That is the overarching, burning query for Chelsea supporters.
There’s a feeling that a number of areas of the squad have been left to stagnate, whereas the big-spending summer time switch coverage was maybe a bit too scattergun in gentle of the exact surgical procedure that was required.
The Blues’ core of central midfield gamers has remained the identical for a number of seasons now, and though Mateo Kovacic has undoubtedly improved in his 4 seasons at Stamford Bridge, Jorginho has failed to satisfy expectations and N’Golo Kante’s powers – and physique – look like on the wane.
On the again, the failure to tie Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen right down to new contracts proved expensive, and so they had been compelled to roll the cube on two gamers on the reverse ends of their careers in Wesley Fofana and Kalidou Koulibaly. What was as soon as Chelsea’s most settled space of the pitch is now unresolved in the meanwhile.
The west Londoners have infamously lacked a daily goalscorer lately, too. Romelu Lukaku’s arrival was alleged to treatment that, however everyone knows how that went. On the proof of the season to this point, Aubameyang is not going to be the long-term answer.
In fact this has not been for the need of making an attempt, however the Blues’ failure to compete for the Premier League title in latest seasons has seen them miss out on the sorts of signings that will have propelled the crew to a different airplane, reminiscent of Erling Haaland, Matthijs de Ligt and Aurelien Tchouameni.
There’s something much less tangible that’s amiss, too. Chelsea’s trendy success has been constructed upon a ‘by no means say die’ perspective and a perception that will get them over the road when the going will get robust. Nonetheless, this group of gamers appears to lack that mentality, typically caving in high-pressure conditions and receiving thrashings in opposition to so-called lesser sides at an alarming price.
These are deep-rooted points that transcend the supervisor, with Tuchel pointing to an general lack of high quality in the summertime earlier than he was relieved of this duties. Potter will do what he can, however he’ll want the backing of the board.