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'Chelsea are genuine Premier League & Champions League contenders' - Blues have no weaknesses, says Cole
A former Stamford Bridge favourite believes Frank Lampard's side can go all the way in both domestic and continental competitions
Chelsea are genuine Premier League and Champions League contenders, according to Joe Cole, who says the Blues have no weaknesses.
Frank Lampard sought to build on an encouraging fourth-place Premier League finish in 2019-20 by recruiting the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Edouard Mendy and Thiago Silva in the summer transfer window.
The Blues backed their manager to the tune of over £200 million ($269m) and are already seeing the fruits of their sizeable investment in the early stages of the new season.
Chelsea have risen to third in the Premier League standings after 10 fixtures, two points behind Tottenham and reigning champions Liverpool having recorded five wins, four draws and only one defeat.
Lampard's men are also safely through to the Champions League knockout stages, but will look to secure top spot in Group E when they take in a trip to Sevilla on Wednesday night.
Ahead of that encounter, Cole has expressed his belief that the west London outfit are capable of winning a domestic and European double, albeit while admitting that they still have plenty of room to develop as a team.
"I think Chelsea are genuine contenders," The former Blues winger, who won three league titles and two FA Cups at Stamford Bridge between 2003 and 2010, told BT Sport.
"I think all the English sides, you can’t discount any of them from going all the way in the Champions League because of the quality and the strength of our league.
"I don’t feel there are any weaknesses in the Chelsea side at the moment. I feel there aren’t any glaring weaknesses, there are areas to improve on.
"But if you look at the last two months, certainly since Chilwell, Mendy, and Silva have got into the back four, the clean sheets have started to happen.
"We look safe and secure from set-pieces. So those things have improved dramatically from last season. I think there’s still areas where Chelsea can improve and they will improve.
"But certainly, I put them down as contenders to win the Champions League and the Premier League this year."
