John Obi Mikel has given his verdict on Chelsea’s title chances this season, with Enzo Maresca’s side currently sitting third in the Premier League table.
Following their 3-0 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal’s draw with Sunderland, Chelsea are only six points off the league leaders.
Last month, former Liverpool and England goalkeeper David James labelled Chelsea as “title contenders”.
Mikel, however, has his doubts about his old side and shared them on the latest episode of his podcast.
John Obi Mikel during Chelsea Legends game
Photo by Chris Lee – Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
John Obi Mikel doesn’t think Chelsea will win Premier League this season
For Mikel, Chelsea simply do not have enough experience to get their hands on the Premier League crown in the current campaign.
“I think we’re not going to win the league this season,” the retired midfielder said on The Obi One Podcast. “I think we just lack a bit more experience in terms of winning the league, but I think top four should be our aim this season, Chelsea.”
Chelsea definitely have more than enough to finish in the top four, especially if the team can maintain the level they were playing at during the second half of their 3-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
After being extremely resilient in the first half, eventually, Chelsea’s attack was too much for Wolves to handle.
Alejandro Garnacho was excellent for Enzo Maresca’s side, setting up two of the three goals that they scored.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca giving instructions to Liam Delap and Alejandro Garnacho
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Lack of experience will cost Chelsea in any potential title race
Compared to Arsenal and Manchester City, Chelsea have a very young squad who have not competed for the Premier League title before. Therefore, they probably will fall short this season.
Although he is not a starter yet, Chelsea fans saw a lot of naivety in Jorrel Hato’s game in the 2-2 Champions League draw with Qarabag. He made two errors that proved costly for the Blues.
Up front is also a bit of a concern right now. Joao Pedro has managed to score in Chelsea’s last two Premier League games, but he does not always play there and was recently on a goal drought.
Liam Delap is yet to score in the English top flight this term after an injury and a suspension. He is still just 22 and showed a lot of inexperience with his daft red card during Chelsea’s 4-3 win against Wolves in the Carabao Cup. All things considered, then, it may be a while before this Chelsea side are challenging for the title again.