Chelsea: Winning the Europa League must be the focus for Maurizio Sarri as top four chances slip
Chelsea are not guaranteed to play Champions League football next season and only have themselves to blame for that.Against Burnley on Monday night, the Blues had the perfect chance to capitalise on their top-four rivals Easter weekend slip-up, but failed to seize the initiative, drawing 2-2 at Stamford Bridge and have now played a game more than Manchester United, Tottenham and Arsenal.
4Chelsea failed to beat Burnley on MondaySo, while Chelsea have been making hard work of securing a top-four spot for next season, they have reached the semi-finals of Europes secondary competition unbeaten and virtually unscathed.MOL Vidi, Malmo, Dynamo Kiev and Slavia Prague to name a few, have been the opposition for Chelsea en route to the final four and the only time the Blues looked remotely troubled was when they suffered a familiar second-half collapse to concede twice against Prague in the quarter-final. While the Europa League has become more of a distraction than a reward for many of the teams from major footballing nations, lacking the glamour and reputation of the Champions League, it has proved to be a welcome relief at times for both Maurizo Sarri and his players this season.After Chelsea were humiliated by Manchester City, 6-0 back in February, the players quietly slipped away to Sweden and regrouped to beat Malmo 2-1 and more comfortably than the scoreline suggests.And it was the same opposition who helped restore a paltry amount of pride, when Chelsea were dumped out of the FA Cup by Man United.When Wolves left Stamford Bridge with a well-deserved point, the Europa League was once again a shoulder to cry on, as Chelsea emphatically beat Kiev out in Ukraine.
4Chelsea have been untroubled in the Europa League this seasonIn the process, Chelsea have equalled Atltico Madrid’s competition record of 15 games unbeaten to give themselves an excellent chance of reaching the final, with many believing it will be an all-English affair against Arsenal, but first they must get past free-scoring Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt, which should be straightforward enough, after all the Blues do have the competition’s top scorer in Olivier Giroud.Hyperbole of course, but they should be given credit for taking the Europa League seriously and such is its reputation as inferior and mainly for teams with modest aspirations, Sarri has taken no chances and was right to do so such is there inability to secure a spot in the Champions League via their domestic league.Though many will question the standard of opposition, it can also be argued that Chelsea have saved some of their best performances this season for Thursday nights.
4The competition has been a welcome break from domestic action at points this seasonThe next three fixtures for Chelsea in the Premier League are by no means an easy one, Man United away on Sunday, followed by a home clash with FA Cup finalists Watford and a final-day meeting at Leicester and such is the unpredictability for which Chelsea have shown this campaign, there is the chance they could win all three as easily as they may lose them.The Premier League is the most competitive in the world and, while City and Liverpool aside have been exceptional, the chasing pack of United, Arsenal Chelsea and Tottenham have all lacked the consistency to match them, let alone nail down a top four spot.
4Chelsea will hope to reach the final and then enter the Champions League as a resultThe other incentive to reach the Champions League would be to avoid a nightmare scenario, which would mean the team who finishes sixth, will have to begin their Europa League campaign in the qualifying rounds on July 25.Chelsea potentially have six games remaining this season, should they reach the final and that game will easily be their most important of 2019.Win that and they will have salvaged what has been a underwhelming season in west London.
Mesut Ozil has been named in Arsenal's starting XI to take on BATE Borisov in the Europa League - and Gunners fans are delighted. The German was left out of the travelling squad for the first leg
Confirmed: Arsenal starting XI vs BATE Borisov - Ozil and
Tottenham team news: How Spurs could line-up against Huddersfield without Harry Kane, Dele Alli, and four other injured stars Mauricio Pochettino has got a selection headache on his hands as the
Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea: Team news, odds and stats
Arsenal vs BATE Borisov: Mesut Ozil named in starting XI for
New Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce says he had reservations about taking the job on but the lure of the challenge convinced him to accept. The 60-year-old succeeded Dick Advocaat on Friday, taking
Four things Spurs need to do to reach the next level
Everton midfielder Tom Davies accepts the team's defending at set-pieces is not good enough and conceding "poor goals" is killing any progress they make on the pitch. News Daily Headlines.
Everton determined to bring an end to their set-piece misery
Not for the first time, Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with Real Madrid star Kovacic, despite the fact he is currently on loan at Chelsea. Mateo Kovacic might be plying his trade in the blue
The three clubs Tottenham and Man United will need to beat to
Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has had his say on the advantage Ajax have ahead of next week's Champions League semi-final first-leg.. The Lilywhites will be looking to make the most of home advantage when they welcome the Eredivisie outfit to the new Tottenham stadium on April 30.
Expected Tottenham team to face Ajax: Pochettino to make 4
talkSPORT.com rounds up all the latest transfer news and football gossip from Monday's papers and online… Liverpool are reportedly considering letting Naby Keita leave at the end of the season and will accept a loss on the 24-year-old midfielder.
Transfer news and football gossip: Naby Keita to leave
Cardiff City boss Neil Warnock and chief executive Ken Choo will attend Emiliano Sala's funeral in Argentina this week. The pair will be part of a Bluebirds delegation travelling to Santa Fe for
Emiliano Sala: Cardiff footballer's funeral takes place - BBC
Andre Gomes could be facing a three match ban after being charged with violent conduct by the FA following an alleged stamp on Fulham's Aleksandar Mitrovic. Everton have until 6pm tomorrow to
Everton's Andre Gomes facing charges for stamp on Mitrovic
No comments:
Post a Comment