Chelsea: Blues’ lifeless attack struggles in frustrating loss to Wolves

Frustration continues as Chelsea tosses away three points in a game against a far from full strength Wolves side, marks second straight loss.

Chelsea tossed three points out the window with a terrible performance, low-lighted by Timo Werner and almost everyone else. The Blues threw away the chance to finally build some momentum in the Premier League, albeit against another struggling team. Wolves hadn’t scored in hundreds of minutes in the league, but the Blues proved to be just the remedy they needed. In the end, Wolves finished off a Chelsea squad that didn’t deserve to win at all.

It’s hard to even begin to outline the level or depth of poor play that typified the Blues’ performance against Wolves. To put it bluntly, they stunk. Only three or four starting players could be singled out for accolades in the Chelsea side. Olivier Giroud opened the scoring in the 49′ and while the club was not playing well, a lead is a lead. Wolves climbed back into the fray in the 66′ before the Blues blew the point after 5′ in stoppage time. All-in-all it was a dismal performance and this club is lifeless in the attack—as are all individuals playing up front.

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Absent Giroud, Kurt Zouma—whose almost stratospheric jump header hit the woodwork and cost the Blues a chance to blow the game wide open—and Ben Chilwell were only other players who really did anything in the attack. Further, Mateo Kovacic, who was a late substitute, had a bit to offer too. He was the only player in the entire squad who seemed to realize that to get to an opponent’s goal, the most direct way is to burst forward. Far too often, Chelsea was back to its side and back passing old ways, covering yards of territory with the ball and going nowhere.

Werner is clearly in a grand funk and it’s not getting any better. Frankly, it’s beginning to be reminiscent of the torrid time Fernando Torres had for the Blues after coming over from Liverpool. Not only is Werner not scoring, which he did in barrels-full last season, but he’s not doing much of anything. The German had a great passing percentage, though. Unfortunately, they were passes to players wearing orange shirts, not blue. It was simply atrocious and he clearly lacks confidence. He’s not the only one either. No one in attack had even a sniff of the goal except Zouma, and he’s not even a forward.

Even Edouard Mendy is now seemingly coming back to Earth and the clean sheets have disappeared. One thing is clear, the ball is not bouncing Chelsea’s way, and when luck isn’t with you, you’d better make your own. The really perplexing and agonizing aspect of all this for Blues fans is that this team is loaded with attacking talent. Yet, for some reason(s), things are not happening.

So here’s another loss to a struggling team, Chelsea still hasn’t beaten any top-half teams this season. That’s all changed now, so don’t bet the farm on the Blues getting by Atletico Madrid in their next Champions league foray either. It will be a miracle if they go through, if they keep playing as they are now, in 2021.

This team is headed in a frighteningly downward spiral. For a team with so much offensive firepower to not be able to score multiple goals, especially against the second-rate opponents, thus far in the Premier League season is quite a troubling—if not downright alarming—indicator.

If this trend continues, forget about the Champions League next season. It will be a major achievement just to get to the Europa League. It better get fixed fast, or this team will be spiraling toward the bottom half of the table and the absolutely unacceptable irrelevance.