The Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez has said that he feels that the team is in need of a rest, as the players have been extremely poor in recent weeks due to the huge number of matches. Due to their involvement in a number of competitions following their Champions League victory last season, Chelsea have already played a lot of matches. The players like Fernando Torres and Eden Hazard have been virtually playing every match for Chelsea since the start of the season, which has taken the boil out of them. The new manager Rafa Benitez took charge of the club only a week ago and he has already seen the club play two matches in the space of three days.

They will be set for another match this weekend when they take on West Ham at Upton Park. He has said that the piled up fixture list means that the players do not have an opportunity to be at peak fitness. Benitez also has said that the fewer players within the squad means that rotation is also extremely difficult. He suggested that the club may dip into the January transfer window in order to bolster their squad. The injuries to Lampard, John Terry, and Marko Marin have certainly not helped the situation.

“We had too many players playing almost every game. Eleven or 12 were playing in every game and others hadn’t had too many minutes. You cannot play two or three games in eight days and be fully fit. You lose some pace and energy. We will manage the squad, particularly with Japan and the games over Christmas. We will be stronger as a team if we juggle them,” said Benitez ahead of the West Ham match. Chelsea also have to play in the Club World Cup championship in December.