3 Biggest Positives for Chelsea's 2015/16 Season so Far
Jose Mourinho and his Chelsea players have endured a tough few months.
Despite back-to-back victories this week—not to mention clean sheets in both of those matches—the 2015/16 season has been one to forget.
They may be reigning Premier League champions, but the Blues sit 15th in the table and are way off the pace when it comes to the top four places, let alone surprise leaders Leicester City.
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The Stamford Bridge club face an uphill struggle to salvage anything resembling success, and they need things to turn around promptly.
That said, it hasn't all been doom and gloom. Sifting through the mire, there are some aspects to the campaign that can fill Chelsea fans with hope of better things to come.
We've seen Brazilian youngster Kenedy shine at times, with other young players hinting at bright future too.
Top of that list of players is Kurt Zouma, who is now a regular in Mourinho's side.
Zouma is also No. 1 in our list when it comes to the positives for Chelsea's season, so join us as we look at three things that should keep Mourinho and Blues fans feeling confident.
Kurt Zouma's continued progress
The task of developing Chelsea's defensive backbone for the continued evolution of this team is half complete.
That's thanks to Kurt Zouma's progress this season.
The Frenchman has impressed Mourinho enough that he is now being preferred over John Terry and Gary Cahill at times.
In the early part of the season, it was Terry who fell victim to Zouma's form and now Cahill is spending time on the sidelines.
The 21-year-old is looking more and more senior with every performance. Only this week he looked a towering figure for Chelsea when he replaced the injured Terry against Maccabi Tel Aviv.
When he stepped onto the pitch, Zouma's posture was a far cry from the young man who joined the club almost two years ago.
From youngster to proven talent, Zouma is becoming a major figure at Stamford Bridge.
What's impressed most about him is that he hasn't suffered significantly despite Chelsea's struggles. Normally we would expect young players to wilt as their more senior team-mates' form suffers.
Zouma has reacted to the contrary, using Chelsea's nightmare start to the season to seize the initiative. Where others have failed, he's succeeded and has been one of the best players in this team.
He's also added goals to his game as we saw against Tel Aviv with his late header to complete the 4-0 rout.
Zouma's all-round game has developed rapidly over the past season. It's no wonder Mourinho was comparing him with France legend Marcel Desailly in March.
Mourinho's task now is to unearth another gem to complete his central defence for the future.
Keeping Jose Mourinho at the helm
It's been painful for Chelsea fans watching the demise of this team. They're the reigning Premier League champions, and they shouldn't be the pushover we've seen at times.
They've surrendered points against some of their biggest rivals and lost matches against teams they would have toppled last term. It's been said too often: This season simply hasn't been good enough.
If what's happened on the pitch has been the worst of Chelsea, everything off it has shown the club in a more positive light.
Rather than fall divided, Chelsea have stood united. The fans have backed the manager and the players, which has influenced the board into doing the same.
Too often in the past decade, Chelsea have changed managers on a whim. In the short term, that may have inspired a trophy surge, but the reality has delivered the club to where it is now.
There hasn't been enough stability at Stamford Bridge, and if Roman Abramovich is serious about building the dynasty he craves, he and the club must support the manager.
It's what we're seeing now, which only strengthens Mourinho's position. That shows the players where the club want to take things, and those who may not be behind the manager will have a tough choice to make.
That's not to suggest player power is totally eradicated at Stamford Bridge, but with the support Mourinho is receiving from above, the manager is stronger now than at any point of Abramovich's ownership.
In a time where the likes of Swansea City's Garry Monk—a manager who has arguably overachieved at the club—are being questioned on their future after some poor results, Chelsea have bucked the trend.
The club is better off for it.
Reality bites
If Chelsea were naive in the transfer market last summer, we can all but guarantee the club will adopt a new approach in 2016.
Seeing is believing and what we've witnessed this term has outlined the problems in Mourinho's side.
There are weaknesses throughout and it's going to take some shrewd business to get things right. Not just for one season, but for the long-term future.
That means repeating the approach from 2014 when Chelsea signed Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas before the World Cup had even kicked off—well before the 2014/15 Premier League season. It put the club in a position of strength that few could match.
Whether they took their eye off the ball this summer, only those who make the decisions at Stamford Bridge can truly tell.
But making moves for the likes of John Stones so late in the transfer window tells us all was not right.
The Stones debacle put Everton in a tough position. Regardless of the money the club would receive, it would be no good to them as they had little time to replace one of their best players.
We can only speculate, but there's every chance Chelsea would have enjoyed a better outcome had they moved earlier in the summer.
Abramovich and the power-brokers at Chelsea have seen the issues with this squad. It's been painful for all to watch, but now they know how to fix it.
A blend of emerging academy talent and transfers next summer should put Chelsea back to where the club craves to be—at the very top.
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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