Chelsea Tactics and Transfers: The Blues succeed despite themselves

Chelsea displayed a very simple message against Newcastle. Despite all the worry around Stamford Bridge, the Blues are without a doubt a very good football side.

It’s easy to get caught in the maelstrom of worry surrounding Chelsea FC at all times. Being the resident drama club in the Premier League lends itself to certain ridiculous sentiments and feelings that would, of course, come with such platitudes. With remarkable efficiency, Chelsea supporters are often able to swing from hailing the side as genius to digging their graves in at West Brompton.

Perhaps one thing should be noted. Chelsea FC are still a very good football side.

Chelsea have not done well in this transfer window. All the names they are rumored to be chasing are uninspiring and not worth chirping up about.  While some clubs are rumored to be in the mix for the Neymar’s, Dybala’s and Sanchez’s of the world, Chelsea are chasing Andy Carroll and Edin Dzeko. This is by no means a comfortable place to be, but it is not exactly unexpected, either.

Chelsea are not on the same financial foothold as many of the other big clubs in the world. At this point in world football, Chelsea are a smaller club. Simply on name recognition, the Manchester clubs have the name of their city in the title. Chelsea bear the name of a small west London neighborhood, even though they actually reside in Fulham. This helps explain the pursuit of the Stamford Bridge redevelopment.

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Financial Fair Play handicapped clubs like Chelsea, those who were big on ambition and low on long-established economic architecture. It makes it hard for clubs to say “we accept the financial risks and we’re going for it anyway.” It is deeply unsporting in its sentiment. Financial Fair Play was a classic dark-wood-and-smoking-jacket type deal. The establishment favors such deals because such deals favor them.

So to all those Chelsea fans who are quick on the trigger (and I am often one of them): relax. Chelsea are a good side with a reasonable amount of talent. They are not Manchester City, but is anyone in Europe at the moment?

Chelsea are far bigger and wealthier than they were 20 years ago. They are not Yeovil or Torquay, obviously. Yet they still need more growth to really compete at the absolute top of the pyramid.

Chelsea fans should implore their club not to handicap themselves with useless and contradictory transfer business.  If Chelsea are going to dedicate themselves to young players and really developing a team, they should compete for the best.

For example, the loss of Pietro Pellegri from Genoa to AS Monaco is so infuriating.  A 16-year-old who is the youngest ever to appear in Serie A. At 6’4”, the sort of target man Chelsea are apparently searching for. He has all the tools to be someplace between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Didier Drogba. And yet Chelsea did not even make a move.

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Chelsea contradict themselves. They want to get younger while also getting older at the same time. They want to build for the future while removing the foundations in the first place. If Chelsea are not going to allow the club to have any players over age 30 on secure, respectable contracts then surely they should allow them in at a younger age.

Chelsea cannot hope to be like the Juventus of the past decade. They returned themselves to relevance with sheer guile, decisiveness, and dedication from board to field. The Blues simply have too many dynamics running about Stamford Bridge. To trust the manager or fire him? To have him coach or do something else? Youth or experience? Development or purchase?

Chelsea never go more than a year in a certain direction before changing course again and yet are still a decent football side!

Take pride in that. Chelsea manage to compete despite doing everything within their power to fail, while also being handicapped by the powers that be. That is quite an achievement. Roman Abramovich needs to be saved from his own employees who steer him in multiple directions. He can be a football man on occasion, but at times passes off the duty to other people. Abramovich, after all, signed Eden Hazard. He took a personal interest in that deal happening. Don’t forget that.

Being a Chelsea supporter is not always easy. Manchester City have a unified game plan and ruthless efficiency in achieving it. Manchester United have financial wealth and generational power Chelsea can only dream of. That Chelsea shoot themselves in the foot regularly and then still manage to run the Premier League’s country mile and finish the thing respectably is hilariously impressive.

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If you’re going to be angry, be angry. But be angry at the right people. Or just keep calm, and support Chelsea.