Where have all the leaders gone at Chelsea?

Mauricio Pochettino’s problems are many at Chelsea and despite a squad of talented young stars, he’s lacking players with the mettle that defined Chelsea of old. But are new leaders emerging at Stamford Bridge?

COBHAM, SURREY – Mauricio Pochettino remained resolute. Perhaps more so than some of the characters he has in his Chelsea squad right now.

“Look, I’m not paying attention to that because I think John Terry was young also and needed to build his pattern,” he told the gathered press in the media room at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground.

“I don't believe that John Terry, when he was 18 or 19, was already a leader or that the rest of the players that you were telling me the different situation that maybe they were [leaders] too.”

Those other players to which the manager was referring are Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.

It was the Friday prior to Chelsea’s Monday Night Football clash with Everton and Pochettino was responding to a question on leadership; whether it’s a fair criticism of this current Blues side that they lack the same character of years gone by.

Ask most observers - fans, former players or pundits from across the world of print, radio or television - and it’s one thing they will say sticks out.

Where are the leaders?

When Chelsea have been forced to deal with the tougher side of the game this term, they have often been found wanting. Take the recent 2-2 draw with Sheffield United - a team in the relegation zone for the entire campaign and a club destined to go straight back down to the Championship.

Prior to facing Chelsea, the Blades had picked up just six points in 2024. In the process, they had shipped a staggering 38 goals in 11 games in all competitions.

Chris Wilder’s side had been thrashed 5-0 by Aston Villa and Brighton and Hove Albion, while Arsenal also put six past them without reply in that run of form leading up to Chelsea visiting Bramall Lane.

Call them pessimists, most Chelsea fans - indeed, most observers - could predict what would happen to Pochettino’s side that day. Why? Because in that very old English way, we know “they don’t like it up ‘em!”

And that’s exactly what Chris Wilder’s side did for the entire 90 minutes to salvage a 2-2 draw. They put it up ‘em.

That Chelsea were leading the game with just seconds remaining in added time compounded the misery of their draw all the more. Especially as it was a result that could have been avoided with a little more mettle and, well, leadership from those on the pitch.

Chelsea were broken down by long balls and chaos as there weren’t enough players on the pitch in blue who could galvanise those around them to survive the death march the Blades were throwing at them.

Eventually, they caved.

Your team is struggling and needs a result? Don’t worry, it’s Chelsea next.

It would be harsh to land such criticism at the foot of the manager, however. This isn’t a situation of his doing, especially when we consider the player turnover and transfer policy put in place long before he arrived. 

While we can all predict an onslaught from the likes of Sheffield United and other teams scrapping for their survival, it’s another thing to protect against it when the fundamentals aren’t at Pochettino’s disposal.

Because this young Chelsea team has much to admire about it - we need only reference some of the performances against those challenging for the Premier League crown this year to prove the point - but for all their technical ability, the never-say-die spirit isn’t quite there. Yet.

That’s what wins trophies; it’s what scrapes victories on a bad day; it’s what puts teams into the reckoning when European places are handed out; it’s what transforms good teams into great teams; it’s how Chelsea won the Champions League in Munich with arguably their worst team at the time since Roman Abrmaovich purchased the club in 2003.

Form never quite mattered with that generation of players. When Terry and his team of lieutenants turned up, more often than not they found a way by grinding opponents down and running the gauntlet.

To do it successfully takes courage and character. And to drag the likes of Jose Bosingwa to a European crown alongside you, no shortage of leadership. Bucket loads of it. 

So does it come down to age?

“[Terry, Lampard and Drogba] had some help when they were young and maybe were in another project,” Pochettino continued. 

“We are in a project that we are, of course, 80, 90 per cent of the players are young and maybe they need to grow together.

“And of course, they need some reference and they need some help. And they need also, because that's why we are here, is for us to help them in all this process to become leaders, to improve.”

There’s no doubting this Chelsea side is improving, regardless of the hiccups along the way. Which breeds some hope.

We can point to tangible examples such as cup runs and finals, but there is the impression forming that leaders are maybe beginning to emerge as well.

When Pochettino arrived last summer, would Chelsea have shown enough character to clinch a draw against Manchester United after surrendering a two-goal lead? Would they have had enough about them to go on and win the game 4-3 moments after levelling?

How do we measure such a metric? Can we even measure it other than to analyse what we saw before us and come to a conclusion?

Naysayers will suggest otherwise, but that result - incidentally coming three days before the Sheffield United draw - provided a semblance of the leadership fans have craved.

He wasn’t shouting at players or throwing around demands, but Cole Palmer’s hat-trick was scored before a backdrop of the qualities Chelsea must nurture within him, despite the manager’s note of caution.

“You can say that Palmer can be a leader, but he’s focused on him and to try to perform and show why he's here,” he explained. “At the moment, he's doing well. At the moment, he will say, ‘For me, it's perfect because I arrived at Chelsea and I have showed that I am doing well.’

“Another player, another player, it’s the same. They all have different objectives and different targets. It's like, if we talk about Nico Jackson. Nico Jackson, if you compare with Drogba during his first season, there's good hope. But can he be a leader? Was Drogba a leader in his first season?”

So where are the leaders? Are they beginning to show themselves at Chelsea?