FanPost

Cracking the 10-man wall

Chelsea this season have found the going to be tough against teams who come to defend and snatch a point or three. It has been a frustrating season with glory being snatched away from us after putting ourselves in good positions by beating teams around us only to slip up against the so-called minnows. So how do we solve this problem?

Obviously better utilisation from set pieces is a good way to do it. But apart from that, I think dribbling into the box can cause general panic. Hazard and Salah are the two players who can do this effectively. Schurrle has a good long shot in him although his shooting accuracy is somewhat off. Using the Matic-Oscar partnership will help us both control the game and give is excellent passing. I'm waiting for Marco van Ginkel to return to the first team as he too can shoot and run into spaces for cutbacks and such. Putting together all these elements while not leaving us vulnerable at the back is the challenge. But the onus on our midfielders to score is too much. Mourinho has been looking to his strikers to provide inspiration and they have failed him.

I have forgotten what a good striker plays like. Its embarrassing that our forwards can't seem to aid the team constructively. For all his dogged running and general enthusiasm Torres' finishing is woeful. Eto'o is a stop gap if anything. Ba was never going to be good enough for Chelsea. Hopefully we can address such issues in summer. Costa, Lukaku and Eto'o will be my ideal strike team for next season. Although i wouldn't hate it if Mourinho can get and tame Balotelli.

Also, the calls for buying another defensive midfielder baffle me. People seem to have written off Marco van Ginkel. If we move Luiz permanently into midfield, he can be the third player to compete for the pivot. Ramires remains as a utility player. Lampard and Mikel make way for an academy player. Chalobah can also play both in midfield and defense. He would be my choice. If we don't start trusting our academy, we will never bring them through. The defense with first choice pairing of Cahill and Terry with Kalas and Zouma playing as backups is the way forward. Add a left back to the mix and we have a complete squad.

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