**Ex-Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole has dismissed his former club’s title credentials following an inconsistent start to the Premier League season.**
Speaking ahead of the Blues’ clash against Tottenham this weekend, Cole said that head coach Enzo Maresca does not have a squad that is “strong enough to compete with” league leaders Arsenal:
“This season, the expectation has to be for Chelsea to comfortably get into the Champions League position and mount a challenge in the league.”
“I don’t think the squad’s strong enough to compete with Arsenal. I’m happy to go on record saying that now, they won’t win the league. I agree with him here as well, Chelsea aren’t there yet and they are still just too inconsistent.”
Chelsea are well off the pace
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After beating European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup final, there was hope that Maresca’s men could challenge for honours on all fronts this campaign.
However, the Blues are already eight points adrift of Arsenal after nine games played, having lost three games, two of which have been at home. The consistency has simply not been there to gather any sort of momentum.
The squad has to be strengthened in several key positions
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There are major weaknesses in the starting lineup that have to be addressed. Despite Robert Sanchez having had a decent start to the campaign, a more [**reliable keeper**](https://chelseanews.com/blog/chelsea-transfer-news-marc-andre-ter-stegen-robert-sanchez-mike-maignan-fans-react/) needs to be brought in.
An authoritative leader in the centre of defence is also required, while a striker who can score more than 20 goals a season would not go amiss either.
It remains to be seen whether the club’s recruitment team will rectify these issues in an upcoming transfer window. Even though upgrades for these positions were required in the summer, nothing was done, so there are no guarantees that it will be addressed.
[**Read more about the Chelsea First Team Squad for 2025/26 here**](https://chelseanews.com/blog/chelsea-first-team-squad/)