Ex-Chelsea players sold under Mourinho excel while Blues' crisis worsens

After slumping to their 6th defeat in their opening 11 fixtures with a 3-1 loss to Liverpool Saturday, Chelsea's coaching staff met at the center circle of the Stamford Bridge pitch for an impromptu emergency meeting. With their season in disarray and the possibility of a top four finish looking increasingly unlikely,

The crisis has largely been of his own making. His paranoid insistence that there's a league-wide conspiracy against Chelsea was largely viewed in the media as an ingenious means to deflect attention from his players and create an 'us against the world' mentality last season when things were going well. But in a difficult period his bizarre antics do little to bring calm to the club- they provide momentum to a feeling of increasing panic.

Mourinho's behavior and its impact on his squad has been discussed at length in recent weeks. What has been talked about slightly less during Chelsea's tumultuous start to the season are the players that Mourinho has let go since returning to Chelsea in the summer of 2013 who have gone on to enjoy success elsewhere. Chelsea's core of players that won them the league look a shell of themselves this time around and they don't have the depth to really change things up. Mourinho bemoaned the clubs lack of transfer activity over the summer- Pedro was their only really big signing- but he should be criticized for letting some remarkably talented players leave.

After another underwhelming performance yesterday Eden Hazard was replaced in the second half by the talented yet unproven 19 year old Kenedy. Meanwhile Kevin De Bruyne, who Mourinho sold to Wolfsburg in January 2014, has become the second most expensive player in Premier League history after his £54.5m to Manchester City. De Bruyne produced a remarkable 10 goals and 20 assists in the Bundesliga last season and has already contributed 3 goals and 4 assists in just 7 league appearances at City thus far. 

Mohamed Salah was signed by Mourinho in January 2014 after he ripped the Blues apart earlier in the season in a Champions League game for Basel. Mourinho never put any faith in the Egyptian winger however and he made just 13 league appearances for the club before being loaned to Fiorentina for the second half of last season. He was subsequently sold to Roma over the summer. Salah scored 6 goals and added 3 assists during his time at Fiorentina and has already scored 5 at Roma this campaign.

Mourinho allowed the Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku to be sold to Everton in the summer of 2014 after he spent the 2013-2014 season on loan there. At the time the £28m pound fee Chelsea received seemed like an intelligent bit of business as Diego Costa enjoyed a fine first season at Stamford Bridge and Lukaku struggled to match his form from the 2013-14 season. However, Lukaku has been brilliant this season having already netted 6 goals and provided 4 assists. It's easy to forget that he's still just 22. Surely he'd offer far more coming off the bench than Loic Remy or Falcao and although he doesn't ave the same tenacity and physicality Mourinho admires in Costa, he is a more polished and technically gifted footballer. His 1 goal and 2 assist performance in Everton's 6-2 win over Sunderland today showed his range of qualities- his outside of the left foot cross for Arouna Kone's third was simply outstanding.

The Blues have also lacked creativity and a midfielder that can provide penetrating through balls as Cesc Fabregas's form has taken a nosedive. Juan Mata is a player with loads of creativity that moves intelligently into pockets of space and can pick out a pass to unlock defenses. He was of course offloaded to Manchester United because of what Mourinho viewed as his defensive frailties. It's difficult to imagine he could possibly be any worse at defending than Fabregas. Mata currently has 3 goals and 3 assists having started every league match for a side that boasts the Premier League's best defensive record- his defensive frailties clearly haven't hurt United too much.  Meanwhile only Norwich and Sunderland have conceded more than Chelsea.

Mata, De Bruyne, Lukaku and Salah make 4 ex-Chelsea players that have been sold under Mourinho who this season have combined for 17 league goals and 11 league assists. Mata has 3 goals and 3 assists, Lukaku has 6 goals and 4 assists, De Bruyne has 3 goals and 4 assists and Salah has 5 goals. Chelsea don't have a player with more than 2 goals or 2 assists.

De Bruyne, Salah and Lukaku are all 24 years old or younger. At Chelsea Fabregas is 28, Willian is 27, Pedro is 28, Diego Costa is 27, Nemanja Matic is 27, Falcao is 29 and Loic Remy is 28. While none of these Chelsea players are especially old they are all towards the latter years of being at their physical peak. In selling Salah, De Bruyne and Lukaku at such a young age Mourinho has let go of three players that could potentially have 6 to 7 more seasons at their very best.

Mourinho has relied on proven, experienced stars at every club he's managed since his first spell at Chelsea. While it's impossible to argue with his success accumulating trophies his long term planning is questionable. Perhaps he knows he won't stay at one place long and is therefore focused on achieving success immediately at any cost. But in De Bruyne, Mata, Salah and Lukaku he has sold four players that could be making a big difference at Stamford Bridge right now.

Three key tactical questions to consider ahead of Manchester City vs. Chelsea

In just the second week of the Premier League season the fixture list has provided us with a clash between two expected title contenders in Chelsea and Manchester City. Both contests between these two sides ended in 1-1 draws last season. The first was an entertaining affair, capped off by Frank Lampard scoring the equalizer for Manchester City, who had been reduced to 10 men after Pablo Zabaleta was sent off, against his old club five minutes from injury time. The second was a far more cagey, dull encounter- Chelsea were missing both Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa through injury and were content playing for a draw that left them with a five point lead at the top of the table. Frankly I could see this one going either way in terms of entertainment value. Perhaps given where we're at in the season Mourinho will direct his side to play adventurously since a loss won't be the end of the world but you'd never put it past him to make this one cagey, especially since Chelsea will be desperate not to allow a rival to gain a 5 point advantage in the table, even if it still mid August.

Here are three important tactical questions to consider ahead of Sunday's contest.

Can Ivanovic contain Sterling after opening week difficulties defending Swansea's pacey Montero?

Branislav Ivanovic had one of his most difficult matches in a Chelsea shirt in last Sunday's opener against Swansea. Swans' phenomenally pacey winger Jefferson Montero was able to beat Ivanovic off the dribble time and again, either getting to the endline to provide crosses for striker Bafetimbi Gomis or cutting inside to shoot. After dribbling past Ivanovic in the first half he provided the cross for a Gomis header that Thibaut Courtois could only parry into the path of Jordan Ayew who finished to put Swansea on level terms. In the second half Montero forced a couple of fine saves from Asmir Begovic, on to replace Courtois after he'd been sent off, after cutting inside. Only Arsenal's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain completed more successful dribbles in the opening week than Montero's 6.

Ivanovic's task won't get much easier Sunday as his direct opponent will likely be Raheem Sterling on the left side of Manchester City's attacking midfield three. Like Montero, Sterling has no shortage of pace and is dangerous when given the opportunity to dribble 1 v. 1 at the opposition fullback. His movement off the ball is more varied than Montero- he'll drift inside more often so Ivanovic will have to be just as cautious when Sterling is off the ball as when he is on it.

Sterling's City debut was mixed- he was involved in City's domination of possession high up the pitch but also showed the wayward finishing he was at times accused of at Liverpool, missing when put clean through on West Brom's goal. Nonetheless he's the type of player that could give Ivanovic fits. While the Serb has been a remarkably consistent and reliable performer at Chelsea, pace and athleticism are not his strongest attributes so he could be in for another long afternoon.

Will Chelsea expose Toure's lack of urgency tracking back when they get opportunities to counter?

Despite Manchester City's overwhelmingly dominant display over West Brom, there were a couple of small signs of lingering weaknesses that we saw last season. Yaya Toure put in a brilliant attacking display but also showed a reluctance to defend and the rare occasions West Brom were able to mount any sort of attack stemmed from Fernandinho having to defend the space in front of the back four on counter attacks on his own. Twice in the first half the Brazilian was forced into desperate tackles near Man City's penalty box to break up West Brom attacks and he finished the match with 4 fouls, more than any other player on the pitch.

Chelsea can be a lethal side on the break. In Eden Hazard they have the Premier League's best dribbler and most dangerous player when presented with loads of space to run into. Toure will have to remain cognizant of the threat Chelsea pose on the break and make quick recovery runs when City lose possession to help defensively in the middle of the pitch.

Will Mourinho start Fabregas in his preferred role alongside Matic or higher up in the #10 role?

It'll be interesting to see where Jose Mourinho uses Cesc Fabregas, his most creative midfielder. Chelsea played some brilliant football last season when Fabregas played deeper in midfield alongside Nemnaja Matic but in more difficult fixtures towards the end of the season Mourinho often opted to use Fabregas higher up the pitch in the #10 role to make room for another more defensive midfielder alongside Matic, most often Ramires.

In their opener against Swansea Mourinho opted to use Fabregas in his preferred deeper role. That match was particularly free flowing and open, something Mourinho doesn't tend to enjoy. Chelsea at times look stretched even before Courtois's sending off sent them down to ten men. It wouldn't be all that surprising if Mourinho opted to deploy another holding midfielder and slide Fabregas to the #10 spot- against a talented title rival like City away from home Mourinho will likely want a slower, less open contest regardless of who plays where.

Some not referee related thoughts on Chelsea 1-1 Burnley

Ben Mee's 81st minuted headed equalizer from a Burnley corner gave the visiting Clarets a massive 1-1 draw after Nemanja Matic had been sent off for Chelsea for reacting to an Ashley Barnes horror challenge. The main talking points from this contest will center around referee Martin Atkinson's failure to spot Mee's violent studs-raised challenge that would have seen the Burnley forward sent off and two first half Chelsea appeals for penalties that replays suggest were wrongly not given. You'll be able to read about those decisions at length elsewhere so I'll focus instead on some elements of Chelsea's performance independent of the referee.

Tired Chelsea pay for lethargy, lack of ruthlessness

Despite comfortably dominating before the Matic's sending off, Chelsea failed to make their superiority on the pitch reflect on the score sheet. They looked to be expending as little energy as possible to get the three points they were after, something Mourinho-coached sides are generally excellent at at points of season where fixtures are crowded and keeping something left in the energy reserves for future fixtures is important. However, they were made to pay for not more ruthlessly chasing a second that in all likelihood would have killed the game off. Mourinho's lack of squad rotation this season and the possibility that it may be leading to a fatiguing squad  has been discussed by pundits and writers often in the second half of the season and their performance today certainly appeared to be one of a lethargic side. Chelsea started seven of the same players who started the difficult Champions League tie in Paris Tuesday. However, it was rustiness rather than fatigue that plagued Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa, Chelsea's two most disappointing performers on the day. Fabregas was starting his second cosecutive game after missing through injury and then illness while Costa also just returned this week after a suspension. Fabregas completed 80% of his passes, well below his season average of 87% and provided little in the final third. Costa showed his usual willingness to work off the ball but was poor on it. He completed just 71% off his passes (below a season average of 78%), just 1 of 3 attempted take ons and had just 2 shooting attempts (more on Costa below). Oscar was quiet and Juan Cuadrado's indifferent performances thus far have shown he'll need some time adjusting to a new side before he's a consistent contributor. The thought of having to rely on the individual brilliance of Hazard and a right back for an attacking threat will certainly make Mourinho uneasy. Burnley did not look particularly organized defensively or all that threatening going forward. They were there for the taking and this was a missed opportunity for Chelsea in what should have been one of the easier fixtures of the season. While they are still overwhelming favorites for the title there are hints of some wavering that could suggest it will be a tighter race than anticipated.

Costa's technical shortcomings show

Earlier this season Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger hailed the fighting spirit of his Chilean attacker Alexis Sanchez and Barcelona forward Luis Suarez and suggested that attitude came as a result of growing up playing street football in South America.

"There are similarities between Sanchez and Suarez. Sometimes Suarez will give the ball to the opponent but he gets it back straight away. Sanchez is the same," he said.

Diego Costa certainly fits in that same category. In fact, he relies more heavily on his relentless fighting spirit than either Sanchez or Suarez who are far more gifted technical footballers than the Brazilian-born Costa. His 17 league goals are proof enough he can finish and his movement off the ball is excellent- he works the channels relentlessly to provide outlet passes, gets into the right positions to score goals and allows Chelsea to defend from front to back with his fantastic defensive effort. However, he's a decidedly average player on the ball. He isn't particularly pacey or good at dribbling past opponents like Suarez and Sanchez or Manchester City's Sergio Aguero- all three average far more successful dribbles per game (Costa 1.3, Aguero 2,5, Sanchez 3.4, Suarez 1.5). He's not especially good at linking play forward and providing the final ball for teammates- Aguero, Sanchez and Suarez all have more assists (Costa 2, Suarez 8, Aguero 4, Sanchez 7).

This isn't to disparage Costa. The lack of a solid goal scoring striker was largely responsible for Chelsea's failure to win the league last season and without Costa it's doubtless they wouldn't enjoy the 5 point cushion they have at the top of the league. He was exactly what Mourinho needed. However he is a player that needs to be in the right system to be effective and needs the team to play well for him to play well. Suarez, Aguero and Sanchez have a way of taking a game over on their own with a moment of individual skill. Costa simply doesn't have that and his technical shortcomings have been apparent over the last two games.

Grading the young players at the Premier League's top clubs

I looked at the age of the 11 starting players for each of the 20 Premier League teams in match week 1 in order to get an idea of how teams were balancing the use of promising youthful players and more experienced veterans (you can see that information in the chart on the previous post). For the sake of this post I was most interested in seeing to what extent the clubs likely to contest for the league title and Champions League places over the next 5 years (I look at Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester United) are using young players (which I define as younger than 25). Clubs with older squads will of course have to spend more on incoming transfers in future seasons in order to revamp their squads and remain competitive. This could be significant given that FFP should in theory restrict the ability of clubs financed by super wealthy owners like Manchester City and Chelsea to spend as they wish. The days of those clubs bringing in five or more big name transfers in a single window are likely gone. It is therefore seemingly more important for big squads to have young players that can contribute well into the future or can be sold at a premium price to finance the purchase of other players.

There are of course limitations with looking at just one week of games and we can't make sweeping predictions based on this data. The absence of a young player or two due to injury or fitness will skew the data if they were replaced by significantly older players. Likewise, the opposite is true- veterans who normally start but were forced to miss the opening week and were replaced by young ones (eg Calum Chambers replaced Per Mertesacker at Arsenal) will skew the data the other way.

The measure of squad youthfulness I looked at was the number of players a squad had under 25. I'll discuss the quality of those players for each club and what they suggest the future may hold for their respective clubs.

Arsenal

Arsenal started more players under 25 than any other club in match week 1 with 6- Wojciech Szczesny (24), Jack Wilshere (22), Calum Chambers (19), Aaron Ramsey (23), Kieran Gibbs (24) and Yaya Sanogo (21). This isn't terribly surprising. Arsene Wenger has always had a talent for developing young players and the faith in them to play them. Szczesny isn't always the most convincing keeper but seemed to improve his decision making and propensity for big errors last season. Wilshere was the most hyped of all of Arsenal's young players and although it would be unfair to say he's been a disappointment, he's maybe not quite as far along in his development as some would have expected by now. Injuries haven't helped but it's difficult to say whether his best position is a #10 or more of a box-to-box #8. At the moment Arsenal have more talented players in both positions. Gibbs is a solid, reliable left back. Ramsey endured a difficult spell after suffering that horrific broken leg but surprisingly emerged last season as one of the Premier League's outstanding midfielders. He's athletic enough to track back and win tackles and run past defenders with the dribble, has the vision and passing ability to provide the final ball in attacking third and a strikers finishing ability in the penalty area- a true all around midfielder. The jury is still very much out on Yaya Sanogo. He looked awkward, uncoordinated and totally out of his place in his appearances last season and although he enjoyed a solid preseason, his performance in Arsenal's opening day win over Crystal Palace suggested he's along way from being good enough to play for a side hoping to contest the title. Joel Campbell (22) and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (21) were on the subs bench for Arsenal with Oxlade-Chamberlain coming on in the second half. Both players look promising. Along with this collection of players under 25. Mesut Ozil, Theo Walcott and Alexis Sanchez are all just 25. Arsenal appear to be in fairly good shape for the future in they can retain their players.

Young player grade: A

Manchester United

Manchester United have plenty of youthful players but not enough have shown they have the quality to play at a club with such consistently high expectations. Of the five players under 25 that started their opening day defeat to Swansea, Tyler Blackett (20) and Jesse Lingard (21) were making their Manchester United debuts. Phil Jones (22) and Chris Smalling (24) are solid enough squad players but have yet to establish themselves as first team regulars and they need to step up their performances in defense after the summer departures of Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. For me Jones looks the more likely to do so. Only goalkeeper David De Gea (23) has been a regular starter at the club. At 25, new midfield signing Ander Herrera is still quite young and an upgrade on Tom Cleverley (also 25) while 26 year old Juan Mata should still have several seasons remaining at his peak. Danny Welbeck's (23) energy and work rate are useful off the bench but he's never given the impression he'll be a 20 goal a season scorer. New signing Marcos Rojo (24) offers versatility at the back- he can play center back or left wing back- and has big game experience having started in 6 of Argentina's 7 World Cup games including the final. Luke Shaw (19) was excellent at Southampton last season and came with a hefty price tag. Louis Van Gaal was unimpressed with his fitness this summer and he's probably more suited to playing as a traditional fullback in a four man defense than a wing back in Van Gaal's 3-4-1-2 but LVG is tactically flexible and may well change shape in the near future. United's key big players Wayne Rooney (28), Robin Van Persie (31) and Michael Carrick (33) all have their best years behind them. Van Gaal has never been afraid to install youth players and he'll need to consider how he'll replace those three sooner rather than later.

Young player grade: B

Tottenham

Tottenham can be cautiously optimistic about [most of] their five young starters from week 1- (Christian Eriksen (22), Nabil Bentaleb (19), Eric Dier (20), Danny Rose (24) and Erik Lamela (22). Eriksen already established himself as a quality Premier League player in his first season, compiling 7 league goals and 8 assists. Bentaleb started in 3 of Algeria's 4 games at the World Cup and should continue to get opportunities to develop under Mauricio Pochettino, who showed in his time at Southampton he's more than happy to field capable youngsters. Dier's Spurs debut got off to a flying start as he picked up a stoppage time winner over Spurs and MOTM honors. Danny Rose is inconsistent and prone to errors but Spurs have just signed 21 year old Ben Davies from Swansea. Davies became a regular starter early last season under Michael Laudrup and was a surprising success- he could secure the left back position over Rose. The verdict is out on Lamela- Spurs' record signing was certainly a disappointment in his first season, struggling to get a game before succumbing to injury- but he enjoyed a strong preseason and should enjoy a stronger rapport with fellow countrymen Pochettino than with Tim Sherwood in the second half of last season. Spurs are also currently missing 24 year old right back Kyle Walker through injury. Walker is exceptionally athletic and likely would have been England's starting right back at the World Cup. Under Pochettino the young players will get their chances.

Young player grade: B

Liverpool

Four of Liverpool's five starters under 25 played an integral part in the Merseyside outfit's impressive second place finish last season. Daniel Sturridge scored 21 goals, second only to then teammate Luis Suarez in the Premier League. Raheem Sterling was something of a revelation, scoring 9 goals and assisting 5. Coutinho's 7 goals and 7 assists were likewise impressive while Jordan Henderson provided 4 goals and 7 assists of his own as he improved vastly from the previous season. Those four players combined for 41 goals and 28 assists. Liverpool's fifth starter under 25 from match week 1 was right back Javier Manquillo, on loan from Atletico Madrid. Brendan Rodgers has also added 20 year old winger Lazar Markovic from Benfica, a player with high expectations after impressing in Portugal. Liverpool look poised for a bright future but like Arsenal need to do what they can to hold on to their best players.

Young player grade: A

Chelsea

Chelsea boast an outrageously talented collection of young players. Of their five starters under 25 in match week one, Cesar Azpilicueta, Oscar, Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois were all regular starters at the World Cup. The fifth player, Andre Schurrle, was Germany's second leading scorer off the bench and provided the assist for Mario Gotze's winner in the final. Add in Diego Costa (25), Willian (26) and Nemanja Matic (26), it's a Chelsea side you'd expect to remain stable for quite some time. Chelsea also won the under-21 Premier League last season though few of the club's youth players end up getting a chance with the senior side. After years spent shelling out on big money signings at or just past the peak of their best, Chelsea's recent signing of younger talent bodes well for the future.

Young Player Grade: A

Manchester City

The five teams that started five or more players under 25 make up five of the six Premier League teams you'd expect to compete for a top four finish consistently. The sixth, Manchester City, have quite a different squad makeup. The defending league champions started just one player under 25 in match week one, forward Stevan Jovetic. New center back signing Eliaquim Mangala is the only other City player under 25 likely to play any sort of a prominent role this season. Jovetic and Matija Nastasic are the only City players under 25 to have appeared in more than 10 league games last season; Nastasic is certain to depart for Italy before the transfer window closes after the arrival of Mangala. The lack of young players in the squad suggests the club aren't terribly concerned with FFP compliance in the coming years since they'll need to continue to purchase players as current squad members pass their peak. City's plethora of veteran players with title winning experience certainly contributed in part to their success last season but in the near future its squad will need an overhaul.  With FFP City won't be able to make that overhaul in one transfer window. Of City's five signings last summer only Jovetic is under 25 while Fernandinho is 29, Jesus Navas is 28, Alvaro Negredo is 29 and Martin Demichelis is 33. They need to start making signings with an eye towards the future. Their U-21 side finished 4th in the U-21 Premier League last season so there are promising young players at the club but, like Chelsea, promotion to the senior squad for youth players has been all but impossible in recent years.

Young player grade: C-

Summer signings strengthen Chelsea considerably, no excuses this time for Mourinho

Throughout the 2013-2014 Premier League season Jose Mourinho expressed to the media that his Chelsea side were not yet ready to compete for the Premier League title, that they shouldn't be viewed as contenders until next season. This was a classic Mourinho example of attempting to deflect pressure from his side but one he won't be able to cling to this time around. Next season has arrived and anything less than a league title for Chelsea will be perceived as a disappointment.

Despite their lack of a quality striker and talented but relatively young and inexperienced group of attacking midfielders- factors Mourinho rarely missed an opportunity to point out throughout 2013-14- Chelsea's third place finish was largely disappointing. Just one loss against top 6 opposition and 16 out of a possible 18 points against Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City should have been enough to see the Blues crowned champions. An inability to switch from a reactive, counterattacking style to a more proactive one against weaker opposition ultimately cost Mourinho a third Premier League title.

Those troubles against weaker opposition were largely due to the lack of an in form #9 and a creative presence in the middle of midfield, areas Mourinho has addressed this summer with the signings of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas. Costa scored 36 goals in all competitions on his way to a La Liga title and Champions League runner up finish with Atletico Madrid last season. Chelsea's three strikers Samuel Eto'o, Fernando Torres and Demba scored a combined 31 goals.

Last season was the first in which Costa scored more than 10 league goals and he failed to impress in Spain's difficult World Cup campaign, leaving some to question whether he may yet prove to be a one season wonder. Early signs are good for Chelsea however- he's scored 4 goals and provided 2 assists in 5 preseason appearances.

With Ba and Eto'o shipped out over the summer, Mourinho has brought Didier Drogba back to the club where he's cemented his status as a legend. Drogba and Torres will provide some depth at center forward but it's difficult to see Chelsea winning the title if Costa misses an extended period of time with injury.

The creativity Fabregas brings to midfield should be a huge lift for Chelsea as well. Following Juan Mata's January sale to Manchester United Chelsea lacked a player in the middle of the pitch that could unlock crowded defenses with a clever pass. As precocious a talent as Chelsea's current center attacking midfielder Oscar is, his biggest attributes are his tireless off the ball running and fantastic ability to press the opposition high up the pitch. However, he does not yet have the vision to pick apart teams with his final third passing. He provided just 2 assists in 33 league appearances. Fabregas provided 13 at Barcelona, second only to Angel Di Maria in La Liga.

Crucially, Fabregas can also play in a slightly deeper role, replacing Ramires alongside Nemanja Matic in Chelsea's 4-2-3-1 formation which would allow 3 of Oscar, Eden Hazard, Andre Schurrle, Willian and Mohamed Salah to take up the attacking midfield positions behind Diego Costa. Ramires will still get opportunities in midfield. His defensive ability and prodigious midfield running make him an incredibly effective player when Chelsea play on the counter. But, when he plays alongside Matic against teams that sit deep, Chelsea tend to move the ball too slowly and too horizontally. Matic is a classic defensive holding midfielder, Ramires is a shuttler. Neither player is a deep lying creator. Teams will drop into a compact defensive shape, deny passing lanes into Chelsea's talented attacking midfielders and allow Matic and Ramires time on the ball knowing they'll likely play horizontal passes out to the fullbacks. Fabregas brings greater creativity and vision to that deeper lying midfield position. If the defense drops off and gives him time on the ball he can dictate the rhythm of Chelsea's play and pick out dangerous forward passes.

At the back, the purchase of Atletico Madrid left back Filipe Luis will add depth to a Chelsea defense that conceded 10 fewer goals than any other side last season. His purchase should allow Cesar Azpilicueta to switch back to his favored right back position although I'd expect Mourinho to start the season off with the same back four he used last term- Branislav Ivanovic at right back, John Terry and Gary Cahill partnering at centerback and Azpilicueta at left back. The addition of Filipe Luis means that Ivanovic can be used as an experienced center back off the bench if Cahill or Terry pick up an injury- important given David Luiz's summer move to PSG.

Mourinho will be left with a difficult decision over who to start in goal, albeit one he'll be happy to be faced with. Thibaut Courtois was Europe's outstanding keeper at Atletico last season but Mourinho has always put faith in experienced players so I wouldn't be terribly shocked if he starts the season with Cech. I do think it's important Courtois becomes the #1 at some point this season though- taking the world's top young keeper away from a situation he was enjoying in Madrid to sit on the bench would not bode well for Mourinho's relationship with Courtois in the future. 

Chelsea's wealth of young attacking midfielders should continue to progress in their second year under Mourinho. Hazard dazzled at times last season but Mourinho will look for more consistency and a better defensive work rate this time around. Andre Schurrle is coming off a fantastic World Cup in which he scored 3 goals and provided the winning assist to Mario Goetze in the final, all coming off the bench. Willian combines the tactical discipline Mourinho demands with genuine ability on the ball. Oscar struggled in the second half of last season, a problem blamed largely on fatigue after playing the Olympics and Cofederations Cup for Brazil in consecutive summers. Coming off another busy summer at the World Cup he'll be playing his third straight year without a meaningful break. Mourinho will need to use him wisely and at times sparingly.

With the talent at Mourinho's disposal anything less than a league title will be considered a disappointment. The Portuguese manager is generally very good at preparing his sides against other title challengers and you wouldn't expect that to change this time around. Whether he wins a third Premier League will likely depend on whether Chelsea can adopt a more proactive style of football when it's required of them. The numbers make for frustrating reading for Chelsea supporters: they finished 4 points behind Manchester City and dropped 10 out of 12 points to Aston Villa (1-0 loss), Crystal Palace (1-0 loss), Sunderland (2-1 loss, Mourinho's first home league defeat) and Norwich (0-0 draw) in the final two months of the season. If they get it right more consistently against weaker opposition they have every chance of dethroning City.

Oscar shines for Brazil on same day Chelsea sign Fabregas

Brazil's media narrative dictates Neymar will receive the plaudits for Brazil's 3-1 win over Croatia but it was Oscar who was their stand out performer. The Chelsea midfielder's ability to contribute both in possession and in defense is highly impressive and his range of abilities were on display today- he tirelessly pressed Croatia's midfielders, was a threat going forward and finished the contest off with a clever toe-poked finish.

Oscar played on the right of an attacking midfield 3, a slightly unusual role for him with Brazil where he typically plays as a #10. Today it was Neymar who played through the middle with Hulk on the left. The system was likely designed to get the most out of Neymar. Croatia play without a typical defensive, ball winning holding midfielder so Brazil manager Luis Felipe Scolari was likely trying to exploit what he thought would be a defensively soft area of the pitch for Croatia.

It was interesting to see Oscar put in such an impressive shift from a wide starting position on the same day Chelsea signed Cesc Fabregas, a player he may well compete with for the starting #10 role in the Premier League this season. If Fabregas is given that role over the course of the season, Oscar's versatility means he could still find himself in the first 11 on the wing. Jose Mourinho has praised the Brazilian's selflessness and commitment to defending. His first half tackle on Luca Modric, in which he sprinted 20 yards to catch the Real Madrid midfielder as it looked like Croatia might have something on on the break, is a perfect example of why he's difficult to leave out of any lineup.

He has plenty of experience playing a wide role at club level. In his first season at Chelsea he played mostly on the right as Juan Mata had the #10 role locked up. Even playing the #10 role under Mourinho last season he would often rotate positions with the wide players and drift into the channels to create overloads so he's comfortable operating in the channel.

In all likelihood Mourinho will use both Fabregas and Oscar as #10s depending on the opposition. He sees Oscar's ability to press the opposition's deepest lying midfielder as one of his strongest attributes and will want him playing through the middle when Chelsea set out to apply heavy midfield pressure, as they did in the 6-0 win over Arsenal.

Against opposition that looks to sit in deep and force Chelsea to play proactively, Mourinho could opt for Fabregas whose creativity and ability to play a final penetrating ball can unlock defenses. The side struggled to break down weaker opposition last season. Fabregas's ability on the ball should give them more invention in the final third.

Crucially, the signing adds depth and means both players should receive valuable rest over the course of the season. Oscar experienced a mid season dip in form last season- the result of having played two straight years of football because of summer tournaments with Brazil in the 2012 Olympics and 2013 Confederations Cup.

Fabregas's signing will make Chelsea a deeper, more creative and more tactically flexible side but it will in no way mitigate Oscar's influence on the side. The Brazilian's performance today showed he's simply too good at too many facets of the game to become a bit part player in West London.