Enzo Maresca isn’t underneath instant strain to ship Chelsea’s first Premier League title in virtually a decade, however the expectation at Stamford Bridge is for final season’s fourth-place end to be bettered and to chop the hole on the high.
Chelsea in the summertime switch window, however Maresca’s facet should reply three essential questions if they’re to offer a much bigger menace to the title challengers and enhance on final season.
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Right here, earlier than Friday evening’s journey to West Ham United, Telegraph Sport examines the three huge questions going through Chelsea.
Can Chelsea rating sufficient objectives?
Maresca has acknowledged that objectives scored and his group’s away kind are their largest areas for progress.
“For positive, if you wish to be nearer to them [the clubs above], it’s important to enhance these two areas when it comes to objectives scored and victories away, little doubt,” Maresca stated.
Since Leicester Metropolis received the Premier League in 2015-16, no group have clinched the title by scoring fewer than 83 objectives – 19 greater than Chelsea managed final season.
Certainly, since Chelsea final received the title in 2017, they’ve been outscored by most of their rivals: Manchester Metropolis, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.
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Chelsea scored 22 fewer objectives than Liverpool final season, so their document must enhance for them to shut the hole on the high. Maresca’s group had a shot conversion charge of simply 10.8 per cent final season, which was comfortably the bottom of the highest six.
An didn’t do a lot to ease considerations over Chelsea’s output. A lot will journey on how new signings Joao Pedro, Liam Delap, Jamie Gittens and Estevao carry out, together with Xavi Simons and Alejandro Garnacho, in the event that they be part of earlier than the switch window shuts.
Two of Chelsea’s high three scorers final season – Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson – are not a part of Maresca’s plans. Madueke has left, whereas and has been coaching with the mortgage group.
Between them, Madueke and Jackson scored 17 league objectives final season. High scorer Cole Palmer registered 15 objectives, though he has not scored from open play within the league since January.
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Pedro scored three objectives for Chelsea within the Membership World Cup, however the Brazilian by no means scored greater than 10 objectives within the Premier League for Brighton whereas Delap netted 12 in his first top-flight season with Ipswich City. Gittens, Estevao and Simons have by no means performed within the Premier League, whereas Garnacho’s finest effort for United in a season is seven.
Joao Pedro has not been a prolific Premier League goalscorer – PA/Bradley Collyer
“I don’t know if we now have extra capability [to score], however, for positive, if we modified it’s as a result of we expect that by altering we might enhance our attacking part, even when I used to be fairly pleased when it comes to the objectives we scored,” Maresca stated. “If we’re capable of create the identical quantity [of chances] that we created final yr, then I’m fairly pleased.”
Can Chelsea remedy away-day blues?
Regardless of clinching Champions League qualification at Nottingham Forest’s Metropolis Floor on the ultimate day of final season, Chelsea had been too reliant on their dwelling kind.
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Maresca’s group journey to West Ham for his or her first away recreation of this marketing campaign and three factors would present they’ll compete outdoors Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea had been the seventh-best facet away from dwelling within the Premier League final season, behind Liverpool, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Manchester Metropolis, Brighton and Bournemouth, and misplaced a complete of seven video games on the highway.
Defeats at Ipswich City, Brighton and Aston Villa might have been extraordinarily damaging to Chelsea and they’ll have to be higher on the highway this time period if they’re to complete increased than fourth.
In all of these three defeats, Chelsea misplaced their self-discipline when issues went towards them, however classes ought to have been learnt. Maresca’s group should show they’ll cope higher with adversity.
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“In all probability after one yr collectively, we’re going to be higher even on this space,” Maresca stated. “There have been video games away that we deserved extra and we didn’t win. And the video games we in all probability didn’t need to win, in all probability the one one was Bournemouth away. Hopefully, this season we may be extra medical once we have to be.”
Will fatigue and health meet up with them?
Chelsea banked within the area of £85m for , however the price of that when it comes to their Premier League season is but to be decided.
Central defender Levi Colwill has already been dominated out for almost all of the marketing campaign after struggling an anterior cruciate ligament harm in Chelsea’s mini two-week pre-season following the Membership World Cup.
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Maresca confirmed that Tosin Adarabioyo is match once more earlier than the journey to West Ham, whereas Wesley Fofana is able to begin enjoying following harm. The Italian additionally identified that Chelsea performed two months of final season with no recognised striker due to harm issues he hopes to keep away from this time period.
“Hopefully, this season we generally is a bit extra fortunate when it comes to accidents as a result of don’t neglect we misplaced for greater than two months the 2 strikers we had final yr – Nico [Jackson] and [Marc] Guiu.
In keeping with , Chelsea suffered 17 accidents final season, which positioned them eighth on participant availability. That was higher than Arsenal and Manchester Metropolis, however Chelsea should mix Premier League and Champions League campaigns this time period.
Maresca was capable of discipline a very modified “B” group for almost all of the Europa Convention League final season, however he will be unable to try this within the unforgiving Champions League.
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“Final yr within the Convention League, within the early levels, we used to vary 10 or 11 gamers,” Maresca stated. “We received’t be capable of try this within the Champions League, however we must change. They can not play 60 video games and be on the identical stage. They have to be prepared when they’re wanted.”
The draw for the Champions League shall be made subsequent week, when Chelsea will discover out their league part opponents.
The excellent news for Chelsea is that solely two of their eight fixtures straight after their league part video games are away from dwelling, however they do should face Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal straight after midweek European video games.