José Mourinho has had his run-ins with Sky TV this season, most notably over the highlighting of Diego Costa’s “crimes” in a game against Liverpool, so one imagines there will be few tears shed at Stamford Bridge over the lack of last-day drama at the top end of the Premier League table. Sky will have to point their cameras at the relegation struggle instead, in the somewhat forlorn hope of Hull or Newcastle ending their miserable seasons with something astonishing.
This season’s title race, if that is not too racy a term for what was basically a procession, played out exactly the way Mourinho likes his games to play out. Chelsea take an early lead and hang on to it. End of story. No dips, blips, or lapses of concentration, just the sort of efficiency that wears opponents down some time before the scheduled end of the contest.
If that sounds like a complaint, it is not meant to be. Chelsea are extremely good at what they do, achieving a level of consistency Manchester City and Arsenal appear to be incapable of emulating.
It begins with the most solid back line in the division, ahead of a highly capable goalkeeper, builds through a reliable midfield that harnesses the disparate talents of Nemanja Matic, Ramires and Cesc Fàbregas, bolts on a degree of flair with Eden Hazard and others, and ends with a no-nonsense striker who puts a high ratio of his chances into the net. There is no big secret, no trickery or bluff. With Chelsea you know what to expect.
Even in the years Mourinho was away the team carried on playing in much the same way. Last season, the coach’s first back in England after winning titles in Italy and Spain, it was significant that Chelsea beat Liverpool and Manchester City – the two teams that finished above them – home and away. They did not manage the double over Arsenal, though there was that 6-0 drubbing at Stamford Bridge to compensate for a goalless draw at the Emirates.
Chelsea duly strengthened over the summer, adding Thibaut Courtois, Fàbregas and Costa to the mix, while their challengers either stood still (City) went backwards (Liverpool post-Luis Suárez), or bought players but failed to gel quickly enough at the start of the season (Arsenal).
Those maintaining this season has been dull and predictable in comparison with some of the title challenges of the recent past have a point, though it is a bit of a cheap shot. Chelsea have been excellent, it is not their fault if others have failed to match their standards. What would be quite boring though, would be for the same thing to happen again next season and become a regular pattern.
Chelsea under Mourinho appear to be in a position to become dominant. This has happened in English football before, in their most concentrated periods of success Liverpool won seven titles in nine seasons and Manchester United eight in 11, though the former were widely admired for their integrity and industry while the latter won over most of their critics with a commitment to youth and attacking football.
Mourinho sulkily spending Roman Abramovich’s millions on an economical playing style might not be such a popular monopoly, and in an era where everyone else is spending millions and the Premier League brazenly sells itself as the most exciting and competitive product on the market, it is incumbent on the other big clubs to at least give Chelsea a run for their money.
That means Arsène Wenger is going to have to find a way of beating Mourinho for the first time in over a dozen meetings, or find a way to beat everyone else so thoroughly that losing points to Chelsea does not matter. Anyone see that happening next season? Thought not.
Liverpool could not manage a top-four finish this season after their heroics last year, and quite soon they may not be just post-Suárez but also post-Raheem Sterling. Not to mention post-Steven Gerrard. With Daniel Sturridge’s fitness such a concern nothing can taken for granted at Anfield. If there is money to be spent from a Sterling sale it will have to be invested a little more carefully than the proceeds from Suárez’s departure. If there is not, Brendan Rodgers will have his work cut out to bring the best from a player whose form has already dipped since his future became an issue. Third or fourth place might be the very best Liverpool can hope for. They look a long way from bothering Chelsea at the moment.
That leaves Manchester. Uncertainty still surrounds Manuel Pellegrini’s future, but whether he stays or goes the uncomfortable fact is that too many of City’s signings have not worked out. Samir Nasri, Jesús Navas, Eliaquim Mangala, Fernando, Edin Dzeko and others have all been successful to a degree, but they have not clicked into place with the mechanical precision of a Mourinho signing, and that is the height of the bar presently set. Vincent Kompany and Yaya Touré appear to be in decline, and it is unlikely that Pellegrini, who will plainly not be around long term, will be given funds for major reconstruction. A new manager might be, though the one City are thought to prefer may not be arriving next season, and even for anyone who does it would be a tall order to match Chelsea straightaway.
Over at Old Trafford, a new (old) manager is already in place and spending money in a manner calculated to make David Moyes wince. United are back in Europe, assuming they can overcome the ignominy of the pre-qualifier, and new additions to “the selection” are being welcomed because they add extra stimulus. Of course they do. Ask Ángel Di María.
United should at least be eye-catching next season if they bring in Gareth Bale or Sterling to add to Memphis Depay and their already dizzying array of attacking options, but Louis “pay attention to the manager” van Gaal must have been paying too much attention to the saxophone player at the end of season party when claiming his side were very close. His logic was the giveaway. “At Chelsea we had 80% ball possession and 10 big possibilities to score,” he argued. “They had three and they won the game.” That’s not close, Louis, that’s nowhere. Which is where the rest of the league will be if they keep allowing Chelsea three chances.
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