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It was just less than 10 days ago that the Stamford Bridge crowd lost trust with their manager. During their FA Cup defeat to Manchester United, the Chelsea fanbase had made their thoughts about their new coach vividly clear. The agitation and frustration were clear to see for anyone watching. With the club's history under Roman Abramovich, there was no doubt that Maurizio Sarri's job was under threat.
Since then, things hardly got better at Chelsea since then. Last Friday, FIFA confirmed a transfer ban on Chelsea. The club saw even bigger drama on the holy turf of Wembley on Sunday. In an unprecedented act, Chelsea's record signing Kepa Arrizibalaga refused to be substituted leading to a massive on-pitch drama with the manager visibly not delighted.
On the pitch or off the pitch, nothing looked bright for Chelsea going to their home game vs Tottenham. Be it the player's attitude, manager's position at a club or the structure at the board level, absolutely everything looked out of place for Chelsea going to the match against their biggest rivals. It was just a big derby game for Chelsea but arguably their most important of the season. A loss at Stamford Bridge could have meant not only the end of their top four hopes but also Maurizio Sarri's reign at Chelsea.
Going into the game, The Chelsea head coach made a big call. As a punishment for his acts in the League Cup final, he dropped his number one goalkeeper for Willy Caballero. The Italian sent a message to his players on his authority at the club. The football world had their eyes to see how it pans out. A mistake by the Argentine between the sticks would have left Sarri with a lot to explain. Another interesting thing to look out for was about how will the rest of the team react to the situation.
However, the Chelsea turned up under the lights at Stamford Bridge. Right from the get-go, there was an intensity and desire in every Chelsea player. The Blues started the game with intent and showed they were still playing for their manager. There were brief moments in the game when Tottenham looked in the ascendancy but the Blues held on. Ultimately, the goals did arrive for the hosts through Pedro and a hilarious own goal by Kieran Trippier. In front of their fans, Chelsea had reignited their hopes for a Champions League finish. For the first time since Mauricio Pochettino took charge at White Hart Lane, Tottenham failed to register a shot on target in a Premier League game. After everything the club has been through, this was a victory the fans badly needed.
While fans will be cautious about it being a one-off, this was performance was a similar one to the one they produced against Manchester City. Due to the result and the Kepa incident, Chelsea's bright display at Wembley was forgotten about. Over the course of the 120 minutes, one can argue that Chelsea was unlucky to not win. There was a massive difference in how Chelsea played from their 6-0 humiliation against the same opponent only two weeks ago.
It is these performances that will give Chelsea a lot of hope. A lot of criticism was directed at Maurizio Sarri for not adapting but over the last two matches he did. In his own words "Chelsea pressed lower". This does mean that the former Napoli manager gave up on his philosophy. The only difference was that the Blues pressing was a little deeper on the pitch. Instead of trying to win the ball in the final third, the Blues did so in the middle third. In both matches, Sarri set his team up in a way to not let his teams exposed defensively. The fact that Chelsea did not concede a goal against two of the best teams in England over 210 minutes speaks volumes.
However, the biggest difference was in the players' approach. This group of players has been accused of "being hard to motivate" by their manager. Even the club's fans have doubted their commitment on more than one occasion. Despite those claims, the players have proven themselves in the last four days. Not anyone associated with Chelsea can doubt their passion over the last two matches. It is fair to say that in both the matches, the players gave everything they could for the cause.
Chelsea fans will be right to claim that they got their team as they know back over the last week. Every Stamford Bridge faithful will know that the team is far from perfect and a lot has to change for them to bring their golden days back. However, what will please them is that over the two games, the team has shown the qualities a Chelsea side should be all about. Sarri's side has shown a lot of grit, determination, and fight for the badge. This is something that defined Chelsea over the last decade and more. A last-ditch tackle by Pedro in Chelsea's box minutes after scoring summed up Chelsea's spirit.
The Blues have historically been a side that is known to make things tough for each and every opponent but these characteristics have been missing of late. Even in the toughest times, Chelsea has always managed to get improbable results against the big sides. Knowing that these qualities are still alive in the team will come as a source of great relief to most around. If only a couple of the matches, at least the team has made the fans proud of them again.
It looks like Maurizio Sarri has saved his job for now. However, he will know that there is still a long way to go for his team. The first job on his hand is to ensure this is not false dawn and ensure the players can give such performances regularly. The real test is to show the same resolve against the so-called smaller sides too.
Moreover, they need to build from here and consolidate for a strong finish to the season. Ultimately, results will speak and consistency is something Chelsea have lacked this season. Now, they have a platform to build on and they must not let it go.
