Chelsea’s 4-0 defeat to Arsenal was an important reminder of how much progress the club needs to make this summer in order to avoid underachieving next season.
Thomas Tuchel’s post-match comments provided insight to the growing concerns inside the Chelsea camp with the performance shedding light on their need to take action in the transfer market.
“The analysing of the season does not change because of this game,” admitted the Chelsea boss on the Blues needing signings after the thrashing.
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“Unfortunately, it proved my point and the last week proves my point.
"I would prefer to not be right and I did everything to prove myself wrong, but at the moment I feel I was right when I look at the last season and at the parts of the game where we struggled and how we struggled.
"We got sanctioned and players left us, we know that some players are trying to leave us, and this is where it is. We had an urgent appeal for quality players and a huge amount of quality players.
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"We've got two quality players – that is no doubt – but we are not competitive like this and unfortunately, we could see it today."
The season begins in just over a week, with Tuchel desperately needing to find solutions with the potential for embarrassment and an opening day defeat at Goodison Park against Everton on 6 August.
Chelsea’s squad is inundated with players who have expressed their desire for a new challenge away from Stamford Bridge this summer. With outgoings seemingly slowing down in recent weeks, it looks increasingly likely that such players will feature in Chelsea’s opening games prior to Deadline Day. Tuchel sees this as a problem and insists that solutions need to be found before these individuals become a detriment to the squad's mentality and performance.
He admitted: "I cannot guarantee we will be ready in two weeks.
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"I saw today a team from Arsenal that had an idea of how to play to a level of exhaustion and a level of physical commitment that we could not match, and also a level of mental commitment, which we lack because we have a lot of players who think about leaving, are looking for other options, and we have players who left. I think this at the moment is obvious."
With Chelsea pursuing further reinforcement in defence it sparks the question as to whether they should also look for more attackers this summer. It is widely regarded that Chelsea are in desperate need for a goalscorer to play a pivotal role in the eleven and to spearhead the Blues in their campaign to match Manchester City and Liverpool.
Kai Havertz is currently set to start the season up top for Tuchel’s side but has demonstrated a clear lack of cutting edge over the last two seasons.
While Armando Broja will be keen for a chance, if he remains, to lead the line following his Southampton loan spell.
The signing of Raheem Sterling will allow Chelsea to be unpredictable in attack with his ability to create chances through his dribbling style which is a reliable feature to his game. However, without an out-and-out striker who guarantees goals, questions can still be asked as to whether the Blues are in the right position going into a season where all their rivals have strengthened.
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The comments of Tuchel last week were unnerving. To hear remarks of this nature prior to the start of the season are cause for concern, but an honest assessment, for many Chelsea fans and the club need to take action in the market to resolve the situation.
Chelsea are set to play Udinese this Friday in their final pre-season game as they look to re-write the wrongs of last week before they play Everton next weekend to begin their 2022/23 Premier League campaign.
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea, Premier League, Football
