The team that has it all has unexpectedly been found wanting. Chelsea, the double Premiership champions, have been struck with an injury crisis in defence that looks like undermining their campaign for a third successive title.
Chelsea's security has been debilitated by John Terry's absence. The England captain possibly faces an extended period out with a back injury, and year-on-year comparisons show Terry's absence has already begun to affect results.
The two goals Fulham scored in their defeat at Stamford Bridge on St Stephen's Day last year were the seventh and eighth Chelsea had conceded in the Premiership all season. The champions go into this year's equivalent fixture on Saturday having shipped 15. Six of those goals have come in the three matches Terry has recently missed through injury.
The effect on Chelsea's points tally has been similarly damaging. This time last year they had dropped only five points; this year 10 have gone missing. And with Manchester United setting a searing pace in the title race, Chelsea will be trailing the leaders at the turn of the year.
The situation is unprecedented in Jose Mourinho's career as the club's manager.
David Speedie, the former Chelsea striker, acknowledges how big the blow has been. "John Terry is a major part of everything Chelsea do," Speedie said yesterday. "That's why they are conceding goals like they are at the moment. It's because he's absent and he's not organising things at the back. One player doesn't make a team, but John Terry is a very big miss."
Mourinho may be forced to recruit a replacement. But after lavishing £350 million on new players since July 2003, it could be Chelsea's transfer-market record will, paradoxically, prove an obstacle.
All season Manchester City have been expecting to fight off Chelsea's interest in Micah Richards during next month's transfer window. The 18-year-old England defender would lend versatility to a defence shorn of William Gallas's flexibility after his summer move to Arsenal. But Richards's ability to play with equal alacrity at right-back - where he won his England cap against Holland last month - and in central defence carries a steep price. City manager Stuart Pearce said it would take a "ridiculously big offer" to sell him.
Chelsea would have to commit a sum similar to the £21 million they paid the same club for Shaun Wright-Phillips 18 months ago. Ironically, it is that capacity for extravagance which empowers City to resist Chelsea's latest advances.
"The offer they made us for Shaun had to be in that region to get him out of here and the financial situation was such that we had to accept that offer," Pearce has said. "Things have changed at the club since then. The Shaun money is in the bank and things are on an even keel."
Chelsea might find they are restricted by other aspects of their transfer-market philosophies if they look to bolster their defensive options. Mourinho has dogmatically held there should be no more than 22 outfield players in his squad - a first choice and a deputy in each position. Mourinho reinforced this with his reference to eight "untouchables".
Even if Chelsea now return to Tottenham with the £30 million bid for Ledley King that would be the minimum the Spurs' board would countenance, it may not be enough to seal the deal. King might have joined them a year and a half ago, but he is unlikely to consider swapping a strong team where he is captain for a club where he would not be guaranteed to start.
That might force Chelsea to cast their net beyond the Premiership. Luisao, Benfica's 25-year-old Brazil centre-half, is an imposing presence in defence and at attacking set-plays. He would be available for an affordable £8 million and as a Portuguese speaker would communicate well with Ricardo Carvalho. Chelsea might reignite interest in Alex, PSV Eindhoven's right-back-cum-centre-half. Vincent Kompany, Hamburg's 20-year-old Belgian centre-back, is another monitored by Chelsea. But all three players are cup-tied in the Champions League.
Mourinho paid £7 million for Khalid Boulahrouz, who is 25 today, but it is unlikely the manager considers he has had a valid return on the investment in the centre-half. Having joined in late August and missed Chelsea's pre-season schedule when most clubs' tactical work is laid down, Boulahrouz has failed to live up to the potential that made him one of Martin Jol's top transfer targets at Tottenham.
But Speedie believes the Dutch defender - and Chelsea's title challenge - will ultimately prosper without reference to the market. "Chelsea have enough quality players as it is," said Speedie. "With the size of the squad that he has, the manager knows what he is doing; he has quality players around him and they'll come good. Against Reading an unlucky own-goal cost them dearly. They can absolutely come from behind in the title race."
Yet, unless Chelsea have success in the market next month, attack may become their best form of defence.
Guardian Service
