Not many people were picking Chelsea to win the Premier League before the 2016-17 season kicked off. Yet 14 games into this season, Chelsea are atop the table and look like a team poised to vie for the league.
Chelsea's fall from grace after winning the 2014-15 title was spectacular. The Blues recorded 26 wins, drew nine times, and lost only three games on their way to winning their fifth title two seasons ago.
What a contrast from last campaign when they won only 12 games, drew 14 matches and lost 12 of their 38 fixtures, resulting in a 10th place finish.
Since Antonio Conte has taken over at the helm at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea have only lost twice in 13 games, drawing once, and winning 11 matches. The Christian Eriksen strike for Tottenham in Chelsea's recent 2-1 victory was the first league goal conceded in 551 minutes of football.
Online bookmakers agree that Chelsea are now genuine title contenders and have them priced at +200, the same as preseason favourites Manchester City.
Unlike Manchester City, Chelsea does not have European football to distract them this season and can concentrate solely on their league campaign without having to rest key personnel for midweek battles with Europe's elite. The same can be said of high-flying Liverpool, although the Reds don't quite have the same depth as their West London counterparts. Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool can be backed at +300 to win the Premier League, making them third favourites.
Chelsea should be wary of their lack of depth when it comes to out-and-out strikers. The Blues cannot afford to lose Diego Costa, +225 second favourite to end the season as the top Premier League's top scorer, through injury or suspension as the Spaniard has returned to his brilliant best so far this season, scoring 10 of Chelsea's 29 league goals in 13 appearances.
Eight other players have found the back of the net this season, but aside from Eden Hazard (seven goals) and Costa, nobody has more than three goals.
It's hard to see who will replace Costa should Chelsea go into a game without him leading the line. Pedro is not a central striker, and £33.2 million summer signing Michy Batshuayi has been limited to eight substitute appearances this campaign, no wonder bookmakers now price the Belgian as +15000 to win the league's coveted Golden Boot.
Defensively, Chelsea have been superb since switching to a 3-4-3 formation, conceding only ten goals and keeping seven clean sheets. While it is unlikely Chelsea will break their 2004-05 record of 21 clean sheets and 15 goals conceded in a season, they are incredibly difficult to break down. And if you don't concede, you rarely lose games.
Manchester City, thanks to the wealth of attacking options and depth, should still win the league. But Chelsea will finish a close second second after pushing City all the way. Arsenal will finish in third place, Liverpool in fourth, leaving Manchester United to finish fifth. Would that spell the end for Jose Mourinho? That, friends, is another article altogether.
