FEATURE: CAN THE BLUES KEEP THE MOMENTUM
The avoidance of long-term injuries to key players has afforded Jose Mourinho the luxury of selecting his preferred starting line-up more often than most of his rivals. Consciously keeping rotation down to a bare minimum, he has barely tinkered with the make-up of his side.
While this has largely been perceived as a positive, and it would suggest the continuity has aided results, there is a distinct downside to this policy, especially in light of Chelsea's continued involvement in all the major cup competitions. Will his regulars suffer from burnout during the business end of the season?
Chelsea's regular starting XI have spent more than 60 extra hours on the pitch compared with the 11 most-picked players in Manuel Pellegrini's squad.
While there are clear benefits to spending that much time together, with team cohesion and unity bound to grow, the fact remains that Mourinho's men have still had to put a significant amount of extra work into their season individually. To be precise, their top 11 starters have covered 455.3km more ground than City's.
Will injuries take hold in the coming weeks as a by-product of this additional duress on their bodies? Could the west Londoners lose an element of sharpness, as weariness begins to sap their energy?
These are important questions that will be answered in the coming months.
Victor Ottah
@vickyscodedworld
While this has largely been perceived as a positive, and it would suggest the continuity has aided results, there is a distinct downside to this policy, especially in light of Chelsea's continued involvement in all the major cup competitions. Will his regulars suffer from burnout during the business end of the season?
Chelsea's regular starting XI have spent more than 60 extra hours on the pitch compared with the 11 most-picked players in Manuel Pellegrini's squad.
While there are clear benefits to spending that much time together, with team cohesion and unity bound to grow, the fact remains that Mourinho's men have still had to put a significant amount of extra work into their season individually. To be precise, their top 11 starters have covered 455.3km more ground than City's.
Will injuries take hold in the coming weeks as a by-product of this additional duress on their bodies? Could the west Londoners lose an element of sharpness, as weariness begins to sap their energy?
These are important questions that will be answered in the coming months.
Victor Ottah
@vickyscodedworld
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