Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink, like his predecessor Jose Mourinho, isn’t one to mince words.
Unlike Mourinho, Hiddink is wary of what’s over his shoulder.
With Everton, Arsenal, Manchester United, and a top-10 Watford side rounding out their next four opponents, Hiddink is a bit unnerved about Chelsea’s situation.
“It’s reality,” Hiddink said of relegation in his pre-match press conference. “We have two difficult games coming up. If you don’t gather points there, you don’t know what the others do. The Premier League can surprise you.”
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That it can, that it has, and that it will.
“We all like to look forward and to the top of the table,” Hiddink said, “but also don’t be unrealistic - you’re six points off the line of relegation. That’s also a fact. We have to work hard and be very concentrated and gather our points to step up.”
Only facts from the Dutchman. Eight of Chelsea’s next 10 matches come against top-12 Premier League placeholders, a span that will take them through mid-March, plus they have a Round of 16 matchup with Paris Saint-Germain in Champions League play during that timeframe. Things appear daunting for the defending champions, and Hiddink is not someone to back away from reality.
