Chelsea’s biggest issue now is setting the tempo appropriately

Chelsea has added a keeper, but they are still missing the player that can set the tempo of the game appropriately to the opponent.

It was extremely evident that the Blues needed a keeper this window. Kepa Arrizabalaga has failed to live up to half of his transfer fee and Willy Caballero was forced to have a career renaissance when he should be planning his retirement. Edouard Mendy has come in to challenge both for a starting spot. Winner probably gets to face a brand new, world class keeper next season.

Chelsea’s business in the transfer window shouldn’t be done yet though, despite having already brought in another five first teamers (if not starters) prior to Mendy. Chelsea still needs a defensive midfielder to plug the final hole in the squad. The Barnsley match showed why that is important but also another skill set that may be required of the final(?) player brought in during this transfer window.

The Blues need someone who can sit in behind the midfield but ahead of the defense to sweep up danger or force it wide. Barnsley showed a trend of recent matches that the player there will also need to control the tempo. Right now, the Blues haphazardly swing back and forth between extremes without a player that knows what the team needs.

The Barnsley match started with the Blues playing very conservatively. Thiago Silva was getting touch after touch on the ball as the slightest bit of pressure caused Chelsea to pass back to the defense. Barnsely’s press played a part as well as simply starting with control, but it slowed the play down immensely. The Blues’ only outlet was the long ball over the top or through to Callum Hudson-Odoi or Tammy Abraham.

After the first goal, that went away as Chelsea tried to play the ball up quickly. It was a bit too quick though as Barnsley began to find space in behind over and over. Without Willy Caballero standing on his head, things could have been much different.

Were there a player that knew what the game needed, Chelsea would not have swung between these extremes or lost control as a result. It has happened in other matches already this season. Against Brighton and Liverpool, Chelsea tried to play forward quickly without really considering if that is what the game needed. Last season, the opposite happened a lot as the Blues would get stuck in a passing circle as the opponent sat off.

The last time Chelsea truly had a tempo setting player was in Cesc Fabregas. He knew exactly when the team needed to slow things down and play it short but also when to lump it forward and get things moving again. Nemanja Matic picked up some of these traits too, though not to the extreme of Fabregas.

The defensive midfielder needs to shield the defense, of course, but it is also a good opportunity for the Blues to bring in that tempo setter and kill two birds with one stone. N’Golo Kante can defend, but he would be uncomfortable trying to play the ball direct. Mateo Kovacic is far too gung ho to slow the game down, as seen multiple times against Barnsley when he received the ball and dribbled straight through. Jorginho slows the play down too much with his constant passes back to the player who sent it to him or the way he is facing.

Thiago Silva, in a way, was able to control some of the tempo. He would often sit on the ball long enough to pull a player in before sending it forward. The issue with a centerback setting tempo, however, is that they are not well positioned to do so constantly. Furthermore, they really only ever have the forward pass to make.

Declan Rice seems to be Chelsea’s answer to this, but it is extremely hard to look at a player at West Ham right now and judge them on tempo setting. West Ham simply isn’t in a position to dictate the game like that against an opponent. He can surely do the sweeping part needed, but the jury is out on the tempo Chelsea also needs.

Regardless, there are less than two weeks left in the window. It would be a big ask to start from square one and get someone over the line by deadline day, especially Rice. Chelsea needs a sweeping, tempo setting defensive mid to get within touching distance of Liverpool and Manchester City, but unless things develop quickly they may have to wait.