Breakdown, Preview and Predictions for Chelsea's 2012-13 Season

From Andre Villas-Boas to Roberto Di Matteo, and from English Premier League to Champions League, Chelsea was like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde last season.

The team will be looking to repeat its stellar performances in Europe while raising its level of play in England this year.

A summer splurge from Roman Abramovich has brought new talent to Stamford Bridge, and Di Matteo will be expected to add to Chelsea's trophy case this season. The Blues' ability to take home hardware will be analyzed as they are up next in my next EPL preview series.

Here is all the important information surrounding Chelsea's 2012-13 campaign. 

Transfers In, Transfers out

Transfers In	Transfers Out
Eden Hazard	Didier Drogba
Oscar	Jacob Mellis
Marko Marin	Salomon Kalou
Thorgan Hazard	Jose Bosingwa
	Thibaut Courtois (Loan)
	Romelu Lukaku (Loan)
	Kevin De Bruyne (Loan)

Key Arrivals

Eden Hazard

Hazard was one of the most coveted players of this summer's transfer window, and Roman Abramovich delighted Chelsea supporters by shelling out £32 million for the winger shortly after the team won the Champions League.

In 38 Ligue 1 appearances for Lille last season, Hazard had 20 goals and 16 assists. The 21-year-old is exceptionally talented and will continue his success in the Premier League.

Oscar

Abramovich kept his checkbook open all summer and found another young and talented attacker to add to his squad. Chelsea signed 20-year-old Oscar for £25 million in late July.

The Brazilian scored 10 goals and recorded five assists in 26 Brasileirao matches for Internacional last season. He is a consummate footballer who can be effective in any midfield position and his natural skill will energize the Chelsea attack. 

Key Departures

Didier Drogba

Drogba was an iconic figure during his eight seasons at Stamford Bridge. He spearheaded the team's attack and was the Blues' most outstanding player in several seasons.

This past year, he had six goals and two assists in Champions League matches and was a large part of the team's trophy-winning European campaign. The 34-year-old has decided to pad his bank account as his career winds down, and Shanghai Shenhua will pay him a ridiculous £193,000 per week wage this season. 

Jose Bosingwa

Bosingwa was a key defender in Chelsea's Champions league push, but the team opted not to extend his contract. He played in 27 EPL matches last season.

The 29-year-old performed well last season, but he was not spectacular. While he certainly would have added depth to the squad, he was expendable due to Branislav Ivanovic's play on the outside and his inclusion in the summer cleaning will not effect the squad all that much. 

Biggest Matches and Full Schedule

The full Chelsea schedule can be found via the team's website. Here are the must-see matches. 

At Arsenal, Sunday, September 29

Chelsea's first meeting with one of the top-four teams from last season will come at Emirates Stadium.

The first contest between these two teams last season featured five second-half goals for a ridiculous final score of 5-3 in favor of Arsenal. The next meeting was as scoreless draw.

Their results last year show that anything can happen in this derby, and both teams will have more knowledge as to how they measure up against the other English giants after this match. 

Vs. Manchester United, Sunday, October 28

Before Manchester City thrillingly won the Premier League title on the final day of last season, Manchester United and Chelsea had accounted for the previous seven league championships.

These two teams had reigned over all the rest for nearly a decade before Chelsea floundered in EPL play this past season. Still, the Blues proved they are still an elite team by winning Champions League.

Chelsea will look to bounce back in league fixtures this season and the squad will extremely motivated against United.

Vs. Tottenham, Saturday, April 13

This is another London derby between two talented sides. 

Chelsea will be looking to supplant Tottenham in the top four this season and a victory over Spurs late in the season will certainly help their cause.

It will be important for the Blues to perform well late in the EPL schedule, even if they are still competing in Champions League. This will be a test to see if the squad is deep enough to perform well both in Britain and in Europe.  

Key Players

Fernando Torres

It is difficult to describe Fernando Torres' Chelsea career as anything but a failure thus far.

He was one of the most dangerous strikers in the world while playing for Liverpool, and that allowed Roman Abramovich to justify the £50 million he paid for the Spaniard.

But this past season, Torres scored just six goals and recorded four assists in 32 appearances (12 as a substitute). With Didier Drogba gone, the Blues will need him to play at a world-class level once again.

Juan Mata

Mata is a supremely talented midfielder who has the potential to be one of the key players for Chelsea and the Spanish national team for many years.

He finished last season with six goals and 13 assists in 34 league appearances. He is a versatile midfielder who can attack from the center on either flank.

His passing in the attacking third is truly exception, and WhoScored.com notes that no player in the EPL made more passes that led directly to a shot on goal this past season. 

Petr Cech

The Chelsea defense is solid, but also aging. Youth has been injected by David Luiz and Gary Cahill, but these players have not always been consistent.

This has often placed a significant amount of pressure on Petr Cech to make remarkable saves, and he delivered in a big way at the end of last season. He made one spectacular save after the other during Chelsea's runs in the FA Cup and Champions League. 

The gigantic 30-year-old keeper will be counted on to make an impact as large as his frame once more this season.

Strengths

Midfield Depth

The list of talented Chelsea midfielders is incredibly long.

Juan Mata and Frank Lampard were the most dangerous going forward last season. John Obi Mikel, Raul Meireles, Oriol Romeu and Michael Essien are all capable of playing the holding midfielder role effectively, while Florent Malouda is dangerous on the wing and Ramires is versatile enough to move around.

Add Eden Hazard, Oscar and Marko Marin to the list of dangerous attacking midfielders and it will be nearly impossible for Roberto Di Matteo not to put a strong midfield lineup on the field.

This is far and away the team's area of strength, and there will be intense competition to get minutes in the Chelsea midfield. 

Winning Close Matches

Roberto Di Matteo's tactical decisions last season were flawless in the latter stages of the Champions League.

He opted to play defensive-minded football against team's talented attacks, and trusted his players to get a crucial goal with limited opportunities. A 1-0 victory in the first leg of the semifinal against Barcelona when the team was out-shot by a 24-4 margin is a perfect example of the Blues executing Di Matteo's game plan. 

Had he tried to play a more open match against teams like Barça and Bayern Munich, his center backs' lack of speed would have been exposed. Instead, his strategy played to his defense's strength, discipline and grittiness. 

Di Matteo is intelligent and flexible enough to tailor his tactics to the opponent. This allows Chelsea to be dangerous against any team on the planet. 

Weaknesses

Consistency From the Strikers

The only true strikers on the Chelsea squad are Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge. This should be cause for concern. 

While the Blues' midfield is strong, they are not the Spanish national team and will not be able to get by in a "False No. 9" formation. The team needs a striker, and it likely will not be able to count on Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge to deliver in the majority of the team's matches.

Chelsea will use just one striker in many contests, but this will not alleviate the worries. Torres' struggles have lessened slightly since his arrival at Stamford Bridge, but he still played poorly in several outings. 

Sturridge is just 22 years old, and while he played well and scored 11 goals last season, he is not at the level where the team can count on him in important Premier League and Champions League matches. 

League Play

The André Villas-Boas experiment failed, but even after Roberto Di Matteo took over managerial duties, the team still struggled to compete against the top teams in Premiership matches.

Di Matteo faced Manchester City, Tottenham, Arsenal, Newcastle and Liverpool after being appointed interim manager. He managed to pull out draws against Spurs and the Gunners, but lost to the other three sides.

Champions League is certainly the priority for a club like Chelsea, and the team's FA Cup victory was important. Still, the consistent failure to win league matches against the top teams in England is a problem that needs to be corrected. 

Now that Di Matteo has the club's full backing and an entire offseason to work with his players, he must stress the importance of playing well in all competitions. 

Prediction for 2012-13

Wins: 21

Draws: 11

Losses: 6

Points: 74

Place: 3rd

Roberto Di Matteo starting the season as manager will lead to improved Premier League play from Chelsea.

However, his team's offensive output left a lot to be desired and he has yet to prove that he is capable of using all his new midfielders effectively. In addition, Chelsea's summer additions are all incredibly young with no EPL experience.

There will be growing pains for the players and the manager, and the attack will stall at times. Still, Di Matteo will ensure that the team is difficult to beat, and losses will be rare. 

Chelsea will hop back in to the top four but it will not seriously threaten to win the title this season.