Following the 2-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal, Chelsea are now winless in 11 games against their London rivals across all competitions. That is unacceptable. And in many ways, the two teams have switched places.
In the past, Chelsea were the solid team with defensive stability that Arsenal could not find a way past. The days of Didier Drogba and company must still haunt their supporters.
Unfortunately, these days, Arsenal seem like the more professional of the two sides. On the other hand, whenever the going gets tough, Chelsea’s young squad seems to fold under the pressure.
Their disciplinary issues cannot simply be overlooked any longer. Chelsea were already trailing 2-1 when Pedro Neto was sent off. The Portuguese winger was shown a second yellow in the 70th minute, four minutes after Arsenal had restored their lead. It killed off any chances the Blues might have had of mounting a comeback.
Rosenior vows to look into Chelsea’s disciplinary issue
In the past, Chelsea’s disciplinary issues have often been played down. Fortunately, it looks like Rosenior is not taking the matter lightly. According to South London, the manager said about the matter: “It is not about the punishment, it is about finding the reason why.
“I don’t think Pedro Neto today, or Wes Fofana last week (against Burnley), would have been in that moment thinking about, ‘if I get a red card I’m going to get fined’.
“It is a focus and a concentration thing that we need to get right. I know the record of the club is not great from the start of the season and now it is getting bad.
“We had ten games when I was in where we didn’t have these issues but we have had two in two games, so it is something deep-lying that we need to get to the bottom of.
“The thing is for me if we get to the bottom of those two main things we can be a very, very good team and we can achieve all the things we want to achieve.”
The Arsenal game was the ninth occasion this season across all competitions that Chelsea finished the match a man short. In the Premier League, the record for most red cards picked up by a team in a single campaign stands at nine. The Blues are already on seven. And considering how things are going, it would be no surprise if they match or even beat the figure.
Chelsea’s squad building might be real reason behind disciplinary issues
Only seven teams picked up eight or more red cards in a single Premier League season. Three of them were relegated, and none finished above ninth in the table. So, it is safe to say that Rosenior needs to find an answer to Chelsea’s disciplinary issue as quickly as possible.
One could argue that Chelsea’s transfer model might be the real reason behind these issues. The club’s recruitment team has completely overlooked experience and proven quality in recent years. They have gone all in on wonderkids.
Unfortunately, a squad full of youngsters does not seem to be the right idea when it comes to succeeding. Over the last four years, Chelsea have been inconsistent, struggled against big teams and lack the discipline needed to succeed at the top level.
The hope clearly was that the wonderkids would develop into world-class players. That has rarely happened. Despite spending north of a billion pounds on the squad, Chelsea have taken several steps back as a club. The Blues can no longer be considered a powerhouse in either the Premier League or the Champions League.
