Ian Wright finds it hard to see how Chelsea will remain within the Premier League top 4 come the top of the season after their latest defeat to Arsenal.
Mikel Merino’s first-half header was the difference on the Emirates on Sunday as Enzo Maresca’s side slid to their third defeat of their last five league games.
Missing key attacking players like Cole Palmer, Chelsea produced a flat attacking display and managed just three shots on goal in the complete 90 minutes.
Despite the defeat, the Blues remain in the highest 4 but Wright is fearful that their lack of quality in each boxes signifies that clubs within the chasing pack will overtake them before the top of the season.
‘I watched Chelsea against Arsenal and I believed they were really poor in every aspect,’ the previous Arsenal striker said on the Kelly and Wrighty show.
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‘Obviously, they’re very much missing Noni Maduke and Nicolas Jackson and clearly, Cole Palmer didn’t play.
‘They haven’t got anyone to stretch the team or anyone to regulate the sport in order you may pass to those players who were doing so well in the beginning of the season.
‘They didn’t seem like they were going to attain yesterday and there’s no way you may be confident as a defender playing in front of Robert Sanchez.’
Wright continued: ‘There’s no way sitting here straight away I can see a scenario as to how they’re going to do it [get in the top four].
‘For me, if I’m Newcastle or Bournemouth or Brighton or anybody, I’m pondering that is the perfect probability we’ll have because I don’t think Chelsea will make it.’
Analysing Chelsea’s struggles further, Wright suggested that Sanchez’s inconsistencies between the sticks were hampering Chelsea’s efforts.
The Spaniard returned to the starting XI on Sunday having briefly lost his spot within the team, but turned in one other questionable display and was almost caught out on several occasions.
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‘You might have a goalkeeper who you’re scared off and also you don’t know if he’s going to avoid wasting one or make a mistake and let one in and you then’ve got strikers who aren’t scoring,’ Wright added.
‘So for those who let in a goal, you’re immediately pondering ‘we’re not going to win this’. Because Sanchez might make one other mistake or they could miss one other probability and it just completely demoralises everybody.’
Maresca, meanwhile, was hopeful that the return of key players will get his side back to their best after the international break.
‘It’s an enormous difference for those who consider the three players with most goals for us are Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke,’ he said post-match.
‘Not considered one of them was on the pitch today. For 2 of them, they’ve already been out a protracted time, so it’s normal that offensively we struggle a bit of bit, even when – until today – we’re the second or the third best attacking team within the league.
‘Which means in any case we’re doing well without those players but we could do higher with the players which can be injured in the mean time.’
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