Chelsea suffered their third successive FA Cup final defeat, losing 6-5 on penalties against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium yesterday.
Chelsea must adopt Liverpool's strategy.
This season has demonstrated that Chelsea can compete with Liverpool. The two teams have met four times this season, and each match has ended level after 90 minutes – or, in the case of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup finals, after 120 minutes.
Penalty shootouts are the reason Liverpool has won two trophies from those matches; Chelsea has twice lost the lottery from 12 yards. In the Premier League, though, it's a different story, with Thomas Tuchel's team trailing the Reds by 16 points.
That is because Chelsea now lacks the mentality to deliver peak performances game in and game out. Too often, performance levels slip, and this must improve if the Blues are to compete for the top-flight crown again in the near future.
"We have the attitude in the club to mold the mentality of the players to achieve these top performances," Tuchel stated after the FA Cup final defeat yesterday. "But, in recent years, Manchester City and Liverpool have demonstrated that you need to display that at a level of consistency that we don't have and have struggled with. So we need to discover it, construct it, or make it - which will be more difficult given the last several months."
That's because Chelsea has been operating under severe constraints since owner Roman Abramovich was granted permission by the UK government in March. All contract negotiations have been halted, and no progress has been made as to the summer transfer window approaches.
Fortunately, the situation will drastically change if Chelsea is sold to a company led by US billionaire Todd Boehly, which football.london thinks might happen as soon as Monday. And the onus will be on the new owners to equip Tuchel with all the tools he needs to compete against Manchester City and Liverpool next season.
That might be impossible to do in a single summer. Maybe even impossible. Tuchel, on the other hand, has given out a model for success that may be followed by underlining Liverpool's improvement under Jurgen Klopp following yesterday's FA Cup final.
"The difference for me throughout the season is that they (Liverpool) can do it again on Wednesday, and then Saturday, and then Wednesday," Tuchel explained. 'And this is where the gap appears. They can put on more of these types of displays.
"They have been building and improving this team for many years — this is where the gap exists. The sanctions have not made it any easier for us to close it, and they will not make it any easier in the near future. That is why, given the circumstances and where we come from, we will see after the season is through."
For many stretches of yesterday's game at Wembley, it felt like a re-enactment of the Carabao Cup final. Both teams created opportunities only to blow them. Extra time was required, and Chelsea appeared to seize control, but their dominance faded. Finally, it was penalties that separated the two teams.
That's when things began to change. Tuchel chose to stay with Chelsea's number one goalkeeper Edouard Medy for the shootout, and it appeared to be the right move after the Senegal international produced a spectacular stop to deny Sadio Mane from lifting the cup for Liverpool.
Unfortunately, it was in vain, as the Reds were celebrating on the Wembley surface in a red cloud after several smoke bombs were fired by Liverpool supporters. It was a cruel twist of fate that Mason Mount missed Chelsea's deciding penalty; the academy product has been one of the most consistent performances over the last three seasons.
His penalty was awful, and Alisson was always going to make the save once he guessed correctly. Mount could only turn back and, in despair, bring his t-shirt to his mouth. Hakim ZIyech, to his credit, walked forward from the halfway line and was the first player on the field to try to console the 23-year-old. Cesar Azpilicueta, the club captain, quickly followed suit.
In the midst of the Liverpool celebrations, it was Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson's time to cajole his England colleague. It didn't have much of an impact. Mount hunched down and gazed into the chasm. He couldn't stand it when the Reds lifted the trophy. Many of his colleagues were in a similar situation: Jorginho, for example, had begun to make his way down the tunnel before Henderson had even hoisted the trophy.
Unexpected injuries prove expensive
There was great debate before the final over who should lead Chelsea's attack: Kai Havertz or Romelu Lukaku. Tuchel's decision to select his team was snatched away from him when the German attacker was ruled out due to a hamstring injury.
After the warm-up, Timo Werner received the unpleasant news that he, too, had a hamstring problem. And, despite being named among the substitutes, the German sat for the majority of the 120 minutes. He would never be presented.
Many teams would be thrown off by just those injuries. However, Chelsea came into the game with an injured N'Golo Kante, who was listed on the bench, and Mateo Kovacic, whose ankle was hacked at by Leeds United winger Daniel James on Wednesday evening.
With long-term absentees Ben Chilwell and Callum Hudson-Odoi, as well as Andreas Christensen being ruled out for a huge event, Tuchel had very few options to change the final. Not that the great majority of those who began failed him.
Trevoh Chalobah had a rough first 15 minutes, with Luis Diaz threatening on several occasions. Fortunately, as has been the case throughout the season, the center-back improved as the game proceeded, which was supported by Reece James and Mason Mount keeping a closer check on Andrew Robertson.
Thiago Silva was magnificent, save for one errant pass, while Antonio Rudiger performed admirably. Jorginho was outstanding in midfield. Marcos Alonso poses a threat from the left wing-back. Christian Pulisic had lots of chances but couldn't convert them, and while Romelu Lukaku couldn't keep up his goal-scoring streak, he did win a flick on or two and set up a fantastic second-half chance for Pulisic.
What Tuchel lacked was game-changing options off the bench. On 65 minutes, Kante came on for Kovacic, but he only showed flashes of his true nature. Meanwhile, Ziyech remained silent. Ruben Loftus-Cheek was also introduced and then substituted for Ross Barkley in extra time; the former Everton star was one of Chelsea's penalty takers.
It's difficult to say how things would have turned out if Havertz and Werner had been available, or if Kovacic and Kante had been at 100%. But it's a testimony to Tuchel's club that they were able to push one of the best teams in the world to the end for the second time this season.
"I was confident we'd win today," Tuchel stated afterward. "I knew before and during the game that momentum was on our favor today. I was certain till the very last second. Unfortunately, I was incorrect. We had to swallow it and move on. It's just part of the game."
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