What Should Chelsea Hope For Next Season?
Could the 2022/23 season have gone any worse for Chelsea? After a sea of signings last summer, there was hope — or perhaps even an expectation — that the side would threaten the leaders at the top of the Premier League table, or at the very least cement a Champions League position. In reality, it was a disaster. Multiple managers came and went, the side had no cohesion, and everything seemed to be a mess. It was a season to forget. But as always in football, there’s always next year. The good news is that it can’t get worse, and with Pochettino in the dugout, there’s a belief that things will improve. While no one will be thinking of a title bid, optimistic fans will consider using a betting offer to back the team to finish in one of the coveted Champions League positions. But there’s a lot that needs to happen for that to happen.
So what should Chelsea be hoping for next year? Let’s take a look.
A Full Season Under Pochettino
Four different managers were in control of Chelsea during the 2022/23 season (although Bruno Saltor was only in charge for four days). Even the best collection of players in the world — and Chelsea very much do not have that type of squad — would struggle to find any momentum with that much change.
Perhaps the first target should be to ensure that Pochettino gets at least a full season. He’s proven that he belongs at the top level, and if he has time, then he will make Chelsea better. But it won’t happen overnight. Things might get worse before they get better. The club probably regret getting rid of Tuchel too early, and they can’t afford to do the same with Pochettino if he has a couple of poor results.
Restore Belief
Chelsea finished 12th in the Premier League, but when you look at the squad, they really shouldn’t have. They have a collection of players that should be in contention for the Champions League. So why didn’t they? Anyone who saw any Chelsea performance this year will have noticed that the squad is severely lacking in belief. With that mindset, they were set up for failure. Fans won’t expect the West London team to win the Premier League next season, but so long as they show some steel and grit, they’ll be happy to view the campaign positively.
A Top Four Finish
There’s no reason to think that Chelsea can’t finish in the top four positions. They were expected to get into the Champions League this season before everything went wrong. Pochettino tends to have a quick impact at the clubs he manages, so there’s a chance that he turns everything around just as quickly as things went bad. Of course, they’ll need to hope that other clubs such as Liverpool, Newcastle, and Manchester United don’t also improve over the summer.
A Good Run In the Cups
Fans can stomach a low Premier League finish if there’s other joy to hold on to. Unfortunately, in the 2022/23 season, fans didn’t even have the comfort of a fun cup run to spare them from all-out misery. They were out of the FA Cup and EFL Cup in their first rounds, and went out pretty limply at the quarter-finals stage of the Champions League. A trophy would go a long way towards bringing the good times back to Stamford Bridge.
Moving in the Right Direction
Chelsea fans will be hoping that it really is darkest before dawn. After a season that was memorable for all the wrong reasons, there’ll be hope that the worst has passed and that Pochettino can get the club moving in the right direction. It’s likely to be a season of transition for boys in blue, but so long as there are signs of progress to hold onto, fans will be satisfied. After all, it can’t be any worse than this season.
