Chelsea's good, but needed, finish to pre-season is not enough to put them amongst the favourites for the Premier League title as the Blues are told they're in a worse position than all of their top four rivals heading into the opening weekend of matches.
Thomas Tuchel's side ended their preparations for the new campaign with back-to-back wins against Udinese, bouncing back well from a damaging 4-0 loss to Arsenal last week that sparked mass panic from their manager and supporters.
It hasn't just been a lack lustre showing on the pitch that worried fans, Todd Boehly's struggles to make a breakthrough in the transfer market has also meant that Tuchel is going into the league opener against Everton with a set of players that would still like to leave the club and up to four players short from new incomings.
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Chelsea did manage to boost spirits with a 3-1 win against Udinese before a second string XI also won 2-0 against an Udinese XI, but it's hard to see Tuchel feeling much more confident about his side's readiness for competitive action after not being certain that his team would be ready on time.
That has prompted a warning message from Jamie Carragher who still sees Chelsea as being behind schedule compared to the host of clubs fighting to challenge Liverpool and Manchester City. In his column for The Daily Telegraph, the ex-Reds defender said: "Guardiola and Klopp adjusting their strategy at the same time is why the others should sense an opportunity. It may prove misplaced optimism, but Spurs, Arsenal and United are in a better position now than a year ago. That is less true of Chelsea, although there is no doubting the quality of their coach and their squad."
Last season Tuchel's team started impressively, winning four of their first five matches, but with a tough opening spell, Chelsea need to find top form quickly if they are to keep up with what promises to be the most competitive top four race to date.
Spurs and Leicester both visit Stamford Bridge before August is over whilst home games against West Ham and Liverpool fall inside the first four being played at Stamford Bridge. There's tough trips to Everton and Leeds to get through as well.
This is why Tuchel was so keen to have transfer business done early, with the window shutting after gameweek five. In the mean time Chelsea have to watch as Manchester City hit full throttle with Erling Haaland, Liverpool continue a hot streak with Darwin Nunez, Manchester United undergo their own rebuild with Erik ten Hag, Arsenal make key additions of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko and Spurs bolster their squad with impressive efficiency.
Not that Chelsea haven't done their own good business, but with squad issues still a factor heading into the season it has prompted the Blues to drop from favourites for a top four finish to contenders once more, despite their manager remaining desperate to look past a Champions League place challenge and mount a serious title push.
If Chelsea can remain in the chasing pack and perhaps go about their business quietly then it might benefit them in the early part of the season, and Carragher thinks that there's certainly more than one way to go about winning: "Even if City and Liverpool go head-to-head again, tactically they will have taken a slightly different route to the summit, and their rivals should not be so far behind."
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