Chelsea are lacking early season 'spark', says Jamie Carragher

Chelsea are struggling to recreate their early season form, according to Sky Sports pundits Jamie Carragher and Thierry Henry.

The Blues threw away a two-goal lead at Hull before rallying in the second half to earn the win courtesy of Loic Remy’s late goal.

The title is still very much Jose Mourinho’s side’s to lose and while Carragher and Henry are confident they will secure the Premier League crown, they feel Chelsea are lacking a certain something compared to early in the season.

“I think even just watching Jose Mourinho’s interview, even he doesn’t look himself,” said Carragher. “They’re still winning, they’re the best team in the league, they’re going to go on and win the league but the Chelsea we remember from the start of the season, we were waxing lyrical about them – Fabregas, Oscar, the football they were playing.

“They still won today and that’s the difference, they haven’t been great today, they haven’t been poor but they’ve won that game , maybe other top sides like Manchester City wouldn’t have won that game.

“They dominated the second half and deservedly won but there is a bit of a spark missing from them, maybe they just want to get the title won, they don’t really care how they’re playing.”

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Henry agreed and pointed to Chelsea’s Champions League exit as a possible reason for their recent solid rather than spectacular displays.

“I think it is just the expectation,” he remarked. “Everybody thought they were going to go and win the treble.

“Sometimes as a player when you’re thinking about winning the Champions League, when you get what happens to them against Paris Saint-Germain you get a little moment where, I’m not saying that you doubt yourself but you are trying to find rhythm.

“But at the end of the day, if they win the league and they won the Capital One Cup, that is still an amazing season.”