Chelsea have a week to rest, reassess and rebound
By Travis Tyler
After a putrid January and a humiliating start to February, Chelsea have a full week to rest, reassess and rebound for the remainder of the season.
The loss to Bournemouth was terrible. The loss to Watford was a perfect storm of calamity that saw Chelea thoroughly embarrassed.
The media and a vocal section of the fanbase have been screaming that Antonio Conte’s time at Chelsea is over. Despite sitting in fourth place and in two cup competitions, somehow the only solution is to sack the manager that galloped to the title not even a season ago.
For now, Conte is still the Chelsea manager. The club has its longest break between games since the November international break. They should use this time to rest, reassess, and rebound for the remainder of the season.
The squad is in desperate need of rest. Conte is an intense manager that lives by “practice as you play”. That combined with a match every three days has made rest impossible. Though he has attempted to rotate, most of the depth options have failed to cover themselves in glory.
The lack of rest and trustworthy depth is why Conte gave the squad three days off in the coming week. Though it may be strange to reward the players with time off after a humiliating loss, they clearly need it. The players need to step back and physically recharge as much as mentally.
Conte needs the time away from the players as well. Injuries have ravaged the squad and the task has weighed him down in the last month. Time off gives Conte a chance to return to the drawing board and reassess his tactics for the remainder of the season.
Small signs of this have been seen in recent matches. Particularly at the end of the Bournemouth and Watford matches, Conte had the squad revert to a back four. It had mixed success.
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Conte famously switched to a back three after losing 3-0 to Arsenal and used it at the end of that match. The back four seen in recent outings may be a sign that he is pushing the club towards it.
A return to back four is something that will need work. Against Bournemouth, the formation was undefined past the defense. And Watford used their man advantage to stretch Chelsea’s defense before cutting through the space created in the center.
But a back four defense could theoretically give Chelsea the fresh start they need for the rest of the season. The initially move to 3-4-3 was a breath of fresh air that saw the club play some of its best football in years in the midst of a then record matching 13 game winning streak.
Chelsea need a rebound like that more than ever under Conte. The club started January in fine position but the month cut Chelsea’s hold on top four to a single point. Top four is still a strong possibility but it is not the sure bet it once was.
When the players return, they must be ready to put the bad form behind them. The players back Conte and will support him in whatever way he decides to finish the season.
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This week could be vital to Chelsea’s future. The players, manager and staff all need the rest and the time to step back and reassess what has worked and what has not. Then they can return to the club on Friday and rebound from poor form to finish the season strong.