Should Chelsea Be Regarded Automatic Favourites for the 2015/16 Premier League?
There's a certain aura around Chelsea.
They're reigning Premier League champions, and as such we're being told they will be the team to beat in the upcoming season.
Considering the way in which they won the title, it stands to reason.
There was the odd wobble here and there in 2014/15, but leading from the opening weekend to the last, Jose Mourinho's side were dominant in every sense.
Few could rival them, as their results have shown.
Chelsea have lost just twice this calendar year in all competitions—just three times since their Champions League semi-final defeat at the hands of Atletico Madrid in April 2014.
It's a record that outlines how far this team has come under Mourinho since his return. The harmony is back, and that air of authority that seems to follow the manager wherever he lays his hat has been reinstalled. Yet it remains difficult to escape the thought that this could all be a facade.
Has Mourinho created an elaborate hoax that's mesmerised us all into talking up Chelsea's invincibility?
The Chelsea boss has never claimed his team to be invincible—he's left that one up to the media—although the way in which Chelsea are threatening to cast a dominant shadow over English football only feeds the notion.
The result has seen the north-west clubs and Arsenal almost running scared. None of Manchester United, City, Liverpool or the Gunners offered a significant challenge last term and among themselves managed a measly six goals in 10 games against Chelsea.
Mourinho's given birth to a monster that dominates the subconscious, thriving on the fear of opponents.
The imposing frames of John Terry (6'2") and Nemanja Matic (6'4") are the physical manifestation of it, with the genius of Cesc Fabregas and Eden Hazard feeding the imagination with thoughts of all that can go wrong when up against them.
It's an unsettling scenario to consider for any side.
But then think about it for a moment: Peel back the layers, and what do Chelsea actually have?
Well, certainly not the strongest or most intimidating squad in the Premier League—that's for sure.
Now that Petr Cech has departed, Thibaut Courtois is quite literally the last line of defence at Stamford Bridge, and he has no backup. Chelsea have an aging centre-back in Terry (age 34) and have yet to find a definite, assured replacement.
Without Matic, they lack a world-class defensive midfielder; outside of Hazard and Fabregas, they lack real quality going forward.
As an XI, there are few better in Europe, let alone England. Over the course of a season, it's a different prospect altogether, though.
Dare we say it, they look weak.
Indeed, there's an argument to suggest that had Chelsea not set such a ferocious pace before Christmas, they may not have finished up as champions last term, given how they seemed to run out of juice. But the fact remains that they did win the title. Mourinho's players blitzed such a devastating trail that their rivals couldn't keep up. Regardless of what they did post-Christmas, it was all irrelevant.
The counter is set back to zero now, however, and despite the shortcomings that have reared their heads in his squad, Mourinho isn't addressing them sufficiently.
Chelsea needed to replace Didier Drogba, so they opted to replace one aging striker with another.
Radamel Falcao may be eight years Drogba's junior, although his form over the past 18 months won't make Chelsea look stronger in the striker department. Age is on his side (just), but Falcao has the look of a man whose best days are long behind him.
If we look at the stats, the 29-year-old's mere four goals to Drogba's seven last term suggest that Chelsea are in fact weaker. Sure, there's plenty more to consider besides, yet it remains that Drogba's replacement is a man who is struggling in front of goal.
The balance is wrong. Chelsea shouldn't be rebuilding reputations; it's the players who should be strengthening the club's.
It hardly fills one with confidence in much the same way Chelsea's other attacking midfielders fail to strike the fear of Hazard.
Big questions remain about Oscar—can he last a full season? Is he creative enough to be the long-term solution at No. 10?
Then there is Juan Cuadrado (sorry, we had to mention him). The Colombian hasn't done much of anything for Chelsea. Does he have enough about him to recover from a demoralising first six months in England?
It's going to take something special for Cuadrado to add enough to this Chelsea team to make them exceptional, which is what Mourinho should be striving to achieve.
That's the benchmark Barcelona and others have set. It's the target Chelsea need to reach.
United and City haven't strengthened significantly themselves since last season either. Save for the odd signing here and there, both Manchester clubs have plenty to do if they realistically expect to topple the champions.
A little closer to home, Arsenal are suddenly a different prospect.
The impact of Cech's signing isn't totally convincing in a playing sense. As talented a goalkeeper as he is, a weak rearguard and defensive midfield are going to leave him far more exposed than he ever was at Stamford Bridge.
What his arrival in north London shows, though, is a shift in philosophy at the Emirates Stadium. It's almost like Arsenal are beginning to believe in themselves more, which is reflected in the players they are chasing.
They've signed some big names in recent windows, with Cech their latest addition. Now they're a threat, no longer the club trading on an invincible season during which some of their current crop were barely out of junior school.
It's a shift in momentum, and Chelsea need to match it.
When we consider how Mourinho relied on such a small core of players to deliver silverware last season, it heightens his genius.
He squeezed every bit he could out of his squad. Now that they're defending champions, the stakes are even higher, and to achieve anything close to what they already have, Chelsea need an upgrade in key areas.
We can point to some youngsters coming through to argue that there's little need for improvement. But this isn't 1995—20 years on, it's a much more difficult proposition to win things with kids.
We're barely into pre-season, and with the best part of two months remaining in the transfer window, it's premature to label any team favourites for the title. If the league were to start this weekend, however, it would be folly to suggest Chelsea would repeat their 2014/15 success. They haven't done enough in the window to convince.
Champions they may be, but having it all their own way again? It's naive to suggest it.
Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes.
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