Chelsea players faced a test against Norwich and most failed

It felt as though Frank Lampard drew a line in the sand for Chelsea against Norwich. If it was a test to return next season, most failed.

Chelsea built their empire on the back of ugly wins. But that is only one part of the story. Yes, Chelsea could go and grind out a 1-0 one week, but they were also quite capable of smashing an opponent 3-0 just a few days later. The current version of the club lacks that.

The win against Norwich in of itself is excellent. That is not the issue. The issue is that it came on the back of an utterly embarrassing loss against Sheffield United. Frank Lampard laid down the gauntlet, saying he expected a reaction. The lineup he selected was rotated, surely with an eye on Manchester United in the FA Cup, but it also felt as though it was one last chance for many players to earn a place next season. Almost to a man, they failed.

Lampard did his usual joke-but-no-seriously thing afterwards when he called the win “okay“. And while Chelsea had tons of “okay” wins in the last two decades, the context of them is important. This win came off that embarrassing Sheffield United loss. They faced a team already relegated that was clearly beyond caring at this point. The Blues had a great xG and an even better xGA. Yet, the game ended 1-0 and the scoreline and stats do not reflect how unbothered most players seemed by the events on the field.

The lineup had five changes after the Sheffield United loss with one eye on Manchester United and the other on which players want to return next season. Some, regardless of how they performed, were already locks for next season. Cesar Azpilicueta, Olivier Giroud, and Christian Pulisic are all guarantees for next season. The latter two performed well enough to earn their spot regardless. The captain did “okay” which was much better than some of his teammates.

The center backs and the keeper were untested against Norwich so it would be unfair to say they outright failed the test. Then again, they have had plenty of other opportunities. Kepa Arrizabalaga could come good yet, but that is increasingly looking like a risk not necessarily worth taking. Antonio Rudiger is a strange shadow of his former self as he has gone from hero to zero this season. Kurt Zouma is arguably Chelsea’s best center back, but ultimately he is simply good. Chelsea needs great. A partner for Zouma could bring that out of him, but the Blues lack anyone like that on the roster.

Things improve at the full back position. Azpilicueta was already safe regardless of Norwich, though he was not necessarily anything special. Marcos Alonso has surely earned his spot for next season, even if only as a deputy to a new left back. He was Chelsea’s best play maker against Norwich and easily a candidate for man of the match.

But there is an issue with Alonso being the play maker, mainly because of how it came about due to midfield deficiencies. Jorginho, after one of his worst performances in blue against Sheffield United, followed up with a complete lackadaisical display. He was easily marked out in the center and showed little to no care to get away from that. This forced Zouma and Rudiger to use the full backs as their outlet which did create overloads that saw Alonso get wide open. But that was an adaptation to an issue caused by Jorginho not really caring. Mentally, and perhaps physically, he looks to be gone for the summer already.

Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek can also share in some midfield blame with a dash of Willian for good measure. Kovacic and Jorginho on the pitch together is simply redundant. Kovacic was able to influence the match merely because Jorginho showed no care to. It will be impossible to ignore his excellent early season for looking towards next season, but like Azpilicueta, he was merely okay.

Loftus-Cheek and Willian became each other’s problem. Now, it is completely understandable that Loftus-Cheek is not at full fitness and beyond that, he does not know/trust what his body can currently do. He stayed very high in the midfield when Chelsea had possession, which forced Willian to come very deep in support. The Blues used that to further increase the overloads they were sending towards Alonso, but it was an adaption to an issue of their own making. Willian dropping deep killed several fast counters because he had to slow the ball down and figure out where the team was around him in more unfamiliar territory.

The Englishman will really be tested for next season’s squad in whatever will count as a preseason this year, but Willian’s time is done. Though he has been mostly excellent since the restart, the last two matches showed that offering him anything beyond two years would be foolish. The new transfers and targets will only further increase the wedge between what Chelsea wants and what Willian wants.

Giroud and Pulisic have already been absolved of the sins of Norwich, which leaves the substitutes of Reece James, Ross Barkley, Tammy Abraham, and Callum Hudson-Odoi. James is a shoo-in for next season on potential alone. Barkley will have to survive the numbers game of new midfielders coming in and going out but he has a decent chance of remaining. The latter two Englishmen need to make a statement.

In a game where nearly everyone else was, at best, going through the motions, Abraham and Hudson-Odoi needed to come on with fire in their bellies. They did not. They both are packed with potential and their performances this season and last cannot be forgotten, but they really needed to make some sort of statement late on against Norwich. Instead, they merely joined the lazy river the rest of the team was in and that is not good enough with new transfers coming and more targeted.

Overall, a win is a win and Chelsea did what they had to. But in the context of the return to play and the season as a whole, it was not good enough. Lampard said he learned a lot about his players after Sheffield United. He surely learned even more after Norwich as he has begun crossing off names for next seasons’ squad. It was a win, but the cost of it remains to be seen.