After a 2-0 defeat at Anfield on Sunday, the Blues remain five points off the Premier League pace, having played a game more. Quite simply, they don’t look good enough to win the title this season, especially as they have dropped points in no less than ten league matches already this season.
Indeed, their home form has been a particular letdown. Chelsea have only won six of their twelve matches at Stamford Bridge, with Phil Scolari’s men struggling to break down lesser opposition. Petr Cech has issued something of a rallying call, as reported by The Guardian, although he would be better off working with his defence on set-piece defending. The Blues rearguard look a shadow of the back five which looked so stubborn under Mourinho in seasons gone by.
The Chelsea goalkeeper, looking ahead to the game against Hull City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, said: “We need to win every game. There is no good in beating Arsenal away and dropping points against Hull at home, because then an away win at Arsenal doesn’t make any difference.”
The Czech international does not believe it is impossible for Chelsea to win the title, though, because similar gaps have been closed in previous seasons. “Eight points in football, especially in the Premier League, means anything can happen. You can see that from last year. Arsenal were eight points clear and ended up third, so we will keep playing, we will try to keep winning and we will put the pressure on the others.
“We are behind and we need to keep winning so if Man United or Liverpool drop points we can close the gap. This is the only way now for us to get back into it. We need to keep winning because we don’t have the control in our hands.”
Can Chelsea win the title this season? Or are they now under too much pressure to go out and win every match? Hull at home won’t be easy this Saturday, especially with the Tigers having landed a win at the Emirates and a draw at Anfield this season. They also ran Manchester United close at Old Trafford and the Blues can thank their lucky stars that at least Frank Lampard’s red card has been rescinded!