The fact is that Chelsea is not having a good season.
We are in seventh place in the Premier League and there are several reasons for that. But if you look at the raw stats, there is one that jumps out as a clear issue as to why we are struggling to keep up with the top 4.
The xG stats for the season so far, as we prepare to enter the World Cup break, show that we are in 8th place in the division, with 1.6 expected goals per game.
That shows that the opportunities we are creating are simply not good enough or numerous enough.
Losing Reece James has been a huge blow in that regard. As well as being a brilliant full-back in every way, he is our main attacking midfielder and wreaks so much havoc on his own that the whole team benefits.
Without him, we have really struggled to replace his creativity and create opportunities.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been poor from the start, but his lack of participation is also due to this lack of supply. We’ve seen youngster Armando Broja step in to replace him, as fans have demanded, only to struggle the same way as the former Arsenal man.
They look disconnected and unable to contribute to playing effectively, even as the team’s sole attacking focal point. Too often they get suffocated by the attentions of 2 or 3 central defenders.
The upcoming breakout will give Graham Potter a huge opportunity to rectify all of that. Not only does it give James and his injured teammates time to recover, it also gives Potter time in training camp with all of his non-World Cup players.
There’s a decent group of them, including Broja and Aubameyang, as well as some of the midfielders and defenders behind them who are supposed to provide the chances.
Hopefully that, plus perhaps the addition of some new firepower or creativity in January, will allow this team to start creating the chances it needs to create to score the goals it needs to score to win the games it needs to win to get there. to the first 4. and the champions league.
If we’re not higher than eighth in the expected goals table at the end of the season, we can’t really expect to finish anywhere higher than where we are now, and next season we’ll be in the Europa League or the Conference League. with Arsenal and Spurs fans laughing at us.
