It was billed as the weekend's biggest clash since the 2015/2016 edition of English football's top flight kicked off on August 8th. The reigning Premier League champions Chelsea taking on last season's second-best side Manchester City at the Etihad in a match made even more spicy due to the prickly relationship between Jose Mourinho and Manuel Pellegrini. Heading into the game, the Citizens were just two points ahead of the Blues after just one round of play, and many fans and neutrals believed that it would be a close match between two sides battling for the title.
However, 90 minutes later, Chelsea were left reeling after a 3-0 drubbing, that, to be honest, could have easily turned into an absolute humiliation. The warning signs were there as Sergio Aguero could have put the hosts up after catching the Blues' back-line napping just 30 seconds in, but last season's top goalscorer was only able to launch his effort at Asmir Begovic. Despite the Bosnian's solid performance between the posts, Aguero finally got the goal he deserved to send the two teams into the half-time break divided by one goal.
Yet, instead of striking back, Mourinho's men suffered a meltdown, with Vincent Kompany and Fernandinho punishing their inability to keep things tight at the back. As such, Chelsea have just earned one point from their first two games and are five points off the title race. Whilst this obviously does not mean that the title race is done and dusted, if Blues supporters are worried, they certainly should be.
Against Swansea City at Stamford Bridge, Mourinho's troops were uncharacteristically sloppy, especially when it came to converting chances as they were fortunate to scrape by with a draw against the Swans following Thibaut Courtois's red card. Defender Brainslav Ivanovic, known for his lung-bursting runs down his flank was one culprit guilty of floating in some poor crosses and was given a torrid time by Jefferson Montero's pace and trickery.
Indeed, a look at some numbers from the opening match will not sit well with Blues supporters:
- Chelsea managed a total of 11 shots on goal vs. Swansea's 17; however only three were on target whilst their opponents had 10.
- In terms of crosses, Chelsea fired in 23, again more than Swansea's 19. Only three of these were accurate, giving Mourinho's men a 13 per cent accurate rate. By contrast, Swansea, who made five successful crosses, had double the accuracy return (26 per cent).
To compound their misery, against Manchester City, things did not improve for the current Premier League champions, despite keeping all 11 men on the pitch:
- The 3-0 loss at the Etihad marks the first time that Chelsea have conceded more than once in Manchester (both against Manchester United and Manchester City) under Mourinho's tenure.
- Chelsea are now the second reigning Premier League champion since Manchester United in 2007/2008 to have failed to win either of their opening two matches.
- Again, like against Swansea, Chelsea managed just three shots on target, out of the total 10 attempted. The Citizens, by contrast, had eight out of their 18 attempts register on target.
- Similar poor crossing accuracy again plagued the current Premier League champions, with just two out of 16 finding their desired target. Again, the return was 13 per cent compared to Manchester City's nine out of 25 (36 per cent).
- And captain John Terry, who had never been substituted by Mourinho in 177 Premier League games, was replaced by Kurt Zouma at half-time. Terry had featured in every single minute of league games last season.
Here's another stat that will not sit well, especially given how Chelsea prides itself on its tough defensive approach:
18 - Chelsea have allowed their opponents more shots on target against them than any other team in the Premier League. Exposed.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 17, 2015
And a clear indication of their difficulties from their first two games on the offensive front:
Finally, some additional food for thought in this insightful video:
Although there are obviously 36 rounds left to play, some have already pressed the panic button and have marked this as Chelsea's worst start in 17 years. The last time the Blues only earned one point from two games was during the 1998/1999 campaign. First was a surprise 2-1 loss to Coventry City, followed by a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United. Their third ended as a 0-0 draw to London rivals Arsenal, meaning that they had to wait till match day four for their first win - a 2-1 result over Nottingham Forest. John Terry is the only player currently with the squad who was with the team during that campaign nearly two decades ago.
Still, the Blues managed to finish in third place with 75 points, just three behind Arsenal and four behind champions Manchester United's haul of 79. They ended up with a record of 20 wins, 15 draws and just three losses - something that is not really that discouraging. Naturally, though, they will be keen on avoiding this as they hope to successfully retain their league crown and will be really seeking their first three points of the season in their upcoming match.
Next up on the menu will be West Brom, a team that finished in 13th last season. In theory, this should be a straightforward win for Mourinho's men, given that Chelsea, alongside Arsenal, at the team that have defeated West Brom the most times in the league: 13. However, what will not sit well with Blues followers is the fact that last season, Chelsea lost 3-0 at this very same venue, marking it as the joint-heaviest defeat suffered by the Portuguese tactician in the Premier League. Certainly, the Baggies would love to make it two straight wins by inflicting more misery on a Chelsea side devoid of confidence and still licking their wounds after the 3-0 disaster at the Etihad from last weekend.
Should they fail to make the grade, Chelsea will have just one point from their first three games. And although the season has quite some way to go, expect some serious questions to be asked of the self-appointed Special One.
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