10 Biggest Questions Surrounding Chelsea's Title Bid

6. Will Inconsistency Be A Problem Again?

There's no doubt Chelsea have some phenomenally gifted players at every level of their squad. There's at least one world class talent in every position and, defence apart, plenty to come in as replacement in case of injuries. Age is also on the squad's side, with only Cech, Ivanovic, Terry, Torres, Drogba and Schwarzer coming in at thirty years or older at the time of writing. The downside is that young squads can often be inconsistent, having yet to accrue sufficient experience to express themselves in the full range of situations which can occur over a season. Oscar, whom Mourinho placed in the crucial No.10 role ahead of fan favourite Juan Mata, suffered particularly badly last season, with his form dipping severely before Christmas and never quite finding its way back up. Eden Hazard may have been Chelsea's Player Of The Year, yet his form also noticeably declined in the latter half of the season when clubs started double and sometimes triple marking him out of games. Even slightly older players like Ramires struggled to maintain the high standard of performance expected of Chelsea players, leading to Mourinho deploying fellow Brazilian David Luiz in his place for many big games. World Cup hero Andre Schurrle had a very solid debut season, scoring nine goals, but didn't quite do enough to cement his place in the side. The additions of Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas should lessen the pressure on the likes of Oscar and Hazard, giving them a little more freedom to settle into their stride and take the next step in fulfilling their immense potential. Chelsea's lack of potency up front last season meant opposing teams could afford to assign more defenders to Hazard, which Costa should hopefully be able to alleviate. Fabregas will lessen Oscar's responsibilities as the side's sole playmaker and allow him to play with less pressure. As for Ramires, after two seasons of wildly unpredictable form, we can but hope to see him back to his early form rather than the despair which set in with his every touch of the ball last time around. The less said about Fernando Torres the better. It's up to those players to now seize the opportunities presented to them to really move on from having world-class potential to being world-class players. Chelsea are going to have to do a fair bit of rotation to keep everyone in shape for the season ahead, and whether coming off the bench or making the most of any available starts, Mourinho is going to need consistency from everyone available to him if he's to live up to his team's billing as early favourites for the title.