Chelsea - 2 wins from the title?

Article by e-Chelsea Correspondent Lee Beevor

This is a hugely bullish statement, which in itself is unusual for me, but on this occasion with justification. For Chelsea has a window of opportunity to place immense pressure on Manchester City, their most dangerous rival for the 2013/14 title. With City’s success in the domestic cups, they are to miss the next two rounds of Premier League fixtures. As such, by the time they travel to Hull on March 15, they could be nine points adrift of Chelsea. Should this scenario come to pass, the free flowing machine that has been battering teams all season could just cease up a little.

We have seen over and over again the adverse affect that expectation can have on a club. If, as is likely, City exits the Champions League, first place in the English Premier League will be almost a requirement to claim the year as a success. At the highest echelons of the sport, it is not enough merely to win a Capital One Cup. As this begins to dawn on the players they could freeze at critical moments or lose the edge by trying to be too precise, where previously they relied on instinct.

There is no doubt this will have occurred to Jose Mourinho, who will imploring his troops to deliver six points from engagements with Fulham and Tottenham. Unfortunately for him, this will be a little trickier than perhaps it would have been a month ago. The downside of having a settled side has manifested itself, in that one or two of his “untouchables” are starting to appear jaded. Worse still is that the affected represent the outstanding creative elements of his team. Hopefully, Oscar will benefit from his rest and Hazard too will recover his zest, as both have been under par in recent outings.

However, having said all that, Chelsea’s is a squad of such depth that the Special One should be able to rotate and still produce the necessary victories. Fulham is becoming a joke, having added a third manager to an already calamitous season. They remind me of the woeful Sunderland side relegated as bottom of the pile, with the dour Howard Wilkinson one of a trio to take the helm. Tottenham will be a much more difficult test, but hopefully Sherwood will go for glory, given that they trail in the race for fourth. Should he do so, this will play into our hands, as our strength is to play on the counter attack.

Moving from the blues to the reds and a reduced, yet possibly still vital advantage exists. Neither Arsenal or Liverpool are in action during FA Cup weekend, leaving them helpless spectators as we (hopefully!) put Spurs to the sword. With the identity of the champions not likely to be confirmed until May, it could be that Chelsea fans look back at this pivotal moment as when the decisive blow was landed. Champion teams are those that recognise such chances, seize them willingly and convert them ruthlessly. The next eight days will give the best indication to date of whether this Chelsea possesses these killer qualities.

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