Arsenal legend Paul Merson reckons most of Chelsea’s players aren’t ‘good enough’.
The Blues, under new boss Mauricio Pochettino, spent nearly £450 million in the summer in an expensive overhaul. They jettisoned many experienced campaigners and brought in a plethora of youngsters, but the team have been plagued by inconsistency all season.
In the span of four days, Pochettino’s side lost consecutive league games, 4-1 at Liverpool in midweek and 4-2 to Wolverhampton Wanderers at home, to drop out of the top half of the standings.
Their latest loss saw the Blues open the scoring on Sunday (February 4) through Cole Palmer in the 19th minute before things went south. Matheus Cunha starred with a hat-trick, and Axel Disasi’s own goal compounded their misery, before Thiago Silva netted a late second when the game was over as a contest.
Merson, a self-confessed Chelsea fan while growing up, tweeted that the Blues have regressed, as he doesn’t remember them losing consecutive games by conceding four times:
“Have to reiterate this: I started supporting Chelsea at five. My first game was 50 years ago. I can’t remember us getting beaten conceding four twice in a row and when I was growing up, we weren’t great. There are too many players that aren’t good enough.”
The Blues became a team to be reckoned with when they were bought by Roman Avramovich in the early 2000s, winning multiple titles across competitions.
However, the Blues are languishing in 11th place after 23 league games this season, having finished 12th last season. Meanwhile, Arsenal are third, two points behind leaders Liverpool (51).
What’s next for Arsenal and Chelsea?
Although Chelsea have struggled in the league, they have fared better in the two domestic cups. They have reached the EFL Cup final – where they play Liverpool later this month – and are also alive in the FA Cup.
The Blues next take on Aston Villa away in an FA Cup fourth-round replay on Wednesday (February 7), having drawn goalless at home. Meanwhile, Arsenal are next in action at West Ham United in the league on Sunday (February 11).
The Gunners are coming off a rousing 3-1 home win over the Premier League leaders at the weekend. They trail second-placed City – chasing an unprecedented four-peat – on goal difference, having played a game more.
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