Chelsea: A Turnaround, Or A One-Off?

Last night’s FA Cup replay certainly didn’t follow the script most of us had expected.

So far this season Aston Villa have been the pleasant surprise, hanging in near the top of the Premier league table (currently sitting 4th and just 5 points off leaders Liverpool), whereas Chelsea – one of the perceived Big Six – have struggled down in 11th and a full 20 points off the top, which followed a season where they were (only for a very short period and still very unlikely situation of) being in a relegation battle.

Such has been the season the London club have had so far, in recent games fans had been singing for previous owner Roman Abramovich and even former two-time manager Jose Mourinho. Even after the first few minutes of last night’s FA Cup replay, it wouldn’t have been a surprise to hear the Chelsea fans start up with those chants again.

Until, the 9th minute. Suddenly, a switch was flicked, and Chelsea seemed like the club of old again.

Not only did they get their first goal, but it was just a few moments later they doubled up. Not even 20 minutes played, and Chelsea were 2-0 up against a club who’ve done incredible things so far this season – having only lost twice in all competitions at home since August. Here they were though, outclassed by Chelsea.

It wasn’t just a flash in the pan moment though – it remained as such for the rest of the game, including a goal of the season contender in Enzo Fernandez’s free kick early in the second half that made it 3-0. Villa would get a consolation goal in injury time, but it was never going to be enough. Chelsea controlled this game for almost the entirety of it.

So the question now is – after a performance like this – can they keep it up? They’ve lost their last two Premier League games and need to turn things around, especially with the League Cup Final coming up against Liverpool at the end of the month. Was it a one-off, or is it the desperate change Chelsea needed?

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Ashley