Chelseas midfield depth comes under scrutiny after Arsenal defeat

Chelsea’s £349m summer spending did not prevent their midfield weaknesses from being exposed in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat by Premier League champions Arsenal, with Reece James and Malo Gusto ending the match alongside each other in central midfield.

Both players began their careers as right-backs, raising questions about Chelsea’s options in the centre of the pitch after a heavily funded transfer window.

James was tasked with tracking Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard, but he was unable to prevent the Norway international from scoring the winning goal at Emirates Stadium. James had been praised before the game by Chelsea head coach Xabi Alonso, who said he believed the England international had the ability to become one of the best midfielders in the world, according to BBC Sport.

Aside from his involvement in the goal, James produced a generally strong performance. He spent almost half of last season playing in midfield, but his role against Arsenal still highlighted concerns about the depth available to Alonso, particularly after he replaced midfielder Romeo Lavia with Gusto in the second half.

Chelsea’s lack of midfield options affected more than their defending. Their vulnerability in the build-up to Odegaard’s goal came from a lapse in marking, while their substitutes offered limited creativity when the team needed to change the game.

Arsenal, by contrast, had more players capable of altering the contest. Mikel Arteta used his substitutions effectively as the home side secured victory.

Ashley Young told BBC Sport: “Chelsea do not play in Europe this season, so they play fewer games and can focus more on the Premier League. But the concern is to finish a game against the champions with two right-backs in midfield.”

He added: “Look at Lavia, who suffered a lot with injuries last season. The attack will frighten a lot of teams in the league, but behind that is the midfield, where two right-backs are being used.”

Young continued: “Other teams will watch today’s game and notice that Chelsea sit deep and put as many players behind the ball as possible, yet there are still spaces between the lines. That is what Arsenal exploited.”

He said: “Chelsea give up possession a lot and rely on counter-attacks. Today, there was perhaps only one chance, through Pedro Neto on the right, when they managed to make a counter-attack work.”

Caicedo absence adds to pressure

The most significant issue for Chelsea is currently the absence of Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo.

The international has missed out with an undisclosed injury and there is no confirmed date for his return. He played for only 11 minutes as a substitute against Brighton last week before suffering the problem.

Caicedo’s injury has left Alonso in an unusual position. Apart from suspensions, the Ecuadorian has missed only two matches in the past three seasons, one because of a minor injury and the other because of illness.

Asked about Caicedo’s condition, Alonso said: “It is not a long-term absence, it is about assessing the risks. Maybe we brought him back too early last week and I do not want to make the same mistake again.”

It remains unclear whether Caicedo’s injury prompted Chelsea to intensify their efforts to sign another midfielder on the final day of the transfer window.

Chelsea did try to strengthen in that area during the closing hours of the market but were unable to complete a deal. Monaco stopped their late attempt to sign Lamine Camara for £47m, a failed move that angered officials at the London club.

Earlier in the summer, Bournemouth rejected Chelsea offers of up to £64m for Alex Scott. Their pursuit of French midfielder Manu Kone also stalled after Roma manager Gian Piero Gasperini blocked the transfer.

Chelsea said the attempt to sign Camara was made because an opportunity had become available in the market. The club also maintained that it was satisfied with its summer business and confident in its current squad.

Questions over the midfield became sharper after Chelsea sold Enzo Fernandez to Manchester City for £125m on the final day of the window. The fee equalled the British transfer record, but Chelsea did not sign a direct replacement.

Caicedo is now joined on the injury list by Jordan Henderson. The England international is recovering from a broken arm suffered when he fell on an advertising board while an unused substitute for his country at the World Cup.

Chelsea have also not used natural midfielder Valentin Barco, who joined from Strasbourg during the summer. Alonso has instead selected Gusto in all three of the club’s Premier League matches.

The impact of that shortage was especially clear in last week’s 4-3 win over Brighton. With Gusto playing in midfield, Chelsea had only 25.6% possession, their lowest figure since such data began being recorded in the 2003-04 season.

If all of Chelsea’s midfielders become available and Caicedo’s injury proves to be minor, the club should still have enough players to manage the campaign. Their lack of European football means they will not have the same number of midweek fixtures.

Alonso made that point before the Arsenal match, insisting that Chelsea had sufficient midfield players.

Chelsea began the season relying heavily on their attacking strength. Morgan Rogers has impressed, Cole Palmer has returned to form and Joao Pedro has contributed goals.

Rogers, who joined Chelsea in a record deal, scored in the second minute against Arsenal. He became the first Chelsea player since Eden Hazard in 2018-19 to score or assist in each of the club’s opening three Premier League matches in a season.

However, Chelsea have conceded seven goals across those three games, prompting Alonso to call for defensive improvement.

“We want to be more compact and stronger defensively,” said the Spanish manager.

Despite the defeat, Chelsea’s performance against Arsenal contained plenty of positives. It could be viewed as one of their best displays against their London rivals during a run of 10 consecutive matches without a win against them.

The gap between the clubs nevertheless remains substantial. Chelsea must make up 33 points after finishing 10th in the Premier League last season.

“We came here to win,” Alonso said after the match. “We knew we were not far from them in terms of level, but the game went their way. It hurts and of course we are disappointed, but this is the first defeat, the journey is still long and it will not affect our morale or our mentality too much.”

Arsenal remain the standard Chelsea are trying to reach. Chelsea won the race to sign Rogers, but they are still behind the club setting the benchmark for competition at the top of London football and in the Premier League.

Sunday’s match showed that Chelsea’s substantial spending has not solved every problem. Despite adding 10 first-team players during an eventful summer, the decision not to sign a midfielder on the final day may have left a clear weakness in Alonso’s squad.

The manager described the summer transfer window as “the first phase” of his Chelsea project. The next test will be whether the team can overcome its midfield problem.

If Caicedo’s return does not resolve the issue, Chelsea are likely to face increasing scrutiny over their decision not to replace Enzo Fernandez directly before they return to the transfer market in January.