In his latest column, Paul Merson gives his thoughts on Chelsea’s slump in form as pressure mounts on head coach Liam Rosenior.
Since losing 1-0 to Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night, the Blues have lost six of eight games in all competitions and are in dire straits for Champions League qualification.
With all of the weekend’s games played against the Blues, Chelsea are now seven points behind fifth-placed Liverpool with five games remaining. Chelsea could drop to 11th in the Premier League at the weekend if they lose to Brighton on Tuesday night, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
With Rosenior under pressure and Chelsea’s season at risk of being lost, read below for the magic man’s thoughts on the Blues…
Chelsea are striving to stay in Europe next season
There currently appears to be no Champions League football for Chelsea next season. I don’t know how they get in, but I would be shocked if they did.
However, Chelsea are still fighting to qualify for Europe next season. That’s not an exaggeration. With 33 games remaining, Chelsea are on the same points as Brentford and Bournemouth. Had Sunderland won against Aston Villa on Sunday, they would have finished ahead of Chelsea.
If Chelsea don’t win against Brighton on Tuesday, they could be in 11th place by the weekend. And do you think they will beat Brighton on Tuesday? no.
Tuesday, April 21st 7:30pm
8pm kickoff
The only consolation is that if they can beat Brighton and then Nottingham Forest, they will play Liverpool in a must-win game. You never know at that point.
However, Chelsea have not played any other team in the top five. Therefore, there are no other chances to get points. That’s good news for the top-five teams with five games left.
Champions League football will not be shocking for Chelsea.
Do you think Cole Palmer will play for Chelsea in the Europa Conference League? I don’t think so. Manchester United will be in the Champions League and I wouldn’t be surprised if he plays there next season.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Watch for free: Highlights of the Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester United
But I don’t think Enzo Fernandes will leave. where is he going? No one is paying him £100 million. And Chelsea have no intention of accepting his loss.
There’s a lot of work to do at Chelsea. They really need a center forward. They need a goalkeeper. They have good defensive midfielders in Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Andrei Santos, but they need another player with a little more guile.
What will Chelsea do with Rosenia?
We don’t know what Chelsea will do with Liam Rosenior. You feel sorry for him in a way because it was hard for him. He got a very big job from Strasbourg. And he was always one loss away from pressure.
However, he has only won two of the eight games he has managed, with those only coming against Wrexham and Port Vale. And they have 5 wins in 15 games. It wasn’t very good.
I don’t know what the project is at Chelsea. The whole idea of this model is to make money, not lose money. The idea is to buy players, produce them, and sell them for a profit.
Remember, many Chelsea fans have only seen pure success. If you’re a 25-year-old Chelsea fan, you’ve never seen anything but success.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Ahead of the match against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea and Strasbourg fans took part in a peaceful protest against BlueCo ownership.
But in the club it’s a different model. The era of Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel is over.
That is unless they sign Andoni Iraola. But he will still come from Bournemouth. If we had drawn or lost against Newcastle at the weekend, there would have been no fuss or worry.
But if he comes to Chelsea, he will lose a few games and be under intense pressure.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Andoni Iraola speaks for the first time since it was announced he will leave Bournemouth at the end of the season
Either way, I’d be shocked if Iraora hasn’t found another job yet. You don’t leave a Premier League football club without knowing you have a job elsewhere.
But I don’t think Chelsea’s system will work, where top, top, top, top managers say, “We don’t have a lot of experience, so let’s do our best and get us into the Champions League.”
That’s all you need to do. They don’t need to win the league, they never will. They have to make sure they make their players better and market them.
Watch Brighton v Chelsea live on Sky Sports on Tuesday nights, 7.30pm kick-off and 8pm kick-off.
