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WOLVERHAMPTON, England – Frank Lampard won enough Premier League titles as a Chelsea player – three in six seasons between 2004 and 2010 – to know what it takes to emerge at the top of the tree when the silverware is delivered. So perhaps he knew what was to come when he spoke about the unique challenges of this pandemic-stricken campaign ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Lampard, now in his second season as Chelsea manager, spoke about how the league is “getting tighter”, how most opponents have gotten stronger and that his team has already “lost points that we normally wouldn’t have made.” Losing 2-1 to Wolves in Molineux, as the home side responded to Olivier Giroud’s opener in the 49th minute by emerging as winners after goals from Daniel Podence and Neto, Chelsea lost even more points that they normally would not have lost. And to back up Lampard’s point that the league is getting tighter, Chelsea went from the top of the table to fifth in the space of 41 minutes of the second half between Giroud’s goal and Neto’s goal on time. discount for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team.
The Wolves are a good team, one that is capable of beating any rival this season, but Chelsea’s downfall in this game, and others in recent weeks, has not been all the result of improvements made by the other side. Chelsea are creating their own problems and not solving the problems that have plagued them all season, and that is why they were unable to capitalize on the opportunity to reach the top, just for one night, before Liverpool’s clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
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Lampard’s team has basically stopped creating chances. They went 62 minutes without a shot on goal during Saturday’s loss at Everton, and Wolves goalkeeper Rui Patricio had nothing to do for 49 minutes of this game before Giroud scored.
There are mitigating factors, of course, in diminishing Chelsea’s goal threat. Christian Pulisic, who played in this game but did little, has been struggling to stay fit with a hamstring injury, while Timo Werner and Kai Havertz continue to search for the form that led to the club spending a combined total of £ 109.6 million on his attacking talents for the summer.
Werner scored 34 goals in 45 games for RB Leipzig last season, but has so far only managed eight of 20 in all competitions for Chelsea. His Bundesliga goal rate last season was 0.90 goals on average every 90 minutes; in the Premier League it is just 0.32 every 90 minutes.
It’s a similar grief story for Havertz, the attacking midfielder signed to great fanfare by Bayer Leverkusen. The German international scored 18 goals in 45 games last season, but this time it’s just four out of 16, and his average goals per game in England (0.12 per 90 minutes) is well below his Bundesliga statistics ( 0.44 for 90 minutes). ).
The truth is that none of the players seem comfortable in the team and in their roles.
Werner, who performed best in the middle with Leipzig, either alone or as part of a two-man strike force, has been used on the left by Lampard, and was deployed there again in Molineux. The 24-year-old can play in that position and has done so in the past, but he’s having little impact in that role in the Chelsea jersey. Perhaps the increased demand for defensive work is mitigating his lead, but his lack of appetite for that element of the game is obvious, causing his teammate Thiago Silva to hold back in the second half when Werner was halfway through his attempts to press. . the defense of the Wolves.
Havertz, who was substituted in the 71st minute, is clearly a talented player, but the 21-year-old seems to want to play at his own pace, and the Premier League is too relentless to allow him time and space to hurt opponents. He has the skill and silk of Mesut Ozil or Dimitar Berbatov, but all too often Havertz also shows his questionable work ethic.
United States captain Pulisic went through an equally difficult acclimatization period after his arrival from Borussia Dortmund last season and it took several months for him to show signs of his best form, so perhaps Werner and Havertz should be seen with the same lens as Pulisic. Lampard, for his part, believes that the couple should be patient.
“We have some new players that have come in and people might want to see the price,” he said. “But at the same time, some of them are young players coming to play in this league for the first time, and that clearly takes a little time.”
Lampard has a valid point, but the manager also knows that time and patience are often in short supply at Chelsea, no doubt under Roman Abramovich’s ownership. Players are expected to start running and deliver right away, and the same can be said for the coach and his team.
Chelsea are too talented to fight for too long, but their slide in the second half from the Premier League leader to fifth, and out of the Champions League places, was a sign of how quickly things can go wrong. in this league. And the only way Chelsea can get back on track and keep their hopes of finishing in the top four is by getting the best out of their expensive new signings.
Sooner or later Werner and Havertz will have to prove themselves.
