Chelsea’s first season under Enzo Maresca has been a roller coaster. There have been great highs and catastrophic lows. But there is one thing he has inherited that may not be his fault but is a symptom of the Boehly era. That is the Blues' inability to beat the other five teams in the “big six” of the Premier League. Those teams include Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester United.
In CFC’s last 21 games against Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal their record is 0-7-14, which is jarring, to say the least. That is simply pathetic to put it lightly. It’s obvious that in a majority of these games, Chelsea was not the favorite to win these matches against teams that are superior to them. However, it’s saying something that they were unable to steal a win in any of these 21 games.
Even teams that are not nearly as talented as the Blues have managed to find ways to beat the three teams listed above. Man City has lost to Brighton, Tottenham, and Bournemouth, three teams behind Chelsea in the table. Especially when you consider that City have had a rough year where they won’t win the EPL title for the first time since 2020.
This year against Chelsea they won both games with relative ease. The Blues record against Arsenal is even worse, they haven’t beaten the Gunners at home since August 2018. When they played against Arsenal this season in their first match Stamford Bridge they put up a noble fight getting a point in a 1-1 draw.
But their most recent match against Arsenal at The Emirates on March 16th was a 1-0 defeat that felt more like a blowout because of how weak Chelsea’s attack was. The Blues didn’t have a single touch of the ball in the attacking half for the first 30 minutes.
They managed one shot on goal in the first half and would have only two the entire game. The last time CFC won at the Emirates was 2021, which is the same year when their last wins against Liverpool and Manchester City occurred.
That year the Blues beat City three times, capped off by a win in the Champions League Final in Porto, which can be recognized as Chelsea’s last great moment in recent years. Even against Manchester United who are a shell of the once great club they used to be is a team Chelsea struggle to beat. Their record in their last ten against the Red Devils is 1-6-3, that one win came last year when Cole Palmer got lucky with a miraculous deflection that gave the Blues a 4-3 win in the 100th minute.
Thank god for Spurs who Chelsea has always seemingly gotten the better of. Tottenham has always been considered “little brother” by the Blues and their fans who relish beating Tottenham every chance they get. Arguably the best win of the season for Chelsea came against Spurs. On December 8th, 2024, Tottenham took an early 2-0 lead at home but allowed the Blues to come back and win 4-3. In 71 matches Spurs have only beaten Chelsea ten times, and have only won at Stamford Bridge twice in 36 games.
The Blues have had some impressive wins this season like a 2-1 win over Newcastle United in October at Stamford Bridge and a 3-0 win over Aston Villa in December at home. However, beating teams that are on par with them or a level below is the expectation, not the exception.
Of those “Big 6” teams listed earlier, Chelsea have only two games left against them, against Liverpool and Manchester United. A win against Liverpool would be a massive accomplishment, a win against this 13th-place Man U team should be expected.
If Chelsea wants to return to being a title contender not just in the EPL but in Europe, they need to start beating the best teams. Next season that needs to be at the top of the priority list when the season starts. For the rest of this season two things must happen, win the UEFA Conference League, and find a way to qualify for the Champions League.