Chelsea suffered through multiple preseason setbacks as the Blues slogged through a tour of the United States to prepare for the upcoming Premier League and Champions League campaigns.
They fell to Arsenal 4-0 on Saturday in Orlando, concluding a difficult stretch of results that included a come-from-behind win over Club America in Las Vegas and a draw loss to Charlotte FC in North Carolina on penalties.
Thomas Tuchel hinted at frustrations with the performances throughout the tour, but his comments following the Arsenal loss on Saturday were especially pointed. Tuchel stated that the performance was "worrying" and that he was concerned with the "commitment" of his players.
While there are plenty of mitigating factors to a difficult U.S. tour, including grueling travel and squad upheaval, the disappointing results were of great concern to the Chelsea head coach.
While Tuchel expressed clear frustration, should Chelsea fans also be concerned as the Premier League season draws closer? The Sporting News takes a closer look at the alarming parts of Chelsea's preseason performances and the portions that could serve to dampen the concern.
MORE: Chelsea news & rumors for summer 2022 transfer window
What did Thomas Tuchel say after Arsenal preseason loss?
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was extremely sour after a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of London rivals Arsenal in Orlando.
"I am far from relaxed," Tuchel said when asked how to evaluate the preseason loss given that these early games are meant to be warm-ups and tangibly count for little. "We deserved to lose, which is fair enough because we were simply not good enough, we were absolutely not competitive."
Tuchel slams 'commitment' from Chelsea players
"I think the worrying part is the level of commitment physically and mentally for this match was not the same, it was far higher for them than for us," he said.
"I cannot guarantee [that we will be ready at the start of the season]. I saw today a team from Arsenal that was mentally committed. They have an idea of how to play, committed to the level of being exhausted from a physical commitment that we could not match, and also a level of mental commitment which we lack because we have a lot of players that think about leaving and look for other options, and this for me is obvious."
Tuchel asks for more incoming transfers
Tuchel continued to speak about the state of the squad and his evaluation from last season to this season. "Unfortunately, [this game] proved my point, the last week proves my point. I would prefer not to be right, and I did everything to prove myself wrong, but at this moment I feel I was right when I looked at last season and the parts of the season where we struggled.
"We had an urgent appeal for quality players and a huge amount of quality players. We got two quality players in, there's no doubt, but we are not competitive like this, and unfortunately we could see it today."
Tuchel displeased by sputtering attack
A theme that arose during the draw with Charlotte FC came to a head again as Tuchel bemoaned the lack of finishing quality chances. Against Arsenal, it went a step further, as the Blues failed to really even generate many clear opportunities.
"In the first half, it was hard to escape in a productive way from our own half, and to play in the opponent's half," Tuchel said after the Arsenal loss. "But the amount of dangerous situations, the amount of one-against-ones, the amount of speed and acceleration in the second half, where we dominated the game and were the better team from the whistle... but in their first dangerous situation they scored, and we did not have many dangerous situations although we were the better team.
"But listen, it's the same players [as last season], so why should things change? Hopefully we will see development, but at the moment we have the same issues because we have the same players."
Tuchel believes Arsenal are better, thinks preseason struggles a worrying sign
When asked about how Chelsea stack up against Man City and Liverpool, who finished above them in the table last season, Tuchel wouldn't even play ball. The German refused to look ahead, instead wishing to look back over his shoulder at Arsenal, the club that finished fifth in last season's standings.
"Given the last two weeks and given our last week, and given the game today, we should not mention the two teams [that finished] in front of us. We got absolutely beaten by a team that does not play Champions League next season and is behind us but seems at the moment far ahead of us."
Tuchel later went on to say that a quality preseason often leads to a quality season, and vice versa. When asked how much a preseason influences how a season plays out, he said: "I don't know if I ever lost a match in preseason, I cannot remember winning two matches in a row in preseason. I am a huge fan of a strong preseason, for everything... for the atmosphere, for the feeling, for the performance, for the belief."
MORE: Chelsea falls hard in preseason finale after 4-0 Arsenal thrashing
Why Chelsea fans should be worried for the coming season
Tuchel had very strong and pointed comments for the club after a difficult preseason tour in the United States that took the club from Las Vegas to Charlotte to Orlando.
Last season's third-place finishers have failed to provide in preseason the hope that the 19-point gap from last campaign has closed in any capacity. A come-from-behind victory over Club America in Sin City gave way to a draw with Charlotte FC (technically a loss on penalties) and a 4-0 drubbing by Arsenal.
Chelsea attack feels stunted
Against Charlotte FC in the second preseason match, the Blues held the majority of possession throughout the game, even with the full-scale halftime substitutions. Yet despite this, a patchwork Charlotte FC squad was able to lock down the Chelsea attack with relative ease. Only a deflected effort that fortuitously fell to the feet of Christian Pulisic resulted in a goal.
When Chelsea did have chances, they failed to take advantage, with three different Charlotte goalkeepers making great saves from point-blank range. Against Arsenal, it was more of the same as Mason Mount pinged a shot off the crossbar with one of the few Chelsea openings of the first half.
In the second half, Tuchel's frustration was clear as the team failed to generate clear opportunities despite dominating possession. Pulisic, who played the first half against Charlotte and was effective, played the second 45 minutes against Arsenal and failed to stand out in any capacity.
The Blues' attacking talent last season failed to impress on the whole, and that again seems the case as this season draws closer. Tuchel said himself, why should things change when the players are the same? It's hard to argue with the boss when the preseason results play out exactly as he claims they would in the press room.
Tuchel frustrated with effort & commitment
While the opinion of one man does not always accurately reflect the entire squad's performance, Tuchel's consistent issue with the effort of the players is a worrying sign.
Following the Arsenal match, Tuchel slammed the team's "commitment" in the run-up to the fixture, and that wasn't the first time he had strummed that chord. Following the draw with Charlotte, Tuchel said, "It was not good at all. Not offensively, not structure-wise, not in effort, hunger to be the dominant team. It was not good enough."
Tuchel has played this card before, both at Chelsea and in charge of other clubs, and it has often been an early sign of his eventual departure. Still, he's not fully off the mark with his concern that multiple players have seen their heads turned to greener pastures. Antonio Rudiger, Romelu Lukaku, and Andreas Christensen have already departed this summer, and the futures of Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta are very much in doubt. Still further, the likes of Pulisic, Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, N'Golo Kante, and Ross Barkley have all been linked to other clubs at various points this offseason. Squad cohesion is a real issue at the moment for Chelsea.
MORE: A full recap of the Chelsea preseason U.S. tour
Players performing better outside Tuchel's system than in it
The match against Charlotte FC was a perfect example of how Thomas Tuchel can stunt a team's ability to perform. Pulisic, who played the first half and scored the team's only goal, submitted the team's best performance of the evening.
The only issue: Pulisic was deployed centrally as a No. 10, which is not a position he would normally be utilized in under Tuchel's typical 3-4-2-1 system.
In that game, Michy Batshuayi was ahead of Pulisic as a lone striker, but was afforded the freedom to drop deep in possession and see Pulisic overlap, which worked to devastating effect at times. Ziyech also fed off this in a wider role, able to either feed in balls from the left flank or cut in while Alonso overlapped.
None of this would normally be how a Thomas Tuchel team operates, and the German's inflexibility will likely keep these performances bottled up in preseason. The squad feels unsuited to the manager's insistence on playing his style, which presented problems last season and could be an issue again this year.
Chelsea defence is in utter chaos
Despite the positive addition of Kalidou Koulibaly, the Chelsea defence is a bit of a shambles thanks to a summer transfer window that has been, to this point, a net negative on the Blues' back line.
Rudiger and Christensen left, while Alonso and Azpilicueta are likely to depart, leaving just Thiago Silva, Malang Sarr, and Trevoh Chalobah as the only natural centre-backs on the roster with any significant experience of top-flight football. Koulibaly's arrival has eased that situation somewhat, but still the defensive unit is in disarray.
Attempts to secure a transfer for Nathan Ake fell apart, and the Jules Kounde saga has drawn out, leaving a defensive unit that could enter the season either inexperienced, without chemistry, or both. Against Charlotte, Reece James and Emerson Palmieri both played centre-back alongside Silva through the first half.
The full-back situation is equally as concerning, with Ben Chilwell and James both struggling with injuries through last season, and only Emerson settled behind them to provide cover, with Alonso pushing to leave.
A back line takes time to mesh, and usually preseason can provide a ground for easing that concern, but still without any real answers, the defensive unit looks a real worry.
Why Chelsea fans should feel comfortable for the coming season
While preseason struggles can provide a sense of doom and gloom amongst the fanbase, it's also important to remember that it is only preseason.
The extensive travel and humid weather conditions are certainly factors. Arsenal were afforded a pair of games in Orlando, only traveling from Baltimore after the July 16 win over Everton. The Blues, meanwhile, went from Las Vegas to Charlotte to Orlando within a seven-day span, a brutal stretch of travel and weather.
Additionally, there were some positives to be taken from the trip, despite the results.
MORE: Chelsea falls to Charlotte FC on penalty shootout after late capitulation
New players Sterling and Koulibaly look quality additions
Raheem Sterling has been unable to find the back of the net since arriving with the squad mid-preseason, but his addition is still looking a high-quality one. Against Charlotte, Sterling was Chelsea's best attacker through the second half, and he would have scored had Charlotte's third goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega not made a fantastic stop. His acceleration, drive, and pace against Charlotte took advantage of the space afforded and should have generated more quality chances had his second-half teammates not failed to rise to the occasion.
Kalidou. 👊#BluesInTheUSA pic.twitter.com/PClALQRxnM
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 20, 2022
Additionally, Koulibaly made his Chelsea debut against Arsenal, on as a second-half substitute for the Blues. Tuchel hailed the new arrival as "the best player on the pitch," which is a glowing stamp of approval even if it's slightly overblown.
Finishing problems are often short-term
Being clinical in front of net is a key part of an attack's ability to bear the fruits of their labour, but it is also a fickle skillset that can appear and, consequently, disappear without warning. Creating chances is often just as — if not more — important to evaluating the success of a team's forward unit.
For example, last year's title-winners Man City out-performed their expected goals total by about 5.6, meaning their quality finishing earned them five goals more than they should realistically have been expected to score, likely the difference in winning the title. However, Liverpool, who finished just a single point behind, out-performed their expected goals total by just 0.98. The Reds are considered an attacking menace, but their calling card is an overwhelming number of chances, not necessarily a flurry of quality finishing.
All this is to say, teams can be great without necessitating great finishing. Therefore, Chelsea's struggles in front of net across preseason is not of grave concern, and while the attack does look disjointed at times as mentioned above, this is a problem that will likely progress back to the mean in time.
The critical players are still performing well
While the Chelsea attack is sputtering and the defence is chaotic, the Chelsea midfield is still performing at a high level.
Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic looked excellent throughout multiple preseason matches, and the great Kante will link up with the squad shortly after failing to travel due to vaccination status. While it will take Kante some time to gain match fitness without a preseason tour, the rest on his legs could be a long-term positive for an injury-prone player.
Mason Mount was also a critical component of Chelsea's buildup through preseason, and even young Billy Gilmour and Connor Gallagher had quality moments through the U.S. tour. There are plenty of issues surrounding this Chelsea squad, but the midfield is not one of them.
Chelsea in Premier League 2022/23 TV channels, live streams
| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| TV channel | Sky Sports, BT Sport | USA Network, Telemundo, Universo | — | — |
| Streaming | NOW TV, Sky Go, Amazon Prime | fuboTV, Peacock | fuboTV | Optus Sport |
UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and BT Sport streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.
USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on fuboTV. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.
Canada: Every Premier League game streams live and on demand exclusively via fuboTV.
Australia: Fans in Australia can stream matches live and on demand on Optus Sport.
