One squad, six managers: Chelsea's cocktail of chaos leaves the title a distant dream

The first-team squad listed on Chelsea’s official website was signed for six different managers, dating all the way back to when Cesar Azpilicueta arrived at Stamford Bridge during the brief Roberto Di Matteo reign in 2012.

A glance at the Manchester City website might tell you why injuries, coronavirus cases, managerial decisions and money may not be the only places to look while trying to assess why Chelsea keep facing the same old problems.

Chelsea in many ways have become the ultimate cup team, a squad capable of beating anybody on their day or focusing on a specific task, best proven by last season’s Champions League final success over City and the fact Thomas Tuchel became the club’s first manager to reach Champions League, Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals.

But the recurring problem in trying to catch City, who they have fallen 12 points behind in the Premier League table, having played a game more, would suggest Chelsea are not a team that can sustain a title push and recover quickly enough from the bumps in the road and hurdles that present themselves.

Tuchel has made some bad decisions during Chelsea’s latest poor run, but the fact his current situation is surprisingly similar to that of previous head coach Frank Lampard, just before his sacking this time last year, would once again suggest the club’s cancel culture has run its course.

Fernandinho joined City a year after Azpilicueta moved to Chelsea, but apart from the Brazilian and Raheem Sterling, every single first-team player listed on the club’s website was signed by or for, in the case of Kevin De Bruyne, Pep Guardiola. One manager, one vision, one set of rules.

Liverpool’s website tells a similar story. Jordan Henderson was signed from Sunderland a year before Azpilicueta joined Chelsea but the midfielder and Divock Origi are the only first-team squad members not to have been signed by Jurgen Klopp. Again, one manager, one vision, one set of rules.

It would be hard to define just what Di Matteo's style of play was, but the Italian, Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, Maurizio Sarri, Frank Lampard and Tuchel certainly have different styles, philosophies, preferences in formation and tactics, and rule books.

Hakim Ziyech, Chelsea’s goalscorer in the latest draw at Brighton which meant Tuchel’s team have now dropped 20 points in 13 games, is a good example of how the churn in coaches can impact players.

The Moroccan was very much a Lampard signing, who moved to Stamford Bridge with the view of playing in a 4-3-3 or a similar formation. Injuries have not helped him, but it is clear that Ziyech has since struggled to fit into Tuchel’s favoured system of playing three at the back.

It is probably no coincidence that Ziyech has made a better contribution on the rare occasions Tuchel has switched to four at the back, as he did at Brighton, but the player’s frustration has been pretty evident. He did not celebrate when he scored and appeared annoyed when he was substituted.

But, just as the likes of Marcos Alonso and Antonio Rudiger sat through the Lampard reign in the hope that a manager who might offer them a fresh chance may arrive, Ziyech may well believe he can outlast Tuchel at Chelsea rather than needing to adapt his game or look for a move.

Much is made of whether or not club record signing Romelu Lukaku should adapt his style to better suit Tuchel’s approach. But what’s easier? Change his game that has worked so well for Inter Milan and Belgium under two very different managers, Antonio Conte and Roberto Martinez, or wait for Chelsea to change the coach again?

Lukaku and Ziyech were caught in heated discussion at the end of the first half at Brighton on Tuesday night, but sources claim the pair are friends and it is more likely that they are currently more frustrated with the decisions of the coach, who substituted them both at the same time, than each other.

City and Liverpool players have clearly had their issues with Guardiola and Klopp, but waiting or hoping for either coach to pay the price for a dodgy run or bad result has simply never been an option. Yaya Toure tried and failed to fight a battle he was never going to win, despite all he had done to elevate the Manchester club.

Chelsea have sold some big players since Guardiola and Klopp have been in the Premier League, but there has never been a departure to draw a line in the sand.

Diego Costa, Thibaut Courtois, Eden Hazard and Cesc Fabregas all wanted to leave while club legends such as John Terry, Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic had simply reached the end.

Club must back a coach – not just sack another one

Lampard perhaps went the closest to making a statement by shipping David Luiz off to Arsenal, but there has not been a manager able to embark on the kind of clear-out Guardiola instigated over two years between 2017 and 2019.

Guardiola was still yet to win any silverware with City when he was allowed to start selling off players who had helped to driver trophies and titles for the club, such as Gael Clichy, Aleksandar Kolarov, Samir Nasri, Fernando and then Toure, Joe Hart and Fabian Delph.

If Chelsea are to become a title-winning team again then it may require the club to back a manager in clearing out some players who have won trophies and would still be capable of delivering an FA Cup or even a Champions League here or there.

It might finally be time to allow Azpilicueta to leave, despite his super service and influence in the dressing-room, Alonso has probably already stayed longer than he should have done and it is unlikely Jorginho will enjoy the kind of year he recently completed again.

Much like Leroy Sane and Ferran Torres never quite settled under Guardiola at City and were allowed to leave, despite their undoubted talent, maybe it is time for Chelsea to cut their losses on Christian Pulisic and also Timo Werner, who Tuchel was meant to help transform.

But all of that would mean backing a coach, rather than ultimately sacking yet another one and then buying some more players to fit yet another philosophy. If they stick with their current culture, then Chelsea’s best and possibly only hope of overhauling City in the league is waiting for Guardiola to leave.