Chelsea really are the most challenging team to predict in the Premier League.
Despite their wins away to Aston Villa and Crystal Palace in recent weeks, you would have been hard-pressed to find many who would have predicted anything other than a Manchester City win ahead of their clash on Saturday night.
Competition
Opponent
Result
Premier League
Liverpool
4-1 Loss
Premier League
Wolverhampton Wanderers
4-2 Loss
FA Cup
Aston Villa
3-1 Win
Premier League
Crystal Palace
3-1 Win
Premier League
Manchester City
1-1 Draw
Yet, a goal from Raheem Sterling against his former side and an incredible defensive display from the Blues – especially Axel Disasi – meant Mauricio Pochettino's side left with a point.
However, with the chances they created, they could've potentially left with more, which must leave Todd Boehly and Co even more frustrated that the club lost a striker in 2017 who has outscored Cole Palmer this season.
Dominic Solanke's slow and steady rise
The man in question is none other than former Chelsea and Liverpool forward Dominic Solanke.
The current Bournemouth star started life as a footballer with the Blues and made 45 appearances across the U21, U18, and UEFA Youth League teams, in which he scored 35 goals and provided six assists, meaning he averaged 0.91 goal involvements per match as a youth player.
However, with opportunities hard to come by in West London, the Basingstoke-born gem opted to join Liverpool in the summer of 2017, a move which netted the Blues £3m through a tribunal.
Unfortunately for Solanke, his time on Merseyside wasn't particularly fruitful, and after a year and a half in which he made 27 first-team appearances, scored one goal, and provided one assist, he was sold to Bournemouth for a hefty fee of around £19m – primarily thanks to his potential and World Cup success with England's U20s in 2017.
Dominic Solanke Bournemouth boom
Now, while the "simply superb" striker, as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has been on fire this season, his time with the Cherries did not get off to the best of starts.
In his first half-season with the club, he failed to score a single goal in ten Premier League appearances, and things didn't get much better in his first full campaign either, as he scored just three goals in 32 top-flight appearances in the 2019/20 season which wasn't enough to stop Bournemouth getting relegated.
However, with less of a spotlight over his head in the second tier, Solanke managed to make amends for his poor start to life on the south coast, bagging 15 goals and 11 assists in 45 appearances in 2020/21 and, then, in 2021/22 he managed to do even better, scoring 30 goals and providing seven assists in just 48 appearances.
In his first season back in the top-flight, his rate of return did take a hit somewhat, as the once-capped international managed to score seven goals and provide seven assists in all competitions for managers Scott Parker and Gary O'Neil.
However, this year, the "brilliant" Premier League star, as dubbed by Kulig, has hit an entirely different level with 16 goals and four assists in just 28 appearances across all competitions, a goalscoring tally that beats out all of Chelsea's current attackers.
Appearances
Goals
28
16
32
14
31
8
27
9
For example, Sterling has scored eight goals in 31 games, Nicolas Jackson has nine in 27, and even Cole Palmer has scored fewer, with 14 goals in 32 games, although if you include assists, the 21-year-old just about edges it altogether.
Chelsea let a "player of the season" who's outperforming Enzo leave for £0
The former international has been like a man possessed this season.
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Ultimately, though, with Chelsea underperforming their open play expected goals by 10.06 according to Understat, Pochettino would surely love to have a striker like Solanke in the side, especially as the Cherries star is only underperforming his by 1.32, which is why Chelsea should regret letting him slip through their grasp.
