Chelsea’s squad and style of play are probably more suited to them doing well in Europe.
Chelsea’s caretaker manager Frank Lampard explains why Chelsea have been better in Europe compared to the league this season.
Chelsea topped their Champions League group and comprehensively beat German club Borussia Dortmund in the last-16 stage.
On the other hand, the story is reversed in Premier League. Chelsea are 11th in the league with 39 points from 30 games. They are closer to the teams in the relegation spots than the fourth-placed Manchester United.
Here’s what Lampard when asked about this puzzle (h/t Football.London):
“I am not sure. I understand the question, if you isolate this year as well. I think there have been challenges this year and the PL is also one of the greatest challenges in world football. It’s tough week in and week out and those challenges have obviously taken us to a place where we don’t want to be as Chelsea Football Club.
“The Champions League sometimes offers you a bit of escapism from that. Different speed of the game, knockout football, those things can all contribute to getting different success in the same season. I think when you get to this stage of the competition, you’re playing teams of the level of Real… Now those comparisons are pretty worthless.”
When a team is in a rut in the league, the change in the competition helps them in restoring some confidence. Although we do not have much of an idea, the Chelsea squad and style of play are probably more suited to them doing well in Europe.
We can go back to the 2011/12 season when Chelsea were average in the league but somehow turned up to win Europe’s biggest competition under Roberto di Matteo.
See More:
- Kalidou Koulibaly speaks about Lampard’s influence at Chelsea
- Hakim Ziyech has been told to leave Chelsea this summer
