Chelsea midfielder Ramires has stated that he believes the Blues are just 'one good victory' away from returning to winning ways.
After the worst start to a title defence in the club's history, even the possibility of finishing in the top four is beginning to look bleak for the Blues. Manager Jose Mourinho, whose future at the club has begun to look doubtful, has seen the greatest number of defeats so far in this campaign than he ever has in a previous season with seven losses. In addition, last season's stars aren't scoring goals, providing assists, creating chances, or producing clean sheets like they did before.
Yet Ramires, who has scored two Premier League goals this season, claims that one decisive victory could lift the team's spirits and turn their season around.
"When we have a good victory, where the team plays well and all of us return to our best, then the confidence will come back and our situation will change," claims Ramires.
"I think the team has a good mentality, but when you don't have victories you lose some confidence and we need to come back and start winning games again."
However, with the form the Premier League champions are currently in, earning such a victory may be easier said than done.
Chelsea's struggles this season
The Blues have suffered seven losses this season in 12 games, four more than they earned during last season's title-winning campaign. Their first loss came against Manchester City in their second game, and it was all downhill from there as the Blues struggled to regain last season's form.
Both the manager and the players have taken a portion of the blame for the woeful results. Mourinho has shown all the signs of a man on the edge, from his outspoken post-match interviews to the mutliple punishments he has incurred from the FA, including a stadium ban during last week's 1-0 loss to Stoke City. The players too have shown low spirits as their season has gone from bad to worse. On the pitch, last season's champions lack confidence, at times looking out of shape, slow, clumsy, and unsure of themselves.
It may be that the problem is mainly inside the players' heads, in which case a sound victory might help the west London club regain their confidence and a bit of their old form. However, earning such a victory will by no means be an easy feat.
The Blues have won only three of their last 12 Premier League games. However, even in those winning games, Chelsea looked only a shadow of what they were last season. Additionally, even though they have kept a couple of clean sheets, they have yet to dominate a game and earn a decisive victory, and they look not much closer to accomplishing that than they did when the season began.
Possibility of Chelsea's 'one good victory' coming against Norwich
However, the sound victory Ramires is hoping for could come against Norwich City this weekend.
Statistically this season, both teams seem evenly matched. Both have won one and lost four of their past five games, and Norwich sits at 15th in the table with 12 points, only one place and one point ahead of Chelsea. Both clubs have bagged 16 goals so far this season, with Norwich claiming two more assists than Chelsea. Additionally, both sides have been lacklustre, to say the least.
Last season, such a meeting did not cause the nerves and the pressure that Chelsea must presently be feeling as Saturday approaches. This season is entirely different for the Blues, with so much to prove after such shockingly poor results as of late. This weekend's match-up will certainly test the title defenders, who will need to bring their best efforts if they hope to soundly defeat the Canaries.