Chelsea Chronicles: Shocking Stats in Major Matches, Striker Dilemma, and a Teen Sensation Eyeing a Spot Under Rosenior

“BIG GAME PLAYERS” is a tag that Chelsea have got, because they always seem to show up when it matters.

But it’s not quite true…

The idea is that struggles to break down sides and drops points to teams that set up in a low block, which leaves fans disappointed with their results against ‘smaller’ teams.

The Blues struggle against teams that set up against them in a low block defensivelyCredit: Alamy But have had joy against teams who look to attack them, or so people think…Credit: AFP

What that means is that the Blues thrive when a team tries to play ‘proper’ against them, and comes out to beat them from the off.

The stats, though, show that is not the case at all, as the Blues have an awful record against the other members of the ‘big six’.

In fact, it’s diabolical for a club of their stature, and is particularly bad since the 22/23 season, when BlueCo took over.

Since that season, the outfit has a ZERO PERCENT win rate against and Manchester City in 20 matches.

Against Liverpool, the record is slightly better, with a 25% win rate.

Against , it’s 29%.

The only slight redeeming factor for Blues fans is that their record against Spurs is excellent with a 71% win rate… Though they are on the verge of relegation as it stands.

Now, it hasn’t always been this way, so SunSport took a look at the numbers under Abramovich and how they compared.

Between 2003/04 – 21/22, Chelsea had a 44% win rate against rivals Arsenal (compared to 0% since).

They had a 36% win rate against Liverpool (+11%), a 48% win rate against Man City (+48%), a 36% win rate against Man Utd (+11%).

But they were slightly worse against Spurs under Abramovich, still having the highest win rate against any other top six club with 55% (-16%).

In games against those clubs this season, Chelsea have won just two out of eight.

Those were the last-minute win over Liverpool at and their annual three points at the Stadium.

The stats in Europe are much harder to quantify, but from memory, the Blues are better ‘big game players’ on a global stage.

This season, they have already shown up when it mattered against and in the , as well as battering PSG in the final against the odds.

Tonight’s game in Paris will give them another opportunity to show up on Europe’s biggest stage.

Chelsea’s record vs the ‘big six’ since BlueCo took over

EGHBALI’S ACTIVITY

CHELSEA supremo Behdad Eghbali will be keeping his opinions on America’s war against Iran to himself.

But it must be a difficult time for Eghbali who, according to the very limited biographical information available, was born in Iran but moved to the with his family at a young age and is a US citizen.

Details of his short time in Iran are few and far between, so it is unclear whether the Eghbali’s left the country around the time the Shah was deposed by the Islamic revolution in 1979.

Given his age, 49, it would be no surprise, however.

And it feels highly likely there will be relatives and family friends who still live in Iran.

“Eghbali” is a relatively common name and the Blues boss has lived up to its meaning.

It is a Persian word, derived from the Arabic “iqbal”, meaning prosperity, good fortune or success, and Eghbali is a billionaire.

But unlike Chelsea chairman and co-investor , Eghbali does not give interviews.

His appearance at the Wrexham game gave a rare opportunity even to hear his voice, as he chatted with the Welsh club’s co-owner .

Behdad Eghbali caught up with Ryan Reynolds after the Wrexham gameCredit: PA

Meanwhile there has been a little bit of activity behind the scenes in the pyramid of companies through which Eghbali and his co-investors control Chelsea.

BlueCo 22 Ltd, the company four levels up from Chelsea Football Club Ltd itself, issued a confirmation statement to with an update.

It showed it was now divided into 6,100 shares, as opposed to 5,100, all of them still owned by the company above it, 22 HoldCo Ltd.

Usually, new shares are issues to enable an injection of cash into a business and/or to alter the balance of power by allowing one or more parties to increase the percentage of shares that they own.

But Chelsea Files has been told this is not the case and nothing significant has changed.

When 22HoldCo last issued its own confirmation statement, in April last year, it showed 61.84 per cent of its shares were owned by Blues Investment Midco, LP.

This is the company through which Eghbali and Clearlake Capital colleagues Jose Feliciano and William Pade hold their stake in Chelsea.

The remaining shares in 22HoldCo were owned by BlueCo 22 Holdings, which is controlled by Boehly and co-investors Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss.

The next statement is due by May 11 and is worth looking out for, if you are that way inclined.

But all Chelsea fans will – or should – be interested to see the football club’s accounts for last season.

Chelsea’s finances will make for interesting reading, if you’re that way inclinedCredit: Getty

has already given the game away a bit by saying the Blues made a loss of £355m, the biggest ever for an English team and the second highest in Europe.

Chelsea were annoyed about when and how the information came out, and were very careful to provide a detailed explanation of why there was nothing to worry about and the club was on a firm financial footing.

Uefa and the Premier League have different financial regulations.

Yet it will be fascinating to see how Chelsea managed to avoid breaching PL Profit and Sustainability Rules. The accounts are due at Companies House by the end of this month.

DISASI “IF I SPEAK…”

AXEL Disasi has been working nothing short of miracles on the defence since moving there on loan in January.

In fact, he has the opportunity to do one of the funniest things ever for Chelsea fans, by being SO good that he could even help relegate Spurs.

There was nothing funny though, about his treatment at Chelsea, and the West Ham star opened up on that after his team’s penalty shootout win against .

He said “If I say everything [on the last 6 months at Chelsea], maybe I will get into trouble… but it was tough”.

“It was very tough to be watching every single week, every single weekend, the games on TV”

One fan on X after the game claimed: “If we stay up, send Chelsea £30m for Axel Disasi straight after the Leeds game.

“Absolutely immense footballer.”

That though, may be the only thing stopping the Hammers from making the signing of Disasi permanent.

If they are to be relegated, it’s unlikely they’d make a move for the Frenchman, and unlikely he would want to play in the .

And based on this loan spell, other Premier League teams will make enquiries about him, if they aren’t already.

Disasi has been working wonders at West HamCredit: Reuters

DELAP OF THE GODS

CHELSEA insist they still retain faith in .

But with arriving in the summer, they have got a striker conundrum on their hands.

The Blues feel as though Delap has been unlucky with injuries and that he needs time to come good given his age.

But with Joao Pedro looking every bit the number nine Chelsea have been missing for years, and running the show as first choice up front, it’s unlikely that Delap and Emegha will both be happy competing for a secondary number nine spot.

Then of course, you’ve got the likes of and academy striker Shim Mheuka, who will both be keen for more minutes.

Given the cheap fee Chelsea paid for Delap last summer, he seems the most logical of those that could be sold for a profit, potentially with a loan move for Mheuka or Guiu in the summer window, which would leave the Blues with three striker options.

Providing is also sold, of course, and doesn’t do a – where you’re exiled and then go on to become a key player at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea have got plenty of faith in Liam DelapCredit: Alamy Even with Emanuel Emegha joining in the summerCredit: Getty

RYAN’S CHANCE

RYAN Kavuma-McQueen is knocking on the door for his Chelsea first-team debut.

After being name-dropped by in last week’s pre-Wrexham press conference, he travelled with the team to North Wales but didn’t make the matchday squad.

The youngster is one of the highest-rated talents in the Blues’ prestigious Cobham setup, and has drawn lots of comparisons to , who was poached by Liverpool.

RKM signed his first professional deal with Chelsea in January and has been in the matchday squad once, but was left on the bench by in the Champions League hammering of Ajax.

At Wrexham, he warmed up with Jesse Derry ahead of the game, before being put through his paces with the substitutes.

He will have been somewhat disappointed not to play any minutes, but they are coming for the future star.

If his performance for the U21S against Birmingham was anything to go by, this kid will be rewarded with some first-team minutes soon enough.

The 17-year-old scored a brace in that game yesterday, with his first a sweeping right-footed finish across the goal.

He added a second with an excellent solo run before finishing into the far corner.

And yesterday’s FA Cup quarter-final draw may just be the news he needed, as a home game against Port Vale could be the perfect time to give the talented winger his Stamford Bridge debut.

Kavuma-McQueen may well get his chance to shine against Port Vale in the FA Cup quarter-finalCredit: Getty

TICKET RAGE

THE mouth-watering Champions League clash with has left a sour taste in the mouth of some Chelsea season ticketholders.

Those who sell on individual seats for games they cannot attend via the official exchange build up cash balances that can in theory be used to buy tickets at non-season-ticket games such as CL

But because the system is currently in a window where supporters can choose to withdraw the money completely from their accounts, they have not been able to use their “savings” to help fund the expensive trip to Paris.

When fans tried to do so, they received a message saying the system could not recognise whether they were attempting to withdraw money or purchase tickets.

One aggrieved fan told Chelsea Files: “At a time when the cost-of-living remains a major concern for match-going fans, a Premier League club with Chelsea’s resources is effectively forcing its most loyal supporters into debt to attend matches.

“The ‘technological limitation’ excuse offered by the club is not only archaic but raises serious questions about the security and sophistication of their financial systems.

“If the club cannot manage a simple “debit vs. withdrawal” command, it suggests a mockery is being made of the hardworking fans who provide the club’s atmosphere.”

Chelsea say that because withdrawing funds is not an instant process – in this case fans would not receive the cash until after the end of this month – the club mitigates against fans asking for a withdrawal and also using that credit to buy tickets at the same time.

There are three windows per year for withdrawing funds and the option to use account credit to buy tickets is turned off in each.

Fans have been left frustrated by ticketing issues this seasonCredit: Getty

COL-BACK!

returned to team training with Chelsea today ahead of their Champions League tie against PSG.

The centre-back, 22, of back in August, and has been sorely missed by the club.

, who bagged an assist in Chelsea’s 3-0 Club World Cup final win over PSG, underwent surgery after the devastating injury.

And admitted he can’t wait to work with the “outstanding” defender back in January.

Chelsea fans have dearly missed Levi ColwillCredit: Getty

Colwill will likely not be rushed back into action, but smiled and laughed with his teammates at Cobham.

Great news for the Blues.