Carlo Ancelotti Feeling The Pressure As Chelsea Slump Continues

The alarming slump at Chelsea is showing no sign of slowing down and Carlo Ancelotti is beginning to come under increasing pressure as the Italian looks to turn the team's fortunes around, after a fantastic start to the season the Blues have won just one league game out of the last six as well as losing to an average Marseille team in the Champions League. The slump in form has seen Chelsea slip off the top of the Premier League and with a crucial number of fixtures on the horizon it looks like being make-or-break for Ancelotti over the next few weeks, the Italian enjoyed a great first season in London but the team are clearly lacking confidence at the moment and he faces a huge challenge if he wants to get the team back on track.

The dip in form has coincided with the departure of Ray Wilkins from the club last month and that has to have had come bearing on the form of the team, the former Assistant Manager was a popular figure with the players and Ancelotti himself and it seems to have hit the performances of the team on the pitch. Ancleotti has also had to deal with a couple of injuries this season with Frank Lampard and John Terry missing for a large chunk of the campaign so far, they have a squad that is a little bit thin on the ground and in truth they have proven that they lack the quality needed to cope with one or two knocks. Ancelotti though will have to put that to one side as he takes his team to Spurs on Sunday before matches with Chelsea and Arsenal over the Christmas period, it could not have asked for three tougher games and if the slump continues Ancelotti will be under increasing pressure come the New Year.

While this alarming dip in form has been going on the bookmakers as you would expect have been watching the situation very closely, the Next Premier League Manager To be Sacked Odds will be worrying reading for Ancelotti at the moment with his odds now as short as 5/1 with Victor Chandler. The odds about the Italian getting the boot have been shortening up with every point lost for Ancelotti and although the Italian is still popular with the fans it is unlikely that Roman Abramovich will put up with the team struggling for too long. The next three games will be crucial for the Italian as he looks to instill the confidence in the team that has been so clearly lacking, he will be hoping that the tough fixture list on the horizon will bring out the best in his out of form squad otherwise it could be a long dark summer for Carlo Ancelotti.