It’s fair to say a lot is going on at Chelsea right now. As the fixtures started piling up in November and December, injuries started plaguing the squad. Soon, a covid outbreak further depleted the roster. Simultaneously, a loss in form at the back prevented Chelsea from picking up some vital points. As if that wasn’t enough, Romelu Lukaku’s recent revelations didn’t do the squad any good.
During this run, Chelsea’s home form has suffered the most. Even though they didn’t lose any, draws against Burnley, Everton and Brighton were disappointing because they were leading in those games. However, one problem that is silently hurting Chelsea long before the season started is their home form against the Big Six. Since beating Man City 2-1 in June 2020, a result that handed Liverpool their first Premier League title, the Blues have failed to beat any of the so called Big Six clubs at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea and their Stamford Bridge struggles
| # | Team | Pl | W | D | L | +/- | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Liverpool | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 18-13 | +5 | 15 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 15-5 | +10 | 13 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 9 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 11-12 | -1 | 13 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 11-16 | -5 | 13 |
| 5 | Manchester United | 8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 6-20 | -14 | 5 |
| 6 | Chelsea | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4-10 | -6 | 4 |
As you can see, Chelsea rank bottom in this table. Despite getting thrashed by Liverpool and Spurs in that time, Man United are above Chelsea. At the other end, Man City and Liverpool, Chelsea’s two title rivals, are top in this regard. Even the likes of Arsenal and Spurs are above them – those two are battling for top four. If Chelsea are to become genuine title contenders, they need to quickly overturn this barren run.
Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Liverpool was a spectacular affair in which Chelsea demonstrated fighting spirit. Liverpool threatened to run away after Mo Salah scored the second, but they fought back to ensure a share of spoils. While drawing against a team like Liverpool isn’t a bad result, in the grand scheme of things, it felt like one.
Both teams left the match disappointed, knowing that the title might now have slipped from their grasp. City are 10 points ahead of Chelsea, and 11 ahead of Liverpool although the Reds have a game in hand. Even so, it’s hard to see City dropping eight points in the remaining games. Even if they do, their rivals will need to take maximum points from their games to make it interesting. It’s a big ask.