As you are more than likely aware, Chelsea return to the Champions League this evening with the visit of Sevilla.
The clash against the Spanish side comes at a difficult time for Frank Lampard and his team, who have failed to start the season in the kind of form they had expected to given their summer spending spree.
Their problems are plentiful at this moment in time, and that is very much the angle taken in the previews of the game.
Corriere Dello Sport in Italy start us off, describing the games as a chance for Lampard to ‘seek refuge’ from the ‘doubts that plague’ Chelsea in the Premier League.
ABC, a Seville newspaper, are also a little down on Chelsea, saying they ‘not currently in their best shape’ and explain how the British media are raising doubts about Lampard after their recent run of results.
They state that the former Blues midfielder has struggled to find the right balance in his selections thus far and there are questions abound regarding the ‘fragility’ of their defence.
This is all to Sevilla’s benefit, of course, as it means they can ‘remain faithful’ to their philosophy of being on the front foot in games.
Indeed, it’s made clear they will look to take advantage of Chelsea’s defensive issues and score ‘as soon as possible’ in the game.
There is, however, a little warning for the Spanish side, with it claimed this Chelsea side has been built to ‘fight for everything’, as they did last season in securing Champions League football.
Last up are Diario de Sevilla, who have something of a different stance on the game. They fail to really cover Chelsea’s issues and instead state that this will be Sevilla’s ‘most demanding match’ in this year’s group stages.
That would suggest they see the Blues as a little more of a problem than others, who, like the British press, aren’t too impressed by what they’ve seen from Lampard and co so far.
