Chelsea Premier League Analysis: 5th Place, 13 Points After 8 Games

Chelsea are 5th in the Premier League with 13 points from 8 games (4W 1D 3L) and a goal difference of +2.

Season at a glance

They trail the leaders Man City by 8 points, and are 2 points behind fourth place.

They are 8 points above bottom-placed Sunderland.

Chelsea's season marks: biggest wins 5-1 at home and 0-2 away; heaviest defeats 0-2 at home and 3-0 away; a best winning run of 2; a longest losing run of 1.

Against top-half opponents Chelsea have 1W 1D 2L (1.0 points per game from 4 games); against the bottom half it is 3W 0D 1L (2.25 per game from 4).

Attack

Chelsea have scored 17 goals (2.12 per game), the 3rd-best attack in the Premier League. The league average is 1.39 per team per game, so they sit 53% above it. They failed to score in 2 of 8 games. They average 2.8 goals per home game and 1.5 per away game.

Defence

They have conceded 15 (1.88 per game), the 17th-best defence, with 1 clean sheet in 8 games. Clean sheets: 0 at home and 1 away. They concede 2.0 per home game and 1.8 per away game.

When the goals come

Chelsea's 19 league goals are spread by minute band, with the most productive spell 0-15 (7 goals); 10 (53%) came after half-time and 2 after the 75th minute. they have conceded most between minutes 16-30 (3 of 13 goals), including 4 after the 75th minute.

Tactics and discipline

Chelsea's most used formations: 3-4-2-1 (5 games), 4-2-3-1 (3 games).

Chelsea have collected 17 yellow and 1 red cards.

Home and away

Chelsea have 2 wins, 1 draw and 1 defeat at home (7 points from 4 games, 1.75 per game), scoring 2.75 and conceding 2.0 per game. They kept 0 clean sheets and failed to score in 1 of those 4.

Chelsea have 2 wins, 0 draws and 2 defeats away from home (6 points from 4 games, 1.5 per game), scoring 1.5 and conceding 1.75 per game. They kept 1 clean sheet and failed to score in 1 of those 4.

Form and streaks

Chelsea's last 5 results in the Premier League, newest first (opponent position in brackets): 0-2 vs Tottenham (14th, L); 2-0 at Everton (11th, W); 5-1 vs Bournemouth (13th, W); 0-3 at Brentford (6th, L); 2-2 vs Hull City (10th, D). That is 7 points from a possible 15, with 9 goals scored and 8 conceded.

Squad leaders

Chelsea's league contributors: goals - João Pedro 5, M. Rogers 4, Pedro Neto 3; assists - João Pedro 3, C. Palmer 3, J. Hato 2.

Highest average ratings among regulars (270+ minutes): João Pedro 7.60, E. Martínez 7.58, M. Rogers 7.47.

Workload and impact: most minutes - M. Rogers (703), C. Palmer (701); most key passes - C. Palmer (17); most tackles and interceptions - M. Lacroix (24); goalkeeper E. Martínez has made 25 saves; most yellow cards - M. Rogers (3).

Strengths and weaknesses

Chelsea's strengths: 3rd in the league for goals scored (17 goals).

The schedule ahead

Next up: vs Man United (16th), at Sunderland (20th), vs Leeds (7th). The average league position of those opponents is 14.3, a kinder run.

Outlook

At 1.62 points per game, a full 38-game season would end near 62 points, and at 2.12 goals per game near 81 goals. That is a projection from the current rate, not a prediction.