Chelsea FC, champions of England 2014/2015 have begun their title defence on a poor run of form. The ‘Blues’ have won only three of their opening ten league fixtures this season. At the same stage last season they were undefeated in their opening ten matches (winning eight of the ten and drawing the other two). Chelsea has been rocky in defence since the start of this season conceding nineteen goals in their opening ten league matches, that’s not something that you normally see from a Jose Mourinho managed team. Chelsea’s poor performance this season can be attributed to a number of factors including: lack of quality signings, lack of squad rotation and poor tactical decisions by the manager.
In the summer of 2014 Jose Mourinho made two decisive signings, the acquisition of Spanish duo Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa. The two were brilliant for the Chelsea in their debut season which saw them helping the team to their first EPL title since the 2009/2010 season. At the end of last season the team needed to strengthen the defensive midfield and the centre of defence. Jose Mourinho however seemed confident in his current squad as he waited until the end of the transfer window to make few mediocre signings. Chelsea was not able to acquire primary defensive target John Stones as Everton held on to their young starlet; they however ended up with Papy Djilobodji, who is yet to make his first appearance for the club.
The teams in the league that have managed to stay competitive this season are the teams that have made at least one key signing, teams such as Manchester City (Raheem Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne etc.), Crystal Palace(Yohan Cabaye), Manchester United(Bastian Schweinsteiger, Anthony Martial etc. ) and West Ham(Dimitri Payet).
Chelsea’s poor start can also be attributed to the fact that the squad lacks rotation in key areas such as defence. Most of the goals that have been scored against Chelsea this season have come from either the right or left hand side of the field. Branislav Ivanovic and Cesar Azpilicueta both players who play in those positions have been at fault for more than 50% of the goals that the team has conceded so far this season. Jose Mourinho’s inability to drop players when they are not performing has cost the team a great deal. The four players who have started in the majority of games for Chelsea this season and have been arguably the most disappointing are Fabregas, Hazard, Ivanovic and Azpilicueta. Although Mourinho managed to win the title last season while only utilizing few players but this tactic has not been successful this season. 
In addition to the lack of quality signings and squad rotation, Chelsea’s performance this season has also been negatively affected by Mourinho’s poor tactical decisions. Pre, post and in game tactics have not yielded much success for Chelsea this season. In years gone by Jose Mourinho had the tactics to defeat opponents mentally, the case with Arsenal is a prime example of this. An Arsene Wenger managed team has never defeated a Jose Mourinho Managed team in the EPL. ‘The Special One’ seems to be losing it. The teams in the league have figured out some of the tricks that Jose normally implements and that has hurt Chelsea this season. The quality of players at Chelsea has not diminished over the past year however some of Jose Mourinho’s tactics have become obsolete. Mourinho has lost his defensive identity. The manager needs to implement new tactics to get the team performing up to standard once more.
Given the start that Chelsea has made, the best thing that can happen for them now is a Champions League spot and a solid defence of their league cup title. Again, the lack of signing and squad rotation along with poor tactical decisions at Chelsea this season has been to the detriment of the club.
48-NINETY SPORTS 