For Chelsea fans there is much to like about this season. Sexy football, consistently stout defending and a perfect balance to the starting 11.
In fact if you look back a decade during Jose Mourinho’s first tenure he has built this side in similar style.
Speedy wingers in Damien Duff and Arjen Robben (Eden Hazard and Willian), a dominating striker in Didier Drogba (Diego Costa), brilliant contrasting midfielders in Frank Lampard and Claude Makelele (Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic), a solid defence and of course a reliable goalkeeper.
The better eleven of the two can be debated for the ages – that’s not the issue here. The starting team wins you games, but an overall squad wins you trophies.
While looking at the bench Mourinho had against Manchester City one could be excused for misjudging the seniors for the youth side. Four of the seven players on the bench had just 15 appearances between them in the Premier League.
Ten years ago Mourinho boasted a squad that had 24 first grade players, all of which had a decent pedigree of first grade experience. The starting roles were also loosely distributed between 14 players. To add there were the players on the fringe of the starting 11 and squad players who Mourinho managed well.
The point is that each player was fully aware of their role and more importantly they were content with it. Compare that with this season’s remaining squad, which after January’s transfer activity has been trimmed to just 20 first team players.
Granted the Blues have an abundance of youth players making more consistent appearances – but it’s the way Mourinho has distanced the starters from the rest of the squad that is worrying.
The other issue is the obvious lack of trust the manager has with his players. Mourinho is known to have always developed a system in which competition is fierce within the squad – which was indeed so in 2005-06.
In contrast, this season has seen the starting 11 share the bulk of the load in all competitions. Granted the team is doing well, they have also been blessed with very minimal fuss in the injury front.
Fatigue will always be a factor later in the season, something that was already evident during the Christmas break where the side dropped an eight-point lead to none.
Look no further than against Manchester City to realise who really had the strongest squad in England. In that top-of-the-table clash Manuel Pellegrini brought on plenty of experience off the bench in Stefan Jovetic, Edin Dzeko and Frank Lampard.
Any of these in which the Chilean had at his disposal is good enough to start for City’s first team. Unfortunately Jose Mourinho can’t say the same about his own bench.
This issue is a double-edge sword for any manager.
Yes, it is good for the starting 11 to consolidate team chemistry – by playing week in week out it helps them develop an instinct for each other that is tough to beat.
Although it must also be noted that this sense of security of knowing you’re in the starting XI can also promote complacency. For instance when new recruit Juan Cuadrado was brought into the squad, many believed that Willian would make way.
The Colombian’s move to Stamford Bridge would have worried Willian about his starting position, but in return the Brazilian produced his two best games in a Chelsea shirt, including scoring the winner against Everton.
Once competition is increased within the starting 11 then players step up. It also creates a false sense of hope to the players outside the line-up.
But enough of all that because in the end Mourinho is the master of man management. The main point here is his squad has so far been blessed with minimal injuries and fatigue.
The current system is built to strengthen the core but as a consequence it increases the distance of rest of the team. No one can argue that Chelsea have the best starting team in England but they need more depth.
Mourinho wants to create a dynasty for years to come, the one and only advice I can give him is to stick with what you know as you created the perfect formula the first time.
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Frankly, it was a bad look for Hayes. She appears like a grumpy and frustrated manager as her tenure at Chelsea is coming to an end.
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