How much longer can Chelsea and Michy Batshuayi go on like this?

Michy Batshuayi is Chelsea’s conundrum. His stats show a high-scoring striker with few minutes. But on the field he does not look good at all. He is often static and labors heavily. And yet he can turn up for a goal when it is least expected.

Michy Batshuayi reminds of several strikers in Chelsea’s recent history. He can score in a clutch moment like Didier Drogba. He can look completely psyched out by the occasion like Fernando Torres. He can have a terrible match yet still score like Diego Costa. He is excellent off the bench like Alvaro Morata was at Juventus and Real Madrid. But is it enough?

Batshuayi is regularly a solid choice to come off the bench because he scores often when against tired defenses. His style is also different than other strikers Chelsea has had, causing confusion amongst opposition defenses.

But when played from the start, Michy Batshuayi looks like a fish out of water. He has virtually no movement and his touch lets him down often. The excuse last year was he was adjusting to the Premier League and Antonio Conte’s system. But now he has been here for over a year and still has not set off on a run in competitive matches.

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And that is where things start to turn against Batshuayi. He should not be struggling against a Crystal Palace team in this form. At this point in his Chelsea career, there simply should be no question of whether he is a good backup if the main striker is injured.

With the 3-5-2 getting more time with this Chelsea squad, even Eden Hazard seems ahead of Batshuayi in the depth chart. So where does that leave Batshuayi?

In short, nowhere good. No matter how often he scores against minnows or from the bench, he simply does not inspire confidence when he is announced as a starter. He is a good player and has his moments, but his style does not mesh well with the system by any means.

And it does not help that Conte clearly does not trust him as a result. When Alvaro Morata was injured against Manchester City, Conte opted for Willian. He preferred having no true striker instead of the risk with Batshuayi. And against Crystal Palace, when Willian was probably one of the worst on the pitch, Conte pulled Batshuayi first due to his being absent most of the match. His anger was clear as he screamed seeing the official’s board and then snubbed everyone on his way to the bench.

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It is almost impossible to see Batshuayi being a Chelsea player next season. He is too far along in his Chelsea career to have these types of questions surrounding him. The manager does not trust him. The fans like him, but as a person more than a player. Some fans are more willing to recall Tammy Abraham from loan than to persist with Batshuayi.

And a player Batshuayi’s age cannot waste time. One season without playing often can be a blip. Two can be a major setback. Three would mean his career with top teams is more or less over.

Transfer rumors for a new striker will pop up and gain steam before the next international break and grow until the window opens. It would be more surprising to see Batshuayi leave in January, but all it would take would be a Belgian striker finding form and putting a World Cup spot in jeopardy.

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Michy Batshuayi could bounce back and finally kick off at Chelsea. But at the moment it does not seem likely. His time to turn things around is running low, and it would be more likely to see him anywhere else next season than at Chelsea.