Sunday 6 December 2015 15:08, UK
Jose Mourinho gave Eden Hazard and Diego Costa a half each to lead the line but Chelsea's failure to find a way past Bournemouth highlighted a growing issue up front, writes Nick Wright.
Jose Mourinho spoke like a man who believed his side had turned a corner in the build-up to this game, but he could only watch in horror as Glenn Murray's header inflicted their eighth defeat of the season. It is December and the champions sit just three points above the relegation zone. They are 21 points worse off than last season and only Sunderland and Aston Villa have lost more games.
Chelsea's extraordinary decline has left Mourinho with a host of issues to address, but none were more striking on Saturday Night Football than their struggles up front. Chelsea have only scored once in their last four Premier League games, and it is becoming increasingly difficult to see where the goals are going to come from.
For the second successive game, Mourinho left last season's top scorer Diego Costa on the bench. It was hardly surprising given the Spaniard's show of ill-discipline in the dugout at White Hart Lane, and his absence from Chelsea's pre-match warm-up was another suggestion that all is not right.
Indeed, Mourinho's post-match comments appeared to be aimed at his troublesome number No 19. "I only know one way [to turn things around] which is to work and to give my maximum every day and every match," he told Sky Sports. "If some player is not capable of that routine of giving their maximum day-by-day and match-by-match, it's an individual problem and the collective pays for that."
Costa's demotion to the bench saw Hazard deployed at the tip of the attack again. Mourinho described the Belgian's performance in the position in last weekend's goalless draw with Tottenham as his best of the season so far, and there were encouraging signs from him in the opening stages against Bournemouth.
With just 43 seconds on the clock, a blistering burst of acceleration helped him latch onto an over-hit through ball from Oscar, and moments later his powerful diagonal shot was repelled by Artur Boruc after some nimble interplay with Willian.
Hazard ran the channels effectively and his intelligent movement caused problems for Bournemouth, but as service dried up he was forced to go looking for the ball in less dangerous areas. As such, only four of his 37 first-half touches came inside Chelsea's box, and the Blues lacked the presence of an out-and-out frontman.
The 24-year-old worked tirelessly and forced another diving save from Boruc in the 35th minute when he cut inside and smashed a shot through a crowd of Bournemouth defenders from 20 yards out, but that was the closest he came to breaking the deadlock.
Mourinho turned to Costa at half-time, with the ineffectual Oscar making way and Hazard switching to his usual position on the left. The Blues appeared to be reinvigorated and started the half strongly, but Mourinho dismissed the impact of the substitute after the game, scowling: "It was not because of Diego."
Chelsea's bright spell soon fizzled as the hard-working visitors battled back into the game, and Costa's frustration showed with a late challenge on Adam Smith on the hour mark. Three minutes later, he was booked for hauling Matt Ritchie to the floor. Not for the first time, it appeared he was more interested in confrontation than helping the team.
Mourinho must have hoped Costa would add some presence up front but it was notable that he didn't win a single one of his 12 duels. In total he had just 20 touches in 45 minutes, and his only shot on goal came when he harmlessly toed Cesc Fabregas' chipped pass at Artur Boruc.
Mourinho's relationship with Costa still appears to be strained and Hazard is now 25 games without a goal, but Chelsea's only other options do not inspire confidence. The out-of-favour Loic Remy was an 83rd-minute substitute against Bournemouth but has only played 185 Premier League minutes all season, while Radamel Falcao is injured and desperately out of form.
The manager bemoaned individual struggles and refereeing decisions after the game, but their biggest issue appears to be their toothlessness in attack. It's hard to see where Mourinho goes from here, but even a top-six finish could be out of their reach if they don't rediscover their bite soon.
