Emerson has proven over the course of the season that he’s a crucial piece to Chelsea during a year with a crowded fixture list.
It seems like the summer window slammed shut just yesterday, and now it’s time to open up the circus again. The January transfer period begins in two weeks. Chelsea has a few fixtures to play beforehand, but then the focus shifts—at least partially—on the squad’s depth. Who is coming in and who is going? There aren’t many rumors swirling around at the moment, however, the whispers will continue to get louder as we creep closer to the new year.
One of the biggest additions this summer was left back Ben Chilwell. The English fullback swapped allegiances and traded in his blue shirt for, well, another blue one, in his transfer from Leicester City to Chelsea. He has been, is currently and will be Frank Lampard’s No. 1 man on the left side of the back four for years to come. Everybody knew the £50 million man would lead the left backs, but the depth behind him was never particularly clear. That narrative has now changed though as Emerson is the clear favorite to back-up ‘Chilly B’. Therefore, the Blues would be silly to let the Italian walk in the winter.
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When Lampard first took over his beloved Chelsea in July of 2018, Emerson was the first choice left back after a successful spell under Maurizio Sarri’s guidance. It didn’t take long for the Italian to fall out of favor defensive ability—or lack thereof—at the time frustrated the new manager. Lampard was stuck in an endless cycle of choosing between the Italian, Marcos Alonso and even Cesar Azpilicueta under the transfer ban. Chilwell represented the perfect solution to all of Chelsea’s fullback issues in the second season under the Englishman, but the club was unable to find suitors for either former Serie A standout behind him. Thus, both stayed and the back-up tryouts continued into the 2020/21 season.
At first it looked as if Alonso would play second fiddle in Lampard’s oddly-assembled orchestra. That was, at least, until a major fall out between the two saw the Spaniard’s minutes completely sliced. Enter Emerson; the Italian was given the back-up left back spot once again, this time amidst rumors of his exit. Suffice it to say, the 26-year-old has impressed this season.
Aside from a costly error against Spurs in the dying moments of a Carabao Cup tie, Emerson has been nearly flawless. He’s done everything asked of him and then some—even slotting in on the left and right wings against Barnsley. The Italian has been a manager’s dream. Why does all of this matter though? As the winter window approaches at full tilt, questions about Emerson’s future are continuing to arise.
Nothing remains more clear than the fact Emerson should stay though. Although he will undoubtedly go for more than Alonso on the open market and his aspirations may include moving elsewhere sooner rather than later, Chelsea needs its No. 33.
It’s a long season and as much as we like to think of these athletes as finely-tuned machines, they’re human beings like the rest of us. They get tired, they get injured, they play poorly or sometimes they just need a mental break—and that’s OK. However, what wouldn’t be all right is if Chilwell needed to come off and the Blues had no suitable replacement to turn to.
Lampard’s trotted out his teams in units this season. The starting squad consists of a back four including Reece James, Kurt Zouma, Thiago Silva and Chilwell; whereas the back-up defense is Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Emerson. Many want to point to Azpilicueta’s ability to play left back, as well, but that’d take away from James’ time on the bench.
This season’s schedule is relentless and Chelsea needs to be two-deep at every position on the pitch. Alonso and Lampard’s relationship seems beyond repair at this point and if only for that reason, Emerson needs to stick around. Another reason for his extended stay is the fact that he’s played quite well this year. Sure, it’s a small sample size (seven appearances), but the left back looks in form almost every time he gets a run out. The Blues have conceded just two goals (at Spurs; vs. Krasnodar) in that period, one of which being 100 percent his fault and the other with the left back not even in the vicinity of the error. It’s also worth noting that his mistake against Tottenham was in the second game of the season, meaning he’s put in five solid shifts since.
Emerson is displaying two traits absent in prior campaigns: consistency and reliability. He’s no threat to Chilwell’s job, but it’s important to keep him around until the season’s over and the Blues can find a suitable substitute. Emerson’s stout showings prove that although he’s not a superstar in the starting XI, he’s still a vital cog in the Chelsea machine.