The international break is well underway and while much of Chelsea's squad has joined up with their national teams, their return will signal that the homestretch of the season is upon us. The Blues have a minimum of 13 matches remaining this term with Champions League and Premier League campaigns left to culminate in the next two months.
There is little doubting that European competition offers Graham Potter's team their only chance of true success for 2022/23; though with Real Madrid standing in their way, it was be no easy feat. The tournament's last two champions face off in April, and it may not be too much to say that Chelsea's season depends on those two fixtures.
Outside of that, Chelsea sit 11 points from the top four and remain in 10th position. The west London side's schedule is not an easy one for the remainder of the season with seven of their 11 matches coming against teams above them in the table.
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The Blues have yet to taste victory against a team in the top half of the table this term. That may be a worry but such a schedule can also provide opportunity with games against Brentford, Brighton and Liverpool, meaning Chelsea can close the gap to the teams immediately above them with some vigour.
For many, chances of earning a spot in the top four have long since been written off. It remains in the minds of Chelsea's first team squad, however.
"If you string a couple of wins together, it’s possible," Pulisic told Chelsea's official website. "We still have to play the teams above us. Anything is possible, and we are going to keep fighting."
March saw an improved record for Potter's men as they went undefeated across four matches and recorded wins over Leeds United, Borussia Dortmund and Leicester City. Pulisic believes the squad is starting to come together ahead of the final stretch.
He said: "We have so many players in the squad and I think we are developing, you can see it on the pitch. Enzo and [Mateo] Kovacic, playing so well together. It is starting to click. We still have a long way to go but you can see the improvement.
"That is what happens when you bring in new players - and we have brought in a lot - and you can now see the improvement. We go out with the team for meals and stuff and spend a lot of time together. So we do anything that can help, for sure. They are all good guys off the pitch and we are trying to translate that onto the pitch."
The USA international acknowledged the size of Chelsea's squad and while good progress is obviously being made in the group, the approaching summer brings new problems. It's impossible to ignore that Chelsea's squad faces a sizeable cut ahead of the start of the 2023/24 season.
The likes of Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic have long been linked to transfers away, while Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and more approach the final year of their contracts and Joao Felix and Denis Zakaria are set to see their loans end. There is little doubt Chelsea's stars will play to win, but is a battle for the top four enough to keep every player invested, particularly if they cannot threaten matchday squads?
Chelsea have already had to leave Benoit Badiashile, David Datro Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Noni Madueke out of their Champions League squad. Not an ideal situation, but other than Aubameyang each player will have hope of a long-term future at Stamford Bridge.
A place in next season's Champions League will mean little for players not expecting to be at the club next season, outside of their performances earning a transfer and the respect they have for Chelsea. For Potter, Champions League glory offers a much more tangible carrot to ensure every member of his team is switched on and pull in the right direction even when there is a decision they disagree with.
The success it can provide come the end of the season would be immediate, but it will provide the Chelsea head coach the opportunity to rotate his squad more successfully and maintain buy-in across the board from supporters and players alike.
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