Recovering the Vibes: Chelsea's Failed Preseason Tour

When the Blues landed in Los Angeles for their preseason tour, the morale of what was to come was beyond positive. However, after a 1-2 United States tour, losing to Charlotte FC in penalties and Arsenal in emphatic fashion 4-0 down in Orlando, the attitude around Stamford Bridge is not what it has been before a start of a campaign. The countdown until the Premier League season against Everton begins, and it is fair to say that the Blues are far from ready.

There seem to be players on the brink of leaving the club, and with limited time, Thomas Tuchel and Todd Boehly know how much work has to be done to turn this club into a contender in as many competitions as possible. Chelsea may have taken both matches against Udinese in Italy to close out its preseason campaign, but the talk around the club is more about what they don't have rather than what they do.

While the Blues had the majority of the possession against the Gunners in their preseason tilt, Chelsea mustering just one shot on target is not a good sign of things to come. Everton may not be much of a challenge due to who it lost over the summer and the regression it saw last season, but for the Blues to even compete in the race for the Champions League places, goals have to come from somewhere.

It is the first time the Blues have lost a single preseason match since July 29, 2017, in the International Champions Cup against Inter Milan. In that same year, the Blues would finish 30 points behind the winners, Manchester City, and out of the Champions League places. From losing out on Jules Kounde to Barcelona to trying to figure out the team's identity, the attitude of the Chelsea men's team right now is not where it hoped to be just a few months ago.

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Last season was viewed as an average one at best, losing in two cup finals and winning trophies in competitions because of the success of last season's team. This season must be where the Blues find their place domestically and across the continent, over a year since it was crowned the winners of the Champions League. It may take some time for the new ownership group can get their feet under them, but if the preseason tour in the United States is what the future holds on the pitch, challenging Manchester City and Liverpool will be nothing but a dream.

After the loss to Arsenal in Orlando on the last leg of the tour, Tuchel spoke honestly about his team, stating, "We were simply not competitive...The worrying part is that the level of commitment physically and mentally for this match was far higher for Arsenal than for us...It was surely not our strongest lineup. This is a part of an explanation but only a little part...I cannot guarantee we will be ready in two weeks...I don't know if I ever lost a match in preseason 4-0. I can't remember not winning two matches in a row in preseason...I am superstitious but not in a way that I say bad preseason has to mean a bad season."

Tuchel being honest with the team should light a fire to improve as much as possible with the season nearly here. The only problem is that the Blues do not know how many players want to be in West London next season. From Timo Werner, who looks like a shell of his German National Team self, to Marcos Alonso and Hakim Ziyech, Chelsea has many individuals who don't seem to buy into the culture Tuchel wants to create with the Blues this upcoming season. Flushing out the dead weight before the season gets fully underway will make Tuchel's job even easier, knowing each individual is equally invested in the goal at the end of the tunnel.

The two big signings of the summer were positive in that each is a world-class talent. But other than that, the outgoings have to be the focus for Tuchel and Boehly to get the most out of this team. Kai Havertz looked like he was one step slow, and with Romelu Lukaku out the door this season, he should be extra motivated to make that No. 9 position his for the rest of the season. With Armando Broja back in with the team following speculation of his move to West Ham, Tuchel has another option he can use to attempt to solve the issue that has been weighing the Blues down for quite some time.

Despite the back-to-back wins in Italy, if the sloppiness from the USA trip and last season continues, Tuchel will have many press conferences that will raise some eyebrows in the media. Last season, the Blues ranked third in the entire Premier League in the number of times they were dispossessed, behind only Watford and Crystal Palace. In some games like against Juventus and the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal last season, Chelsea looks like it can compete with the best in the world, but most of the time, the Blues lack the consistency to put together results like that each week.

It is quite clear that the Blues need some reinforcements in the frontline and more depth in the back, with Kounde choosing to take his talents elsewhere. The atmosphere around Chelsea does not match what it was last season after it won the Champions League. From players not completely buying into the number of holes the squad has in each section of the pitch, the Blues need to figure it out before they find themselves in a concerning place in the Premier League table.

Manchester City and Liverpool battled in a back-and-forth match where the Reds came out with the win in the FA Community Shield, demonstrating each team's additions during the summer window. However, the Blues are more than two acquisitions away from putting themselves in the same conversation as the top two teams in the top flight. From links with Leicester defender Wesley Fofana and Milan Škriniar, among many more center-backs to help take the team to the next level with Thiago Silva growing old and the potential looming departures of Marcos Alonso and Azpilicueta to Spain.

With the Premier League season on the horizon, Tuchel has to make several last-second decisions on some positions that were filled by players that underperformed in the preseason. Havertz has shown he has quality at times, but during the tour overseas, he was missing that explosiveness and eye for goal that he showed to become the regular starter over Lukaku up top. Tuchel may have to trust a player like Trevoh Chalobah to fill in as the last center-back alongside Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly in the legendary No. 26 shirt on a more regular basis than he has in the past.

C/O: Football.London/AP Photos

Putting those performances, especially the one against the Gunners, behind them will be a monumental task for the Blues. Chelsea is going to see what it is made of early on in the second week of the domestic season against a surging Tottenham team led by a manager that has a mission to bring this club back to the top. There are plenty of reasons to be excited about the upcoming season in West London with Raheem Sterling making the shocking move from Manchester, but the tour in the home country of its new owners woke the team and the ownership up, telling them there is still a long way to go.

Deals will be coming in until the transfer window closes on September 1. Still, until the Blues can find any consistency in their play, especially when it comes to finishing, they could find themselves outside the Champions League places for the first time since the 2017-2018 season. The gap between the top two teams in the English top-flight and the rest of the league looks the largest it's ever been after a dominant two-team race in the 21/22 season. Chelsea has always had young talent, and with some coming back from loan last season, it is creating an interesting race against the team's veterans.

With a new owner and a large back pocket, the Blues should be equipped to build a team that can mold more consistent performances from the FA Cup midweek to the Premier League at the conclusion. The Blues' philosophy has always been to use its academy to bring in some of the world's best. If Tuchel is going to believe in the academy, he needs to show it, but if not, there must be reinforcements for players that are not up to par with the most unforgiving league in the world. Boehly has shown in a short amount of time that youth is going to be a priority from the quality of young talent that has been added to the first team, academy, and women's team.

From struggling to make a penalty kick against an MLS side to lacking an enormous amount of creativity in the final third against one of its biggest rivals, the Blues need to learn from this preseason tour, or the same trend is going to continue.