian goal. This was the same against West Ham when Marko Arnautovic took advantage of a snoozing defence in the sixth minute.

Gary Cahill spoke about Chelsea’s slow start in Saturday’s derby:

"I thought we were miles off it from the start of the game. We allowed them to get the early goal which was a poor goal to concede on our behalf because we’ve been tight at the back of late. We tried to get back into the game but that laboured start carried on throughout the game. We just didn’t play our stuff. They got the ball and then sat behind the ball, trying to hit us on the break. – Sky Sports"

Chelsea have rotated more this season, with 16 players playing at least 500 minutes in the league. In the whole of last season, only 14 managed that many. Only Thibaut Courtois has played every minute in the league, so the squad should be relatively fresh.

However, on Saturday that was not enough, with Eden Hazard looking a bit jaded. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but either or both Willian and Pedro should have started. Fans may claim that neither have looked impressive recently, but they need more game time to get fresh and match fit ahead of a gruelling Christmas period.

Alvaro Morata also struggled against the Hammers, whilst Michy Batshuayi remained on the bench throughout. The Belgian may be coming back from injury, but he did play for the U23’s in midweek and surely would have been ready to start the game at the London Stadium.

Next: Andreas Christensen is Chelsea's new defensive general

With depth in almost every position, Chelsea have no excuse to not make changes on a game-by-game basis. Antonio Conte must be brave with his substitutions as well. If a player is looking tired midway through a game – regardless of who it is – they should be replaced with fresh legs.