Why it was so easy for Chelsea to win the Premier League title
With Chelsea’s Champions League failure fresh in the mind, the semifinal draw of the Champions League lists Europe’s upper crust with the Blues notably excluded: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus.
Given the baffling failure in Europe, Chelsea’s 2014-15 Premier League title, which appears inevitable at this stage, seems slightly sullied by the lack of standout domestic opposition. Was Chelsea really so much better than the opposition or did the opposition fail on its own?
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Title holder Manchester City challenged the Londoners for about half a season. When Yaya Toure went to Africa for the Cup of Nations, the Sky Blues lost their footing, and they have yet to find it. Entering the weekend, Man City sits 12 points back of Chelsea despite having played an extra game. The Citizens have drowned in the title race and now find themselves struggling to stay afloat in the race for the top four.
Liverpool finished ahead of Chelsea a season ago, but the Reds could not cope with the departure of Luis Suarez, multiple injuries to Daniel Sturridge and the incompetence of Mario Balotelli and Rickie Lambert in front of goal. As it stands, Liverpool would need a solid charge to finish in the top four, let alone challenge Chelsea. Since early in the season, the Reds have not come within earshot of the Blues.
Manchester United also failed to mount a valid title challenge against Chelsea, as Louis van Gaal’s expensive squad took its time adjusting to injuries and its new manager. When at long last United seemed ready to give the Blues a run for their money, injuries struck again. Also, Wayne Rooney moved back into the midfield with Radamel Falcao offering yet another goalless performance in a big match. Chelsea beat United 1-0, and the league title race between the two English giants ended before it even began.
Finally, there is Arsenal. The Gunners sit second behind Chelsea and could move within seven points of their city rivals with a victory at the Emirates on Sunday. Arsenal deserves credit for its form in 2015 and a second consecutive FA Cup final, but Arsene Wenger and the Gunners have hardly kept manager Jose Mourinho up at night.
Domestically, Chelsea acted as a giant that stood unwavering in waist-high current while all of its lowly opposition got swept away to sea. Diego Costa was a monster early in the season and still sits on 19 goals, which is only one back of the lead. Also in attack, Eden Hazard has been the consistent cornerstone that deserves to be named Premier League Player of the Year.
In goal, Thibaut Courtois did not take time to adjust between the posts, but Petr Cech certainly played his part in the middle of the season. As poorly as Mourinho may have rotated his squad, he deserves considerable credit for rotating his goalkeepers.
Cesc Fabregas, who returns to the Emirates Stadium wearing Chelsea’s blues for the first time, has been vital. Had he still been wearing a Gunners badge, Arsenal may well be claiming the Blues’ lead. The Spaniard leads the Premier League with 16 assists, which is already three more than Steven Gerrard's league-leading total last year.
Chelsea may not have a worthy challenger in the domestic campaign, and that is equal parts due to the Blues’ superiority and opposition’s inferiority.
To quantify this in numbers, Chelsea is averaging 2.38 points per match this season, which is better than the 2.26 points per match Manchester City managed when winning the league a season ago.
However, in the 2013-14 campaign, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal all managed over 2.00 points per game with the Reds posing the strongest challenge with 2.21 points per game. That made for a competitive league that went down to the wire.
In 2014-15, Arsenal is the only Premier League team apart from Chelsea averaging over 2.00 points per game, and the Gunners average a lowly 2.06 points per match. Arsenal’s average points per match would have placed them fifth a season ago.
To put that all that in traditional terms, Chelsea will likely win the Premier League by a considerable margin. From here on out, the Premier League campaign serves as a drawn-out victory lap for Mourinho’s Blues, and the first turn offers a date with Arsenal at the Emirates. Mourinho enjoys beating Wenger more than just about anyone else, so this should be fun. Sunday may even feature a couple of older gentlemen swinging the figurative handbags.
Even if Chelsea loses and falls flat on its face on Sunday, the Blues have enough of a cushion to slowly get up and walk across the finish line. The trophy will be waiting.
Shahan Ahmed is a soccer columnist for Yahoo Sports. He has previously written about the 2014 World Cup and 2013 Confederations Cup and regularly provides opinions on the English Premier League, UEFA Champions League, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A and Spanish La Liga. Follow Shahan on Twitter: @ShahanLA and @perfectpass
