The Blues do not inspire much confidence after another bewildering summer under the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership
It's deja vu at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea are back to square one after parting company with Mauricio Pochettino at the end of last season, despite the significant progress his side made in the second half of 2023-24.
Enzo Maresca is the latest head coach to be plonked in the hotseat, with the Pep Guardiola disciple hired after – somewhat unconvincingly – guiding Leicester City back to the Premier League at the first time of asking by winning the Championship.
It's been another summer of significant upheaval as the club continues to splurge tens of millions of pounds on a raft of new young, unproven players, while plenty of homegrown talent has been ruthlessly sold off or put in the shop window.
The combination of a new coach and yet more turnover of playing staff makes Chelsea an unknown quantity once again, but pre-season performances and results do not bode well for the new campaign.
Getty Images SportMood around Stamford Bridge
The Chelsea fanbase will be trying to stay positive on the eve of the new season, but there is the unshakeable feeling that the Blues will begin 2024-25 under something of a cloud.
On the pitch, pre-season did not go to plan as Maresca's side collected just one win from six games, with their performances characterised by some alarming defensive errors. Off it, the club's transfer business has been bewildering as more and more young players sign on, while academy graduates are emotionlessly put up for sale amid the threat of breaching the Premier League's Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR). That has resulted in a sense that the club is losing its identity.
After a disastrous 2022-23 campaign where they finished 12th, the Blues hauled themselves up to sixth under Pochettino last time around. However, there doesn't seem to be any real belief that they will be able to build on that in the new season, and indeed many will fear a slide back towards mid-table mediocrity.
The task facing Maresca is a huge one, and there is an air of incompleteness about the squad as their daunting season opener against champions Manchester City looms. Indeed, the Italian has admitted he doesn't know his best team. "I don’t know my team yet," he said after the final pre-season friendly against Inter. "Pre-season has been very tough, intense, many games going from one city to another city. Now finally we start a normal week."
AdvertisementGetty ImagesTransfer business
Where to start? Chelsea have been steadfast in their pursuit of what they believe to be low-cost, high-potential young players, adding striker prospect Marc Guiu (18) from Barcelona, Aston Villa midfielder Omari Kellyman (18), versatile Renato Veiga (20) from Basel and Villarreal goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen (22). They have also signed defenders Caleb Wiley (19) from Atlanta and Boca Juniors' Aaron Anselmino (19), with both immediately loaned back out. Supporters will be relishing Estevao Willian's arrival in 2025, after Chelsea saw off competition from Europe's elite to land the prodigious Palmeiras winger for £56m ($72m).
The club has deviated from that youth strategy, bringing in Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (25) from Maresca's former club Leicester for £30 million ($39m) as a ready-made option for his system, and centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo (26) on a free transfer from Fulham. Their biggest spend to date though, which came out of left field, was the £54m ($70m) splurge on Wolves' Pedro Neto (24), as they added yet another winger to their ranks.
All of those incomings have led to questions over whether the squad has actually been improved, with Maresca the latest Chelsea manager to be left with a bloated group and not much time to cut it down. Their decision-makers still seem determined to add another attacker, with questionable talks ongoing over Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix and Napoli hitman Victor Osimhen still a target.
In terms of outgoings, the Blues have lost the vast experience of Thiago Silva after he returned to Brazil, while academy products Ian Maatsen and Lewis Hall were sold off for pure profit before the PSR deadline in June, alongside Omari Hutchinson. Elsewhere, deadwood in the form of Hakim Ziyech and Malang Sarr has finally been cut away.
However, there is still of work to do; the hierarchy seems determined to force Cobham graduates Conor Gallagher, Trevoh Chalobah and Armando Broja out of the club in a move that will not go down well with the fanbase. Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku and Kepa Arrizabalaga – both on huge wages – are still on the books and need to be shifted in what remains of the window.
Getty ImagesPre-season performances
While Chelsea's movements in the transfer market have done little to inspire confidence, their performances on the pitch certainly haven't lifted the mood either.
Despite facing the likes of Wrexham and Celtic, Maresca was only able to collect one win from six pre-season games. If the draw with the Welsh League One club in the first game of their US tour raised some eyebrows, the 4-1 thumping at the hands of the Scottish champions was deeply concerning.
The comfortable win over Club America – albeit with the help of two penalties – provided something of a reprieve, but it preceded inevitable back-to-back defeats to European behemoths Man City and Real Madrid to wrap up a forgettable tour, as Chelsea were reminded of the current chasm between themselves and the best around. The Blues were able to secure an unconvincing draw against Italian champions Inter at Stamford Bridge to wrap up pre-season.
Results aside, the most concerning thing was the litany of basic defensive errors from the rotation of centre-backs that Maresca called upon across the six games, with each mistake brutally punished. Sloppiness in pre-season can be excused, but that haphazardness is something he absolutely must iron out now Silva has left.
Getty ImagesTalking tactics
As one of Guardiola's proteges, much has been said and written about Maresca's tactics, but one of the biggest challenges facing him and his players is how quickly his acclaimed approach can be understood and implemented.
Chelsea will set up in an adaptable 4-3-3 formation without the ball that, in true Guardiola-inspired style, becomes more of a 3-2-4-1 in possession as a full-back inverts to anchor alongside the deepest midfield player, while a central midfielder pushes forward to join the No.10 in a more advanced role. The goalkeeper is also expected to play a significant role in the build-up.
Fresh from emerging as a surprise star of Spain's Euro 2024 triumph, Marc Cucurella is slated for the inverted full-back role, while Dewsbury-Hall was signed specifically to be that busy roaming midfielder. Robert Sanchez seems to have done enough to claim the No.1 spot, while Christopher Nkunku has shone in pre-season in the pocket behind the striker. Cole Palmer, therefore, should start off the right wing, and new signing Neto may be first choice on the left. If and when everyone is fit, that makes for a fearsome attacking unit, with the likes of Noni Madueke, Raheem Sterling and Mykhailo Mudryk waiting in the wings.
In midfield, there will be question marks over how Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Enzo Fernandez AND Nkunku all fit; it could be that the Frenchman starts as a striker ahead of Nicolas Jackson. There are no guaranteed starters at centre-back, however, as a youthful defence did not look convincing in pre-season. Maresca seemed to blame those lapses on his predecessor Pochettino's high line, but he won't be able to hide behind that excuse if the issues drag on into the season proper.