From Bad to Weird

Chelsea 3 - 3 Everton.

Though it has to be noted that this was a game that had Chelsea down 2-0 at home, and was drawn by a horrific refereeing non-decision on John Terry’s offside goal. But deserved spoils shared between the two clubs that put on all sorts of entertainment - at least in the second half.

The first half was virtually an extended warm up, but the second half exploded and the momentum was thrown back and forth. When Chelsea let in the second goal the old stirrings of negativity returned, echoing the sentiment that maybe the players are to blame. They weren’t exactly vindicated with the comeback, although they did remind me of the Chelsea of last season with the fight. The best Chelsea was the angry Chelsea last year, and they used their temper productively today.

The weird limbo we find this club mired in continues however, despite the change of manager. There is some leniency I’m giving Guus Hiddink towards his handling of the squad, but it was ironically humorous when we conceded the second goal literally moments after replacing Nemanja Matic with Oscar. That gave me a chuckle through grit teeth.

This Everton side are one of the best to watch because every player on the pitch poses a threat - and it doesn’t require them to be a goal down or two to show it. And in their ability more light has been shed on Chelsea’s deficiencies. Leighton Baines ran the left wing and Ross Barkley dominated the middle with the Blues looking so imbalanced and so very lucky on occasion.

The philosophy seems clear to be characteristic of this particular squad of players irrelevant of manager - there are either attackers or defenders and nothing in between.

To attack with four or five players is a good system; it allows for more freedom of play, more space to exploit, and fewer chances for miscommunication between players familiar with one another. Defending with four or five, however is a disaster waiting to happen.

When you have 50% of the team under six feet tall, and weaker than the average Premier League player, total defensive teamplay will always be a doomed endeavor. Fabregas, Willian, Hazard, and Oscar aren’t exactly “hard,” and Pedro would be absolutely useless in this league if it weren’t for the referee’s whistle halting the inevitable ragdolling of the Spaniard. The little man’s struggle to fit in the Premier League looks like it won’t be abated anytime soon unless he begins training for the Mr. Universe contest.

And so another point has been proven in that this is the most demanding league, and is shifting towards a model of requiring players to be strong first, and technically gifted second. Whether that’s good or not is not up to me to decide, but it does feel unfair.

Football is supposed to be an open game accessible to everyone. If Lionel Messi played here regularly I think we would have a candidate for record number of fouls suffered - and just consider how many fouls he’d endure that weren’t called by the bloodthirsty referees in England?

The encouraged physical play by the managers and officials has set Chelsea at a disadvantage. From back line to front, you see the dwindling nature of physical presence, and if this club are to thrive again there has to be a massive rebuild.

It’s especially difficult to make the sacrifices necessary when you look at the toy box of Chelsea, and how difficult it would be to throw them out. Hazard, Pedro, Willian, Oscar, Diego Costa - I don’t want to see any of them go, but I know they can’t stay if things don’t improve.

It’s easily Chelsea’s worst season in decades, and it’s essentially a throwaway because it’s a struggle to overcome issues brought on in the beginning. There has to be a long-term view taken sooner rather than later, but the unfortunate truth is that the short term circumstances are going to prevent that from happening.