What Exactly Are We Building?

September 1, 2024
by Aaron Mateer

It happened earlier than usual. We've hit that point in the season by the first weekend of September, staring at a 1-1 draw, and I'm asking myself: what exactly are we doing here?

Crystal Palace away. A point. A frustrating second half. And, because we're Chelsea supporters, approximately 47 new questions about the squad, the manager, the transfer window, and whether we actually have enough strikers.

Welcome back, Blues.

For those of us watching from the West Coast, following Chelsea can feel like a part-time job. The kickoff times are brutal, the television coverage jumps around from week to week, and occasionally you find yourself piecing together the match afterward because life on Saturday mornings gets a little hectic. That was me today.

I didn't see the first half, but I heard enough to know Chelsea had chances. It looked, for a while, like the sort of away performance that quietly builds momentum. Palace always looked dangerous on the counter, though, and Chelsea seemed increasingly incapable of turning possession into anything meaningful.

Unleash Cole Palmer

Palmer is one of the most gifted attacking players we've had in years. I don't want to see him spending half the match picking the ball up in midfield while Jackson is isolated twenty yards further forward. And that's where my frustration with this Chelsea squad really starts.

But, apparently, the answer to today's problems might be... Jadon Sancho.(?!) Woof.

I understand the business. I understand the circumstances. Raheem Sterling has gone to Arsenal, Manchester United needed to move players around, and the whole Sterling/Sancho situation ultimately landed Chelsea with a loan deal for Sancho. But from a football perspective, it feels a lot like João Félix all over again.

No More Wingers, Please

Another talented attacking player. Another player we can convince ourselves will unlock the next level. Another addition to an attack that already has Palmer, Jackson, Madueke, Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku, Mykhailo Mudryk and others fighting for minutes.

Meanwhile, what Chelsea desperately needed this summer was someone who makes you feel confident when the ball drops in the box. Victor Osimhen was supposed to be that guy. Except the Osimhen saga became a familiar refrain. Wages became an issue, Chelsea wouldn't meet the demands, and suddenly we're left wondering whether the club actually wanted the striker in the first place.

Personally, I would have preferred Ivan Toney. Not because Toney was guaranteed to become Chelsea's next Didier Drogba. He wasn't. But because he's a more complete, polished striker than what we currently have.

Unfortunately, he's now headed to Saudi Arabia.

No More Transfers, Please

While we're on strange transfer-window decisions: how is Ben Chilwell still here? Sterling is gone. Even Trevoh Chalobah found a move. Yet Chilwell remains, despite seemingly being nowhere near Enzo Maresca's preferred setup.

None of this means Sancho will fail. He could absolutely come in and become a star. But that's not really the point.

The point is that watching Chelsea today, I didn't come away thinking, we need another winger. I came away thinking, we need to learn how to kill a game. That's the difference between a talented young team and a good football team.

Chelsea have the talent. Nobody can seriously argue otherwise. Now we need the ruthlessness. Another 1-1 draw isn't going to feel like growing pains forever. Eventually, it just starts feeling like Chelsea, and I say that as someone who's been saying "this is the year" for longer than I'd like to admit.