After the heavy defeat to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, former center-back Jamie Carragher described Chelsea as "a broken club". This assessment clearly reflects the chaotic situation that is enveloping Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea began to decline since coach Enzo Maresca left the team on New Year's Eve. The Board of Directors of the Stamford Bridge home team made a big bet when appointing Liam Rosenior - a coach who has never led in the Premier League - to the captain position. However, that gamble quickly failed.
Things became even more chaotic when Chelsea continued to empower Calum McFarlane in the role of interim. Once again, the London team placed their trust in a coach who has almost no experience in top-level environments.
Since the beginning of February, The Blues have even been at the bottom of the Premier League's form standings. They won fewer points than Tottenham in the same period and only won 2 matches against Wolves and Aston Villa.
Over the whole season, Chelsea has lost 13 matches in the Premier League - a number even more than both newly promoted teams Leeds United and Sunderland. That is a statistic clearly reflecting the decline of the team that was once expected to compete for the title.
Despite many criticisms directed towards the players, the general feeling at Stamford Bridge is that the team has not really overcome the shock after Maresca's departure. Under the Italian strategist, Chelsea once won a Champions League ticket and won two titles in their first season alone.
However, behind that success, there are many internal problems. The relationship between Maresca and some figures in the club is said to be seriously strained, leading to his decision to leave the club.
At that time, Chelsea was considered quite comfortable with the decision to let Maresca leave. But looking back at the present, this is a big mistake for the London team, because the players still have significant trust in him.
Many opinions believe that the recent lackluster performances show that the Chelsea team has never really adapted to the post-Marsca life. The instability in both tactics and spirit is causing the team to sink deeper into crisis. In that context, Chelsea's chances of creating a surprise against Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in the FA Cup final are considered very slim.
Chelsea is in great need of a coach who can control the dressing room, and at the same time have enough bravery to assert power in front of the club's leadership and sports department.
After a series of upheavals at Stamford Bridge, their problem now is not only in tactics or squad quality, but also in instability in leadership and fighting spirit. This team possesses many talented young players but lacks a true leader in difficult times.
