As well as Sancho: Maresca must now drop “inexcusable” Chelsea star

Chelsea have suffered a terrible turn in form since their 0-0 draw with Everton at Goodison Park on December 22nd, picking up just nine points in their last nine Premier League games, dropping from second in the league to sixth after 25 games played.

However, in their last ten Premier League games, Chelsea have only lost the “xG battle” three times, so what exactly has gone wrong?

Chelsea’s xG for and against – last ten Premier League matches
Game	xG for	xG against
Brentford (2-1 Win)	2.23	1.61
Everton (0-0 Draw)	1.17	1.03
Fulham (2-1 Loss)	1.12	1.78
Ipswich (2-0 Loss)	2.00	1.58
Crystal Palace (1-1 Draw)	1.24	1.08
Bournemouth (2-2 Draw)	2.50	1.18
Wolves (3-1 Win)	3.20	0.81
Man City (3-1 Loss)	1.80	2.50
West Ham (2-1 Win)	1.67	1.22
Brighton (3-0 Loss)	0.54	1.42
Stats taken from Sofascore

A mixture of their inexperience to see out games when they are ahead and control the tempo of a game, their lack of ability to break down low block defensive units and poor shot volume from their wide men have all contributed to this poor run of form. Something needs to change with Aston Villa up next…

Jadon Sancho’s Chelsea woes

The wing pairing at Chelsea has been an issue in recent weeks, as a lack of output from wide areas has left the likes of Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson with an awful lot of the attacking workload.

Noni Madueke has netted seven Premier League goals, but Pedro Neto has only managed two league goals and Jadon Sancho has only managed two himself.

Aside from Madueke, Neto and Sancho have been much less direct with their actions on the field, often turning back to retain possession, taking fewer shots in games and looking to create for others rather than taking the game by the scruff of the neck themselves.

Sancho did do this against Tottenham, getting Chelsea back into the game after going 2-0 down, but in recent weeks the form of Sancho hasn’t helped Maresca’s side, and it could require a change in this position to add something different.

But Sancho isn’t the only man who could be dropped, as there is another Chelsea star who has been in poor form in recent weeks.

The Chelsea star who now needs to be dropped

Levi Colwill has made 23 appearances for the Blues this season, all coming in the Premier League, providing one assist, contributing to four clean sheets and totalling 2,070 minutes played.

The 21-year-old defender has been a clear favourite of Maresca’s, but since Wesley Fofana went down injured, Colwill has struggled more in the defensive line.

Since Fofana’s injury, Colwill has been partnered with the likes of Benoit Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Josh Acheampong, Axel Disasi and Trevoh Chalobah (returning from loan in January).

The lack of consistency hasn’t helped the Blues backline, as they have struggled to find that same balance afforded to them with Colwill and Fofana together.

Sky Sports’ Dougie Critchley described Colwill’s mistake against Brighton as “inexcusable” for their second goal, looking for a foul, not sprinting back into position to defend the ongoing attack and then conceding. And this isn’t the young defender’s only mistake in recent weeks, after also gifting West Ham their goal to go 1-0 up a few weeks ago.

Whilst the talent of Colwill is clear, and the future of Chelsea’s defensive line absolutely has him in it, after a few poor performances, the Blues could possibly do with taking him out of the firing line, bringing Adarabioyo in, who adds some experience and looking to weather the storm.