Make Or Break

Chelsea face fairytale Bournemouth on the weekend, and there is more at stake than the three points.

Bournemouth need those three points as desperately as Chelsea do, but they haven’t got nearly as much to lose. Already on par with clubs in a fight for survival, Chelsea have a reputation to salvage and a massive repair job on their hands.

But with the transfer season nigh, this game against a minnow is pivotal if it ends in a loss. What player can Chelsea coerce into signing midway through a Titanic-esque season? The amount of pressure to perform would be immense if we were to sign someone world-class. And if we sign an up-and-comer, the only bargaining chips available are past glories and irresistible wages.

No player in their right mind would come onto a sinking ship, especially if they’re one of the hottest talents being touted around Europe. For one thing, if their performances are not up to scratch they will be benched faster than a Diego Costa temper tantrum. Who knows what great players are hidden in Chelsea’s loan army or the spectators’ bench behind the gaffer? Perhaps Bertrand Traoré is our saviour. Or the newly reinvigorated Juan Cuadrado. We will never know.

Jose Mourinho has a managerial style of selecting players by a sort of default decision making. He gets his mind fixed on things, and if he perceives a player to be risky he won’t even consider selecting them. He is so resistant to the possibility of injecting fresh blood into his team that he will crowbar his trusted players into positions they don’t belong in. It’s this same blind trust that very well could prohibit any new signings in January.

Let’s assume Chelsea do lose; will it be the straw that breaks the camel’s back? Would that be the moment where things really have become unacceptable? Would it cause a mass exodus of players and staff? Are Chelsea overrated and for how long has this charade been going on?

Roman Abramovich is said to be a cool operator, and never hasty with his decisions. Though surely even he must know the most reasonable finishing position this season is 7th, and that’s playing every remaining game like a cup final.

But if one of the richest football clubs in the world- one that has ascended into the stratosphere off the rocket fuel of a billion rubles, one that has worldwide recognition, one of the most elite sporting bodies- were to lose to a promoted team with an 11,700 capacity stadium then the year 2015 will leave an indelible mark on our club, our fans, our future, and most painfully: our pride.