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While The Blues avoided a total demolition of their chances of ending up in the top eight of the European competition group stage, they executed a targeted blow on their own chances of waltzing straight into the round of 16. Naturally, the good news is that in the short one-year history of the recently revamped competition, securing a top-eight finish may not be as crucial as it seems.

The Core Problem: A Monotonous Inconsistency

Sadly for Stamford Bridge regulars, the sole predictable element about the Chelsea team is a monotonously predictable inconsistency, which has been widely discussed since their defeat in Bergamo. After seemingly confirming their quality with an commanding victory of a European giant, and then a bad-tempered draw with Arsenal, the team have been stuffed by Leeds, played out a snoozy stalemate at Bournemouth and have now been beaten by a mid-table side from Serie A.

While pundits have been quick to lay the blame on a team selection approach that appears to see Enzo Maresca change his lineup incessantly, the manager maintains that, injuries and suspensions aside, the nucleus of his starting lineup for games against strong opposition is largely set in stone.

“In my view tonight, first XI, we had on the field eight, nine players that play against Spurs, they play against Barca, they played against Wolverhampton, Arsenal,” he droned. “There were most of the regulars that are the ones playing every time for matches of this magnitude. So if you see the five changes that we did compared to Bournemouth game, it’s different.”

What Comes Next

To have any realistic chance of escaping the additional knockout round, Chelsea will have to win their final two group games. First up, they host this season’s surprise package Pafos, before heading back to Italy to face the Italian title holders, Napoli.

“Victories in both are required, otherwise, we will face the extra round and then progress to the next round,” remarked the Italian coach, whose following fixture is a game against an Everton team whose recent consistency has propelled them to the dizzy heights of the top half in the Premier League.

Other Notes

Quote of the Day: “It's interesting, it’s somewhat ironic because his biggest dream was me turning pro in golf. That was his biggest dream. So when I was 10, he pushed me to start on golf. So I practiced every week from when I was 10 to 13” – Erling Haaland explained how, had his dad got his way, he could have been teeing off rather than tearing it up in the top flight.

Fan Correspondence

“Well, no wonder Wolves are in such a sad state. As any longtime reader of this column will know, the only effective pre-match protests involve marching from a public house that the supporters intended to visit anyway, to the stadium 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 note that one correspondent not only got the previous letter o’ the day, but also a name check in another reader's letter. On a night where both clubs from Sheffield once more dropped points after leading, I am wondering: could Sheffield be proving that the regularity of representation in your mailbag is inversely related to the success of anything our teams are accomplishing on the field?” – another fan.