Hupu news on May 5th. The Athletic UK Chelsea and team reporters write a crisis column.
Choose the next head coach
This is obviously crucial. The current boss has hired five official head coaches in four years, which clearly shows that they have not yet found the most suitable candidate.
When Chelsea was taken over by Burley and the Clear Lakes consortium, Stamford Bridge made a promise that the frequent changes of coaches during the period of former boss Abramovich would become a thing of the past. However, the relevant records they presented were actually even worse.
Enzo Maresca, who has only coached Chelsea for 18 months, has become the longest-serving head coach in team history. To be fair, Chelsea insiders said that they had no plans to change their head coach before Maresca left his post in early January this year.
The lack of stability in such a critical position will inevitably have negative consequences. Unlike the Abramovich era, there is no "constant winner" in the Chelsea dressing room who can continue to win.
Chelsea needs a coach who can inspire players and fans, and a coach who everyone can trust. The club does not want to rush into the appointment and will make an official announcement after the end of the season.
Bournemouth coach Andoni Illara, who has outgoing characteristics, is included in the candidate list. Fulham's Marco Silva is also on the candidate list, and former Real Madrid's Xabi Alonso is also on the candidate list.
Give coaches more voice/power
Chelsea have had four previous head coaching appointments. Experience shows that if a coach openly questions Chelsea's unique structure or decision-making methods, as Pochettino and Maresca did, it will create an unsustainable tension. Those coaches who are willing to work quietly in this environment lack enough authority to achieve results on the pitch that meet Chelsea's expectations.
Leading Chelsea to coach has always been a job that has attracted much attention. However, for the type of coach the club needs, is coaching this Chelsea attractive enough now?
The majority of top coaches have extremely distinctive personalities. They have very high demands on players, equally high demands on staff, very high demands on sports directors, and very high demands on bosses. Many people can be accurately described as being "high maintenance" to others.
Chelsea fans, as well as journalists who have long covered the club, have known for years that there is often value in retaining these managers. They can shape an elite culture, set the standard for winning, and win trophies. Many coaches end up staying on because they are overworked or lose their popularity. However, recent history shows that the situation of those coaches who are more junior and more cooperative, who are the ones BlueCo and sports management pay attention to, may not be sustainable in the long term.
Giving absolute control to these elite coaches may not be a wise move. However, we have to find a reasonable balance point, and we need to allow talented coaches to feel that they have the right to express their opinions and even challenge decisions internally, so as to improve Chelsea's overall level. Moreover, those sports executives who are truly capable must be able to accept this slightly uncomfortable situation calmly.
Signings – Improvement in key positions
First you spend over £1 billion, and then you encounter so many situations that question the strength of your squad. It is obvious that the recruitment process is in urgent need of improvement at this moment.
If you look at the situation on the bench against Nottingham Forest, you will know that the only offensive option with the ability to change the game is Liam Delap. The other eight players include five defenders, two defensive midfielders and an absolutely indispensable backup goalkeeper.
Although Chelsea has experienced many injuries, the purpose of spending such a huge amount of money is to build a team strong enough to cope with any setbacks, and the poor record just proves this.
Buy young players. These players have potential and can grow with their teammates. According to Transfermarkt data, the average age of Chelsea's starting lineup has been the lowest in the Premier League for three consecutive seasons. However, this has not had an effect. Why? Because football is not only about the future, but more importantly, victory in the present.
Multiple sources who did not want to reveal their identities revealed to The Athletic that Chelsea will make adjustments to its recruitment strategy to bring in more players with rich experience and calm personalities. This does not necessarily mean that the new players will be significantly older, but that they are more mature mentally and better fit the team's competition environment. This is the situation.
This shows that Chelsea are looking for players who have played in the five major European competitions. They know how to compete in multiple competitions at the same time in one season, including the European War. They regard being able to cope with the pressure and challenges brought by such a dense schedule as the key.
It was Chelsea who signed winger Giovanni Kunda (Sporting CP), and it was Chelsea who signed forward Emmanuel Emerga (Strasbourg). The transfer agreements for these two players were reached last year. The club will also consider whether to promote goalkeeper Mike Penders, who is on loan to Strasbourg, to the first team.
At this moment, Chelsea is still looking for at least one central defender, one midfielder, and one forward to supplement the lineup. However, without the prestige and financial rewards that come with the Champions League, their task of bringing in first-choice targets will become even more difficult.
Player sales – clearing out redundancies
We have encountered a similar situation before. When the Blues and Chelsea went through the Blue Co stage, player sales seemed to have become a topic that had to be discussed every year. However, with another season of failing to qualify for the Champions League, this issue has become increasingly urgent.
Nowadays, the list of players who are obviously too abundant among the loan players is much shorter than before. However, if Chelsea makes up its mind to strengthen the core lineup, then among the many players who are currently on the fringe of the first team, there are many players who can be considered for sale to raise funds.
Tosin Adarabioyo is a good choice, Benoit Badiashile is also very good, Mark Giu is also very good, Alejandro Ganaccio is also considered good, and Delap is also a good choice, because they all contribute to the team's playing time and influence. In all these cases, and possibly others on the market, the key will be to obtain a transfer fee that is enough to improve Chelsea's budget.
However, compared to selling those big-name stars, it is easier to sell some fringe players to obtain considerable income, and it is also easier to be accepted by Chelsea.