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While Chelsea avoided a total demolition of their chances of ending up in the top eight of the continental tournament group stage, they executed a precise, surgical strike on their own chances of strolling directly into the round of 16. Naturally, the good news is that in the short one-year history of the new and not-necessarily-improved competition, securing a top-eight finish may not be as crucial as it seems.

The Core Problem: A Monotonous Lack of Consistency

Sadly for Stamford Bridge regulars, the sole predictable element about Enzo Maresca’s side is a monotonously predictable lack of consistency, which has been much remarked upon following their loss in Italy. Since apparently rubber-stamping their quality with an impressive beat-down of Barcelona, and then a feisty stalemate with Arsenal, Chelsea have been defeated by a Championship side, played out a snoozy stalemate at the south coast club and have now lost against a mid-table side from Italy's top flight.

Although critics have been quick to lay the blame on a team selection approach that seems to see the coach change his lineup incessantly, the Chelsea head coach insists that, knack and naughty step permitting, the core of his first eleven for big matches is mostly fixed.

“In my view tonight, first XI, we had inside the pitch the majority of the team that featured against Tottenham, they play against Barcelona, they play against Wolves, Arsenal,” he droned. “We had eight, nine players that are the ones playing every time for matches of this magnitude. So if you see the five changes that we did compared to previous game, it’s different.”

The Path Forward

For a genuine opportunity of avoiding the additional knockout round, Chelsea will have to be victorious in their final two group games. First up, they host this season’s surprise package a Cypriot team, before heading back to Italy to face the Serie A champions, the Neapolitan side.

“Victories in both are required, if not, we try to play the extra round and then go to the following stage,” sniffed Maresca, whose next appointment is a game against an Everton team whose current form has propelled them to the dizzy heights of the top half in the domestic league.

Side Stories

Notable Comment: “You know, it’s actually funny because his biggest dream was me becoming a professional golfer. That was his biggest dream. So when I was 10, he forced me to take up golf. So I practiced every week from when I was 10 to 13” – Erling Haaland revealed how, had his dad got his way, he could have been on the golf course rather than tearing it up in the Premier League.

Fan Correspondence

“So, no wonder Wolves are in such a sad state. As any regular reader of this column will know, the only effective pre-match protests involve walking from a public house that the supporters planned to be at anyway, to the ground that they were always going to. Just showing up 10 minutes late? That’s how long it takes fans to get to their seats anyway” – a correspondent.

“I see that one correspondent not only got the previous letter o’ the day, but also a mention in a separate letter. On a night where both clubs from Sheffield once more surrendered points after leading, I am wondering: could the city be proving that the regularity of representation in your mailbag is inversely related to the value of anything our teams are accomplishing on the field?” – a different supporter.