Chelsea again suffered a dismal defeat, this time against Brentford on Saturday to extend their abominable run of home form.
After having waded into murky depths signaling an immensely messy start to his tenure at Stamford Bridge, Blues’ boss Mauricio Pochettino has had to come to terms with Saturday’s defeat to Brentford consigning his side to the bottom half of the Premier League table. The Argentine has made it clearly known to co-owner Todd Boehly that he will need a lot more time to make everything come together at Stamford Bridge.
Blues fans are understandably anxious to the point of desperation to quickly sever the connections with last season, wipe the slate clean and begin afresh with Pochettino’s appointment. However the same old problems seem to be stubbornly persistent and proving difficult to solve, particularly the clear lack of efficiency in front of goal which has seen the former PSG and Tottenham boss register only three wins in 10 league matches.
Brentford were the latest team to give the Blues a shocking reality wake-up hard knock, with goals from Ethan Pinnock and Bryan Mbeumo sealing a 2-0 win. In fact, shockingly, the Bees have won more games at Stamford Bridge in the past seven months than Chelsea themselves have, which actually says a lot.
Boehly has embarked on a transfer policy built exclusively on acquiring young talent, which in other words means that time is the key factor determining success on the pitch. It is in this vital area that Pochettino has sought to give himself some breathing room by claiming that the need for time is inevitable.
“We have tried to identify [the problem] but it’s not only happened from the beginning of this season, it’s also from last season, with different coaches,” he said. “Yes, it’s something we need to fix.
“I don’t say I’m worried but, of course, we’re trying hard to find the solution. The key is to create a good atmosphere. You need to have the right feeling with the fans and team.
“The team needs to translate the ideas the fans can trust – and it goes both ways. But that can only be done with time and by playing more because we are still so young as a team. You need time, because although too many things are wrong, it’s about maturity.
“It’s not about the fans, the club, the badge – it’s about this team being young. We have to match the level to always be competitive and at our best. With the squad all fit, and that’s not an excuse, this team will grow, for sure.”
Against Brentford, Chelsea clearly lacked potency up top, with only two of them the 17 shots racked up on target, with neither of them breaching goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
Next up for Pochettino and the Blues is the Carabao Cup against Blackburn Rovers, after which they embark on a daunting run of Premier League fixturs before they square up against table-toppers Tottenham next Monday.