Is there a problem at Chelsea?

I have been very sceptical about the reports of unrest coming out of Stamford Bridge. There have been rumours of players being unhappy with team selection and training methods. There have been rumours of several meetings where players and management have made their feelings very clear.

Sceptical

I have been sceptical because their manager is a world cup winner, they have great players, they have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League and they sit second in the Premier League just three points behind the leaders. How could there possibly be any problems at the club?

Well after yesterday’s FA Cup third round game against Southend I am beginning to be less sceptical. A game against a mid-table League One side who haven’t won in eight games, which they dominated and took a relatively early lead, should never have ended in a 1-1 draw and an unnecessary extra game with the reply to come at Southend’s Roots Hall ground.

Capable

OK, there were one or two players missing from the Chelsea line up yesterday but a team including the likes of Ricardo Carvalho, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Jon Obi Mikel, Joe Cole and Didier Drogba must surely be more than capable of finishing off the likes of Southend.

If they were not capable of doing so, one has to ask the simple question, why? It is surely not a lack of ability so it must be something else. Maybe you could put it down to being just one of those days. Chelsea missed a lot of chances and Southend defended with commendable spirit. The equaliser came from one of only two chances Southend created in the whole game.

Freak result

I would be prepared to put it down to that if there wasn’t an increasing amount of evidence that all is not well at the club. They are, without doubt, a great side. A one off freak result against a lower league side can happen to anybody. That is not the case with Chelsea this season however.

The Blues’ Carling Cup campaign ended when they lost on penalties to Championship side Burnley at Stamford Bridge after a 1-1 draw. The day before the game assistant manager Ray Wilkins had spoken publicly about the fact that Chelsea wanted to win the tournament and spoke out against teams who fielded weakened teams.

Not good enough

As it turned out, Chelsea left out several big names themselves in that game against Burnley but still included the likes of Deco, Malouda, Drogba and Kalou. Despite that, they were not good enough to do the job required.

In the Champions League so far this season Chelsea’s away form has been less than impressive. A 0-0 draw in Cluj was followed by a 3-1 defeat in Roma and a lucky 1-1 draw in Bordeaux.

Fortress

In the Premier League, their away form has been exceptional but the fortress that Stamford Bridge had become over the past few unbeaten seasons has fallen away alarmingly. Defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal and draws with Tottenham, Manchester United, Newcastle and West Ham have given them a pretty poor home record.

Some sections of the Chelsea support have been becoming increasingly frustrated by Scolari’s support of Deco, who many feel has not produced what was expected from him. In last week’s draw at Fulham, Joe Cole was once again substituted whilst the ineffective Deco remained on the field for the whole ninety minutes.

Expansive

There is little doubt that Scolari has got Chelsea playing a more expansive and attractive style of play than we saw under Jose Mourinho or Avram Grant, but the results may be beginning to let him down.

In interviews Scolari totally denies that there are any problems behind the scenes and claims that the spirit and atmosphere in the dressing room and on the training ground is exceptionally good.

Great spirit, great manager and great players together do not produce the type of results that Chelsea have suffered from time to time this season. In all competitions they have won just three of their last ten games.

Something wrong

It is difficult for an outsider to put their finger on exactly what is wrong at the club, but I am starting to join the growing band of people who think that something is.