It has largely been a season to forget for the Chelsea faithful. A number of managerial appointments became more frustrating as the season went on. Cup exits and embarrassing results and performances have all made pre-season hopes seem like a joke.
With only a few months of the 2022-23 season still to go, anyone wishing to still bet soccer games online may well be avoiding the Blues and looking elsewhere for greater consistency. But can the return of a crowd favorite in an interim role be the catalyst for a successful end of campaign? And what would that look like anyway? Here’s our view on a desperate season – and the slithers of hope for the future.
Managerial Merry-Go-Round
No club that employs a revolving door for the manager’s office is going to be celebrating too much success. With the announcement that Frank Lampard will return to Stamford Bridge in an interim capacity, the tally for head coaches was raised to four for the season.
That obviously includes the briefest of employment of Bruno Saltor. But it cannot have been the kind of campaign that Todd Boehly envisaged in August. Now Lampard has been given the reigns until the end of the season, Chelsea fans can hopefully enjoy the football on show a little more – at the very least.
Unlucky in the Cups
Although the FA and Carabao Cups will have been way down the priority list for anyone connected to Chelsea, bowing out of both at the first opportunity was a little disappointing. But it could be argued that drawing Manchester City in both competitions was also a particularly unlucky experience too.
Both defeats came under the stewardship of Graham Potter. He would have also looked at the Premier League and the Champions League as the two trophies to really go for. But a long run in either of those two other maligned cup competitions would have raised morale and made life easier for the players and management staff.
Premier League Shortfalls
But even if Chelsea had managed to go far into the Carabao Cup or dared the fans to dream of another FA Cup triumph, results in the Premier League just haven’t been good enough. Thomas Tuchel will feel aggrieved that he wasn’t given more of a chance, looking at league results – and even Graham Potter started off well.
But it has been the last few months of unimaginative football and woeful results in the league that have been really disappointing. Before Lampard’s first game back in charge against Wolves, there had only been four wins since the return from the World Cup. More importantly, there had been defeats at the hands of Southampton, Fulham and Villa – and that is before taking all those draws into account.
The lone high point of the season so far has been the Champions League campaign. Most fans will argue that Potter didn’t get his tactics and squad selections right for the European nights – but the results show that something was going right. What could have been a tricky group stage was navigated with ease after a shaky start.
Now the Champions League could end up being the most unlikely of success stories in a season full of woe. It is difficult to think how Frank Lampard could endear himself to the fans even more after his career – but his players lifting the famous trophy in Istanbul in June would certainly achieve that.
What Can Be Considered a Success Now?
Most commentators are saying that a top four finish is beyond Chelsea now, however much they improve before the end of the season. Beating Real Madrid in the Champions League would definitely get everyone excited again – but defeat to the Spanish giants doesn’t necessarily have to be the end of saving the season.
At this point, Chelsea fans need to be a little more pragmatic. Of course this club should be doing better – but we are not. A good performance, whatever the result, against Madrid is a must. But there is every chance that there will be a few more places available in Europe by the end of the season.
The players and the club should not be too dismissive of qualifying for one of the lesser competitions. Real success could then be achieved next season.
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