Chelsea 2023/24 season review: A campaign of two halves | OneFootball

All the signs were there for a calamitous campaign in the first few months. And then things changed.

But just how did we rate Mauricio Pochettino's debut season in charge of Chelsea?

Competition breakdown

Premier League - Sixth

A true season of two halves in the Premier League for Chelsea.

The opening months of the campaign saw the Blues become a laughing stock with millions spent and very little returned in kind.

But since their defeat at home to Wolves in February, Mauricio Pochettino's side have lost just once and gone on a dramatic rise up the table.

With the club's raft of new signings last summer finally having settled into something of a rhythm the future does look, tentatively, bright for the Stamford Bridge outfit.

FA Cup - Semi-finals

It was in the FA Cup that Chelsea arguably put in some of their best performances of the campaign.

Aston Villa were beaten at Villa Park 3-1 with Conor Gallagher's free kick one of the moments of the season for the Blues.

Leeds and Leicester were then bested 3-2 and 4-2, respectively with Mauricio Pochettino's side seemingly building up a head of steam.

But unfortunately for movable object Chelsea, they came up against the unstoppable force of Manchester City in the last four where they were beaten 1-0.

EFL Cup - Runners-up

Chelsea put in a second cup run this term but once again fell just short of silverware in Pochettino's first season.

The west London side had a relatively straightforward route to Wembley in the EFL Cup as they beat AFC Wimbledon, Brighton and Blackburn to reach the quarter-finals.

Penalties were needed to get past Newcastle in the last eight before Middlesbrough were beaten 6-1 over two legs in the semis.

Liverpool were then the opponents in the final as Chelsea were just edged in what turned about to Jürgen Klopp's last trophy as Reds boss.

Player of the season: Cole Palmer

A remarkable debut term from a remarkable young player.

Cole Palmer left Manchester City last summer and became one of many as part of the Blues new influx of talent.

It would have been very easy for Palmer to get lost amongst the names and fall into the background, especially at a new club with lots of expectation.

Instead though, Palmer has shone to become not just Chelsea's player of the season but arguably the entire Premier League's.

The 22-year-old has netted 27 in all competitions and now has a genuine shout to be involved in England's squad for the upcoming European Championships.

Game of the season: Chelsea 4-4 Manchester City

The start of the season was a troubling one for Chelsea.

With a whole host of new names and a brash American owner, the Blues' heads were above the parapet and there to be shot at.

Defeats to West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Brentford before the clocks went back left the capital club in trouble early on.

But their 4-4 draw against Manchester City in November hinted at something within the this squad that was worth persevering with.

In a brilliantly topsy-turvy game, Chelsea took the lead twice before being pegged back and looked to have lost it when Rodri netted in the 86th minute.

Cole Palmer stepped up and made himself the hero though with an equalising penalty in the 95th minute.

Top goalscorer: Cole Palmer (27)

Once again in this end of season round-up we talk about Cole Palmer.

The former City man wasn't supposed to be the one to lead Chelsea's line but with Nicolas Jackson struggling for form and Christopher Nkunku injuring himself in pre-season, it was left to Palmer to fill the void.

And fill it he did with a series of brilliant performances even whilst the rest of the Chelsea squad struggled around him.

The second half of the campaign has been particularly fruitful for Palmer having scored two against Burnley and Newcastle, a hat-trick against Manchester United and four at home to Everton.

Rising star: Alfie Gilchrist

It's been a brilliant breakthrough campaign for Alfie Gilchrist, with the 20-year-old defender growing to become a first team squad regular having impressed for so long with the Chelsea youth sides.

Captain at under 18 and under 23 levels, big things have been expected of the London-born defender who has been compared with John Terry in the past.

But it was this term that Gilchrist forced his way into the senior reckoning and stayed in contention with a series of commanding performances.

There have been 17 appearances in total for the defender with 10 of those coming in the Premier League. Expect even more from Gilchrist next term.

What comes next?

If the second half of the season is anything to go by, Chelsea would be crazy to sack Mauricio Pochettino with the Stamford Bridge side having lost just once since the middle of February.

In fact, only the Premier League's top three - Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool - have taken more points than the Blues since Boxing Day.

It means that the west London side can now go into this summer with a genuine sense of momentum, something that seemed near impossible at the turn of the year.

With the club's gung-ho American ownership though, it remains to be seen whether they will allow there to be a settled off-season or if yet more comings and goings will derail all of Pochettino's admirable work.