The Top Flight
Fansided

Chelsea: Four Key Matches That Defined Their Season

By Keith Lisenbee

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 21: Jorginho of Chelsea celebrates with Cesar Azpilicueta , Callum Hudson-Odoi and Tammy Abraham of Chelsea after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC at Stamford Bridge on January 21, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 21: Jorginho of Chelsea celebrates with Cesar Azpilicueta , Callum Hudson-Odoi and Tammy Abraham of Chelsea after scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC at Stamford Bridge on January 21, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 5
Next

Throughout the Premier League season, Chelsea maintained a spot in the top four. Four matches have been pivotal to their season to help achieve this.

Last season, Chelsea’s season was defined by Maurizio Sarri and his brand of offensive football. Despite some of the melodrama, such as when their goalie Kepa refused to be subbed off in their Carabao Cup final, they did have a successful season finishing third in The Top Flight and winning the Europa League.

However, “Sarriball” and London were not a good match for each other, and its protagonist headed back home to Italy, ending up at an even bigger club with higher expectations – Juventus.

The Blues turned to club legend Frank Lampard to take over a team that had also been stung with a UEFA transfer ban, shutting off their ability to add players for two transfer windows (this was later reduced to one on appeal).

The 41-year-old Lampard played 13 seasons for Chelsea as a mid-fielder scoring 210 goals in all competitions while assisting his club to three Premier League titles and a Champions League triumph.

After his retirement, Lampard joined the Blues as a youth coach for the 2017-18 season but then took the job coaching Derby County the following season in the EFL Championship. He led the Rams to a sixth-place finish and an upset defeat over Leeds United in the play-off semi-final.

Derby missed out on promotion to the Premier League, losing to Aston Villa in the final, 2-1. This was enough for Chelsea’s board to bring back the club legend to be their manager. There have been many critical matches during this year’s campaign for the Blues, but here are the four that stand out.

Home/Premier League