sport news How Chelsea got the blues: injury list, creativity black hole and boardroom ... trends now
Things aren't exactly coming up rosy for Chelsea manager Graham Potter at the moment.
The new boss saw his side - who lie 10th in the Premier League - thrashed 4-0 by Manchester City in the FA Cup, suffering a long injury list, struggling to create goals and with things at the club looking unstable after a boardroom revolution.
Below, Sportsmail's Adrian Kajumba looks at how Potter's team got the blues and what they can do to fix the problems which are currently derailing their campaign.
Chelsea manager Graham Potter (pictured) has seen his side struggle heavily in recent times
The Blues lie 10th in the Premier League and were thrashed 4-0 in the FA Cup against Man City
Injury issues
By far the biggest handicap Graham Potter has faced and one that has impacted on a variety of areas. Along with the number of players out — 10 missed Sunday's defeat at Manchester City — it is the quality of absentees too.
N'Golo Kante last played in August against Tottenham, when he starred and Chelsea impressed, somehow only drawing the game. Reece James suffered a recurrence of his knee injury against Bournemouth last month. The difference he made to how Chelsea looked before he was substituted was remarkable.
Sadly for Potter, that is the only time he has had James available in Chelsea's last 13 games. He and Kante are Chelsea's two most influential players so have been huge misses. Ben Chilwell and summer signing Wesley Fofana, both likely starters if fully fit, have missed significant portions of the season.
Injury issues for a long list of significant players is by far the biggest issue Potter has faced
Many others have also been sidelined for varying periods along the way, an injury crisis Potter called the most challenging period of his career.
The injuries have really piled up at a time when Chelsea are overhauling their medical department, having sacked a number of long-serving staff since the ownership change, making the subject an additional talking point.
Fofana and James have both been re-injured while working their way back to full fitness after knee injuries. Some of the issues could not be helped but Potter has also refused to put the problems purely down to bad luck. Either way, injuries have been an unavoidable theme of recent months for Potter.
Full-backs Ben Chilwell (above) and Reece James, plus N'Golo Kante, are all currently sidelined
Tactical tinkering
Since returning from the World Cup break there has been an element of consistency to Potter's line-ups with a back four emerging as his preference.
Before Qatar, a variety of formations were used as Chelsea's new head coach attempted to find out what worked best with the squad he inherited.
Using Raheem Sterling as a wing-back raised eyebrows, though he did perform well there and scored in Potter's first game in charge against RB Salzburg.
Potter argued Sterling was not being subjected to the same defensive responsibilities that usually come with the role, and, for balance, there was no issue with the formation changes when he began his Chelsea reign with a nine-game unbeaten run. Such tactical flexibility is what Potter is renowned for.
However, no obvious style of play has yet emerged. A coach at one of Chelsea's Premier League rivals explained how there is a lack of certainty about their
