Our Chelsea fans here in the Transfer Tavern will be hoping that reaching the semi-final of the FA Cup will spark a good run into the end of the season, where the Blues in the bar are hoping to still clinch a top-four place.

Chelsea’s 2018 has been probably one of their worst years to date, they lost a semi-final in the Carabao Cup to local rivals Arsenal, they have slipped out of the top-four, dropped out of the Champions League and have broken a couple of unwanted records with their defeats.

No doubt the pressure is mounting on Antonio Conte and, talk of him leaving in the summer is only rising among our regulars in the bar, with the club seemingly at a crossroads right now.

However, while the focus is very much on the manager, the players should be taking some of the flack too according to our landlord. Some of the Chelsea stars simply haven’t turned up on a regular enough basis this season for the Blues, and for that reason, these TWO players, in particular, should be fighting for their Stamford Bridge futures…

Tiemoue Bakayoko

The summer signing from Monaco hasn’t fully adjusted to life in the Premier League as of yet, and because of that, his performances on the pitch haven’t been of the level many in of the punters in the bar expected of the Frenchman.

Bakayoko, if he wants a future in English football, really has to find his feet in the final parts of the season to warrant a place going forward in the Chelsea team. It’s not been good so far, that’s for sure.

Gary Cahill

The English defender has not had the best of seasons so far, maybe the burden of being club captain has changed him slightly but the emergence of younger defenders has seen Cahill’s role in the team reduce over the course of the season.

Cahill is one of the stalwarts of the Chelsea team and one that has the previous winning mentality of many Chelsea teams down the line. Out of the England squad for the first time in years, perhaps Old Father Time is catching up with the former Aston Villa man.