[Sport] Abraham's goal drought, Willian's future and the burning questions Chelsea must answer as the Premier League restarts

[The GodFather]

 

 

The Blues are nicely placed to qualify for the Champions League but their top-four hopes are likely to hinge on their top scorer's frame of mind
When Chelsea take to the field to face Aston Villa on Sunday, it will have been 105 days since their last competitive fixture.

A lot has changed in the interim. The coronavirus pandemic has devastated the entire world, impacting every aspect of society.

English football is ready to resume and it certainly won't feel the same as before. For starters, there will be no fans, with all Premier League games set to be played behind closed doors until the end of the 2019-20 season.

Chelsea have little time to ponder the new reality, though. Frank Lampard and his players will have to adjust, as they have a job to do: qualify for next season's Champions League.

It's not going to be easy, either. Chelsea may currently sit fourth in the Premier League standings but their cushion is by no means comfortable.

 

Fifth-placed Manchester United are just three points behind, while even Arsenal down in ninth will believe that they can overhaul the Blues, whom the Gunners trail by just eight points having played one game fewer.

Chelsea also have several burning questions to address as the season resumes...

Are Chelsea's young guns fighting for their futures?
Little was expected of Chelsea when the season began. They had a new, inexperienced coach who had been unable to strengthen his squad because of the club's transfer ban.

A 4-0 loss to Manchester United on the opening weekend of the new campaign seemed to confirm the fans' worst fears: this would be a long, tough year of transition.

However, it's been an enjoyable ride so far for the Stamford Bridge faithful. Lampard's willingness to put his faith in the club's outstanding academy reaped dividends.

Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham played pivotal roles in propelling Chelsea into the top four by October, while Fikayo Tomori, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Reece James all featured regularly.

 

The emergence of Billy Gilmour earlier this year only solidified the perception that the Blues boasted a crop of potential world-beaters.

However, while Abraham is Chelsea's top scorer, the goals had dried up long before the suspension of play caused by Covid-19. Mount had also been struggling for some time and was being harshly criticised by some sections of the crowd.

In addition, James and Hudson-Odoi were hindered by injuries, while Tomori fell out of favour.

The hope, of course, is that Lampard has made good use of the time off by restoring the confidence of his young players while at the same time impressing upon them the importance of recapturing their best form.

 

Indeed, they won't just be fighting for Champions League football; many of them will be fighting for their futures at the club.

Chelsea have already re-established themselves as a major player in the transfer market by finalising deals with Ajax ace Hakim Ziyech and RB Leipzig hotshot Timo Werner for next season.

Abraham, Mount and the rest of Chelsea's young guns need to fire Chelsea to a top-four finish. If they don't, they could well be deemed surplus to requirements.

How will Abraham react to Werner deal?
Ziyech and Werner represent excellent deals for Chelsea. They should provide the kind of creativity and incision that Lampard's side has lacked this season.

The only issue is that neither will play any part in the current campaign, meaning the emphasis is the current squad to start scoring more goals.

Some players are doing their bit.

Defender Marcos Alonso has netted four times in 11 Premier League appearances but as Lampard said after the Spaniard's double against Bournemouth in February, "I don't want my left-back top of the scoring charts. I want our attackers scoring goals and they haven't been."

Indeed, Abraham may have 13 Premier League goals but he has struck just twice since the middle of December. Not one other Blue has contributed more than six goals; Olivier Giroud, Michy Batshuayi, Hudson-Odoi and Pedro have just five between them.

 

 

Uncertainty reigns, then, but there is no denying that Chelsea do carry a genuine attacking threat, as underlined by victories over London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham.

However, they have struggled to break down teams that defend deep and while losing to counter-attacking specialists like Man United is one thing, dropping points to relegation-threatened teams such West Ham, Bournemouth and Newcastle is quite another.

Clearly, there are some tactical issues there for Lampard to address but he also needs his forwards to start creating and taking more chances, chief among them Abraham.

Chelsea's Champions League qualification hopes hinge upon how he reacts to the news of Werner's imminent arrival.

Can Chelsea's fit-again stars make instant impact?
Chelsea produced arguably the most complete performance of the season just before the suspension of football, when they routed Everton 4-0 at Stamford Bridge.