Written by 
Samuel – November 14, 2024
Chelsea are off to a decent start in the 2024/25 season under new manager Enzo Maresca, considering their poor season last year.
Enzo Maresca appears to be outperforming expectations by returning the Blues to winning ways while also playing a phenomenal attacking football, which was missing in Chelsea previous season.
Chelsea, under Maresca are currently ranked third in the League table heading into the international break, a feat that has eluded them in the Premier League for two successive seasons.
However, despite their impressive start to the season, they have failed to win a League match against the top teams in four clashes, earning only two points out of a potential twelve.
Chelsea suffered a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City and also lost to Liverpool at Anfield, with two draws against Arsenal and Manchester United.
The Blues’ inability to secure maximum points against top teams have raised questions about their competitiveness for high-stakes games and their top four prospects, which we will examine in three sub-headings.
Unpacking Chelsea’s Struggles Against Top Teams
The Blues’ problems against the League’s heavyweight emanate from their inability to create enough chances, as well as their failure to capitalize on the few opportunities that do arise.
Enzo Maresca’s tactics rely on open space in the opposing half, which playmaker Cole Palmer is expected to exploit with his line-breaking passes and ability to find runners.
This technique has been thwarted by big teams because they have the skill of players to close off pockets of spaces and also man mark Cole Palmer and their talisman Nicolas Jackson, reducing his ability to run between defenders.
Moving on, Enzo Fernandez decline in form has resulted in his removal from the starting eleven in favor of Romeo Lavia, who is not as skilled in creating chances like the Argentine.
This has forced Enzo Maresca to make a tactical change, with Cole Palmer playing deeper in the Left attacking midfield position, limiting his offensive prowess, and Malo Gusto playing in the inverted midfield role, where he lacks goal scoring and chance creation abilities.
These issues have hampered Chelsea’s creative techniques against big teams, as they are unable to penetrate the opponent’s defense successively, leaving them vulnerable to conceding and unable to respond with a goal.
Turning it Around
Chelsea has a well-balanced squad with a lot of talents and the quality to be at the top of the table, but Enzo Maresca needs to make significant changes to make the Blues more effective as the season unfolds.
Maresca’s justification for dropping Enzo Fernandez is to create more defensive balance in the midfield but this appears to have had the opposite effect, as the Blues are now less productive offensively, reducing their predicted chance creation ratio per game.
However, to offer the necessary defensive cover in the midfield, Marc Cucurella can be deployed in the inverted role, which is one of his finest positions to provide defensive support for Enzo Fernandez, allowing for better transition in play and enabling Cole Palmer to be more impactful offensively.
In addition, Chelsea requires an experienced defender in the back line to provide more leadership for Levi Colwill and Wesley Fofana, who are prone to defensive blunders and less effective at defending set piece.
Can Chelsea Crack the Top Four?
After two seasons since Chelsea’s acquisition by the Todd Boehly consortium, the Blues have failed to finish in the top four in the League, and the bare minimum that will be expected under Enzo Maresca is a return to the Champions League.
Chelsea’s decent start to the new season has them third in the log with nineteen points after eleven games, a significant improvement on last season’s tenth-place standing under Mauricio Pochettino at this stage.
Chelsea boasts one of the amazing squad depths with exceptional attacking talents, as they have the ability to replace an entire starting eleven with another set of quality players, which is vital for any side contending for a top spot.
Chelsea strongest performances thus far have come against lower-quality clubs, with obvious issues against low-block teams that must be addressed to avoid further calamity.
Also, they must begin to put up valiant performances against top teams, claiming the spoils, as this will be critical to their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League.
Chelsea’s top quality and squad depth put them in pole position to finish in a strong place at the conclusion of the season, but given how competitive the Premier League is, we should expect a thrilling challenge as the season progresses.
The Verdict
The season is very much alive, and while Chelsea will face uphill battles against Arsenal, Red hot Liverpool, reigning champions Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United, we believe they are well suited for the challenge ahead.