With Chelsea surprisingly knocked out of the Champions League at the first knockout stage, here’s five reasons the Premier League leaders could not meet expectations in Europe…
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Chelsea transfer news
1) Diego Costa not firing
Despite 18 domestic goals this season, there’s no doubt Chelsea’s £32m summer signing Diego Costa, so immense in Atletico Madrid’s run to the final last season, has been poor in the Champions League. The Spaniard managed precisely zero goals in the competition this season, a strange return from a player in such fine form in front of goal.
2) Cesc Fabregas decline
As is clear from the graphic above, Cesc Fabregas has not been the same player in the second half of this season, which continues a worrying trend from the last six campaigns. Marco Verratti ran the show for PSG at Stamford Bridge, and it’s clear the Blues could’ve done with an on-form Fabregas in this big game.
3) Mourinho’s tactics
So often praised for his nullification tactics and ability to close out the best attacking teams in the world, Jose Mourinho can take it too far sometimes. Quite simply, his Chelsea team were not ambitious enough in this game against a ten-man PSG side who were there for the taking. With such quality in attack, why not encourage a bit more freedom upfront to give opposition more to worry about?
4) Curse of the ex
Sold by Chelsea in the summer for some suspect displays, few can argue with the decision to let David Luiz go, but at the same time he was perhaps always likely to come back to haunt his old club. The Brazilian clearly had a point to prove against a club that perhaps didn’t rate him highly enough, and he will have been spurred on by the boos at Stamford Bridge.
5) Too many competitions
Did Chelsea ever really look like having enough depth to launch a serious treble challenge? John Terry has no doubt had a fine season, but at his age lacks a backup as well. Meanwhile, are Loic Remy and Didier Drogba really good enough to provide an alternative to the goal-shy Costa in this competition?