Chelsea's Midfield Struggles Highlighted After Arsenal Defeat

Chelsea finished their 2-1 loss to reigning champions Arsenal with two former right-backs playing side by side in midfield. This came after a summer transfer window where the club spent a staggering £349 million. How did they end up relying on defenders in midfield?

The match saw Reece James, who started his career as a right-back, fail to track captain Martin Odegaard, allowing Arsenal’s winner at the Emirates Stadium. Despite this lapse, James performed well overall and spent nearly half of last season playing in midfield.

But concerns remain about Chelsea’s midfield depth, especially after Malo Gusto replaced midfielder Romeo Lavia in the second half. The team’s lack of creativity on the bench left them vulnerable, while Arsenal’s substitutes helped secure the win for the home side.

"Chelsea don’t have European football this season so they’re playing fewer games and can focus on the Premier League. But finishing a game against the champions with two right-backs in midfield is worrying," said Ashley Young to BBC Sport."Lavia was injured a lot last season. The front line will scare teams but behind that you see the midfield and they’re playing right-backs there. Teams will notice Chelsea sit back and pack men behind the ball, but spaces still open up, as Arsenal showed today.""Chelsea gave up a lot of possession and played counter-attacking football. Today, they only really capitalized once on the break, when Pedro Neto ran down the right."

Why Chelsea’s Midfield Looks Thin

The biggest problem is the absence of Moises Caicedo. The Ecuadorian international suffered an injury just 11 minutes into his substitute appearance against Brighton last week and faces an uncertain recovery timeline. This leaves manager Xabi Alonso in a tricky spot; Caicedo had missed only two matches in three seasons aside from suspensions.

Alonso admitted, "Not longer term, but it’s about assessing the risk. Probably we brought him back too early last week and I don’t want to make the same mistake again." It remains unclear if Chelsea worried about Caicedo’s fitness during their late pursuit of several central midfielders.

Monaco blocked Chelsea’s £47 million bid for Lamine Camara at the last moment, frustrating Stamford Bridge officials. Other bids up to £64 million for Bournemouth’s Alex Scott were rejected earlier in the summer, and a move for France international Manu Kone was stopped by Roma’s coach.

Chelsea claimed Camara was a market opportunity and expressed satisfaction with their summer signings, despite selling Enzo Fernandez to Manchester City for a British-record joint fee of £125 million on deadline day without bringing in a direct replacement.

Besides Caicedo, Jordan Henderson remains sidelined, recovering from a broken arm sustained off the pitch during the World Cup. Meanwhile, natural midfielder Valentin Barco, signed from Strasbourg, has been ignored in favor of Gusto in all three Premier League matches so far.

With Gusto playing midfield, Chelsea managed only 25.6% possession in their 4-3 win over Brighton, the lowest since records began in 2003-04. Alonso argued that if all midfielders are fit and Caicedo’s injury is minor, five midfield options should suffice without European midweek fixtures.

The attack has relied on star forwards like Morgan Rogers, a revived Cole Palmer, and the prolific Joao Pedro. Yet conceding seven goals in three matches means Alonso wants the defense to be tighter.

Alonso Stays Optimistic After Setback

Chelsea’s performance still had bright spots. Record signing Morgan Rogers scored early, becoming the first Chelsea player since Eden Hazard in 2018-19 to score or assist in each of the club’s opening three league matches. This was arguably one of Chelsea’s better showings against Arsenal amid a run of 10 games without beating their London rivals.

Though Chelsea finished 10th last season and face a 33-point gap to close, Alonso said, "We came to win. We knew we weren’t far, but it went their way. It hurts, we’re disappointed for sure. But this is just the first defeat. It doesn’t affect our mood or mindset."

Arsenal continue to set the standard Chelsea aims for. Even after signing Rogers before Arsenal, the Blues lag behind their city rivals and Premier League leaders. Despite bringing in 10 first-team players over the summer, Chelsea’s failure to replace Fernandez directly may have exposed a weakness in midfield.

Alonso described the summer as "phase one." If Caicedo’s return doesn’t fix Chelsea’s midfield problems, questions may arise about not securing a replacement before turning to the market again in January.

Match Result: Arsenal 2 - 1 Chelsea
Chelsea Summer Spend: £349 million
Key Injuries: Moises Caicedo (unknown period), Jordan Henderson (broken arm)
Notable Transfers: Enzo Fernandez sold for £125 million to Manchester City
Possession Stats vs Brighton: 25.6% (lowest since 2003-04)
Goals Conceded in 3 Matches: 7