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Five things... Chelsea are copying from Leicester's title triumph
1 Italian job
Chelsea are going to win the league the season. No one wants to hear that kind of thing just before Christmas, but it’s a painful truth we’re all going to have to accept. Just like finding out Santa isn’t real. The league table is one reason to back the Blues, but it’s not just about current form. There are also several parallels with last year’s surprise champions Leicester City that bode well for the boys from Stamford Bridge. The first is the man at the top. Just like the Foxes last season, Chelsea appointed a wily Italian manager in the summer and asked him to turn a dishevelled rabble into a cohesive unit. And just like Claudio Ranieri, Antonio Conte has used his wily Italianness to achieve that aim far quicker, and far more skilfully, than anyone could have dreamed possible.
2 Settled side
When Leicester were promoted from the Championship in 2014, the most famous man in their squad was Paul Konchesky. Nowadays, everyone can name the starting XI that won them the title - because it was the same team every week. All together now: Schmeichel, Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs, Mahrez, Kante, Drinkwater, Albrighton, Okazaki, Vardy. This wasn’t just good management; it was mainly good luck. A lack of injuries allowed Ranieri to repeatedly select the same line-up and maintain the Foxes’ momentum. Similarly, Chelsea have the most settled side in the Premier League this season. Since Conte switched to a 3-4-3 system eight games ago, he has made just two changes: Pedro came in for Willian in the second of those games, while Cesc Fabregas replaced the injured Nemanja Matic in their last match against Manchester City. Conte, like Ranieri last year, is one of the few bosses in the division who knows his best team: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill, Moses, Kante, Matic, Alonso, Hazard, Pedro, Costa. It might not be the best side in the top flight on paper, but nor was Leicester’s. The key thing is that they stick together.
3 N'Golo Kante
But none of this would matter were it not for one special man. Since arriving in England in 2015, N'Golo Kante has spent more time on top of the Premier League table than any other living organism. His importance to Leicester has been highlighted by their slump without him (and only him; all the other 10 players in that famous XI are still at the King Power). Meanwhile, Chelsea have been transformed by his selfless running and relentless ball-winning. Such is the strength of the magnet drawing Kante towards the summit, it’s tempting to wonder whether Swansea or Sunderland would be top right now if they’d paid £30m for him in the summer. Instead, it was Roman Abramovich who shelled out a price that already looks a bargain.
4 No distractions
Everyone laughed at Chelsea when they failed to qualify for the Champions League last season, and they laughed even harder when the Blues couldn’t even make it into the Europa League. But that ugly 10th-placed finish is starting to look a lot prettier. The Blues have played 17 matches this season, whereas fellow title favourites Manchester City have already racked up 24. Last season, Leicester’s leisurely schedule was one of their greatest advantages over more prestigious opponents who were playing in Europe. It’s taken a freakishly bad season at Stamford Bridge to give Chelsea the same upper hand this year. The Blues even got themselves knocked out of the EFL Cup early doors. They’re fighting on one front, and they can give it everything.
5 Celebrity backing
It seemed as if Leicester’s title triumph was written in the stars from the moment Gary Lineker declared he would present Match of the Day in his pants if the unthinkable happened, which it duly did. But if any team can harness the power of celebrity support, it’s Chelsea. The club’s traditional connection with London’s fashionable high rollers attracts all manner of famous faces to the Bridge. Chelsea’s celeb fans are frequently unpleasant - George Osborne, David Mellor, Tim Lovejoy etc. - but they do have clout. All it needs is for an A-list Blue to make a wacky pledge - e.g. Jeremy Clarkson promises to donate all his earnings from the Grand Tour to the Kick it Out campaign - and the ensuing media juggernaut would be unstoppable.
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