MY ACCOUNT
Thomas Tuchel was not a happy man after Chelsea were hammered 4-0 by London rivals Arsenal to round off their US tour in disappointing fashion.
The German bemoaned a lack of signings following the embarrassing defeat at the weekend and questioned his squad’s desire to get the job done.
But while he is not convinced the Blues will be ready for the start of the Premier League campaign, is it really all doom and gloom at Stamford Bridge?
We look at the situation Tuchel finds himself in ahead of his side’s curtain-raiser at Everton next Saturday.
Slow start
With Todd Boehly and Co finally completing their purchase of Chelsea in late May, it took time for the club to make inroads in the transfer market.
Having already lost Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen at the end of their contracts, the Blues packed flop record signing Romelu Lukaku off to Inter Milan on a season-long loan.
They have also waved goodbye to Danny Drinkwater and Charly Musonda but questions remain over reported Barcelona targets Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso, while the pursuit of Jules Kounde is set to be scuppered by the Spanish giants.
Although Tuchel has seen top target Raheem Sterling and defensive rock Kalidou Koulibaly arrive, his squad is not vastly different to the one that struggled at times last season.
Not all bad news
Of course, any team boasting Sterling and Koulibaly could hardly be described as weak.
But the fact is the gulf between league champions Manchester City and title contenders Liverpool is something the Blues have yet to address.
Meanwhile, the Gunners and Tottenham have strengthened considerably this summer, suggesting the race for the top four will be tighter than ever.
But as former Blues boss Roberto Di Matteo has suggested, it is not all bad news for the reigning world champions.
The Italian, who led the club to Champions League glory in 2012, said: “Koulibaly and Sterling are two brilliant signings. I think they are going to be very important for the team this season and for the future.
“They are two players I think will have a big impact at the club and I’m sure the coach knows them very well in terms of how he wants to utilise them.
“They will bring a lot of quality into the side, for sure.”
Unhappy manager
While Tuchel undoubtedly shares Di Matteo’s optimism about Chelsea’s new arrivals, the bottom line is he wanted far more than just two new faces.
Speaking after the humbling at the hands of the Gunners in Orlando, the 48-year-old tactician said: “We got two quality players but we are not competitive like this.
“The worrying part is that the level of commitment physically and mentally for this match was far higher for Arsenal than for us.
“They played I think what is their strongest line-up and structure that you see now for several weeks. This was the line-up they will try to start for Premier League games.
“It was surely not our strongest line-up. This is a part of an explanation but only a little part and the other part is worrying.
“I cannot guarantee we will be ready in two weeks.”
Lack of firepower
Sterling, 27, is expected to provide the creative flair the Blues so desperately lacked last season.
Although they scored 76 times on the way to securing third place in the Premier League, Tuchel’s side often failed to find a cutting edge and Lukaku was not alone in misfiring in front of goal.
Mason Mount was Chelsea’s top scorer in the league with 11 goals, while Kai Havertz — likely to be deployed in the middle of Tuchel’s three-man attack — produced just eight.
Sterling, on the other hand, netted 13 in 30 top-flight appearances.
But without a recognised No9, unless Armando Broja is handed the chance to step up, you have to wonder once again where the bulk of the goals will come from.
The verdict
One thing Tuchel can possibly fall back on is Chelsea’s unquenchable thirst for silverware.
His players are used to winning trophies and last season’s penalty shootout heartbreak in both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals will have left them desperate to make amends.
In what was a turbulent campaign off the pitch, the Blues still won the European Super Cup and Club World Cup.
But it remains to be seen whether Boehly, who is currently taking care of the club’s transfer dealings, will be as quick to hire and fire as former owner Roman Abramovich was.
And the danger is that a top-four finish may be harder than ever to secure this term, which could leave Tuchel looking nervously over his shoulder.
