Chelsea FC fell to Fiorentina in the last of their pre-season friendlies on Wednesday evening. In front of packed Stamford Bridge crowd of over 41,000, the Blues put in yet another sloppy performance to increase concerns about the club’s form ahead of their Premier League season opener on Saturday at home to Swansea City. In what will further these worries, Jose Mourinho refused to say whether Diego Costa will be fit to play.
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The boss spoke to the media in his post-match press conference, and was inevitably questioned about Costa’s failure to make the matchday squad, having been left out of the FA Community Shield squad on Sunday. The striker had well-documented hamstring issues throughout last season, and hobbled off during Chelsea’s last match of their United States tour with the same problem. Mourinho refused to confirm his availability for Saturday, although he gave reasons:
"I won’t risk my reputation again. You asked me before last weekend and I told you he was ready to play. He wasn’t. I don’t know. I don’t risk saying yes, and I don’t risk saying no. – Jose Mourinho via chelseafc.com"
Unfortunately, despite Mourinho trying to justify his coyness, the majority of Chelsea fans will see through this and take it as a confirmation that Costa most likely won’t be playing a full, if any, part on Saturday.
With this, the even more concerning matter is the inability of Loic Remy and Radamel Falcao to show their worth in the last two pre-season fixtures. The former was not onside at any point against Arsenal last Sunday, and failed to create many opportunities against Fiorentina. In fact, his only chance was the best one of the match for the Blues, but he skewed his shot well wide.
Falcao, meanwhile, has been faultless in terms of his workrate over pre-season, but last night saw that fall below par too. He did not display any incisive inclinations and, believe it or not, seemed fatigued. The season hasn’t even started yet!
Mourinho, though, defended the striker and cited his Copa America involvement as a reason for his mediocre performance:
"He is very good for the situation – Copa America, holidays, one week of training sessions, not the three weeks the others have had, and minutes in different matches. Today I took him off in his best moment of the game. I am very happy with his evolution"
Falcao was indeed viewed as a worthwhile punt by most Chelsea fans, and it is unfair to write him off before the competitive football even begins. Having said that, Costa’s injury issues mean that there can be no time for growing into the season from either the Colombian or Remy. Both need to hit the ground running or the Blues could be in serious trouble.
However, the boss remains confident in his squad, and is appreciative of the competitiveness the Italians brought to this last run-out:
"We got competitive minutes against a good team who played for a result and gave us a very good training session. It’s a long season with 10 months of competition, and I’m happy with where we are."
He says that he’s happy, but I would think that he may be one of the few people associated with Chelsea FC that are.
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