Three changes Mauricio Pochettino can make to get Chelsea scoring again

"He is a winning coach," said Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, Chelsea's co-sporting directors, upon Mauricio Pochettino's arrival at Stamford Bridge.

Fast forward several months and there has been very little evidence to support this statement. Chelsea have won just two competitive games during his reign so far - a 3-0 win over newly-promoted Luton Town and a comeback victory against League Two AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup.

Chelsea's other four matches have been made up of two draws and two defeats, all of which have been characterised by wastefulness in front of goal. The Blues were crying out for a clinical number nine all summer given their profligacy last season, yet here they are five weeks into the new season and nothing has changed.

Of course, there has been bad luck. Christopher Nkunku - who finished joint top scorer in the Bundesliga last season - picked up a long-term injury in pre-season, while Armando Broja has also been sidelined for the entire of the campaign to date.

But, despite making countless signings this summer, Chelsea still lack a ruthless striker capable of making the difference in tight games. Nicolas Jackson has shown plenty of promise following his move from Villarreal, but he has also exhibited the kind of immaturity and rashness in front of goal that you would expect from a 22-year-old.

So, how could Pochettino fix Chelsea's goalscoring problems?

Play with two strikers

This obviously becomes a lot simpler when some of Chelsea's injured players return to the pitch, but it's still possible at this moment in time. Jackson has been criticised for his misses this season - one glaring effort against Nottingham Forest didn't help - but the Senegalese forward is arguably being asked to do to much.

If Jackson had a partner up front, or someone to shadow him in an advanced number ten role, such as Raheem Sterling or Nkunku when he's fit, then the summer signing would become less isolated in possession.

Having someone run off him like Sterling would give him support when holding the ball up, while also allowing him to push further up the pitch and make effective runs into the box, rather than dropping deep to link play.

Perhaps Pochettino could take inspiration from what Pep Guardiola is currently doing at Manchester City. The Spaniard has more or less reverted to a 4-4-2 to allow Julian Alvarez to partner Erling Haaland up front, providing support and also taking defenders away from the big Norwegian.

Perhaps, albeit with a lower calibre of player, Pochettino could use Jackson as his Haaland and Sterling as his Alvarez, while also offering his side a more traditional structure in attack and defence.

Play with more width

On several occasions this season, Pochettino has utilised a 3-4-2-1 formation. In this system, Malo Gusto and Ben Chilwell have been those expected to create width on the flanks, while two attacking midfielders - often Sterling and Conor Gallagher - have been expected to drop into central areas in between the lines.

However, Chelsea have perhaps suffered from a lack of width this season, with the attacking full-backs expected to do too much. By switching to a 4-3-3, for example, it would allow Gusto and Chilwell to overload the wide areas and use the space created by more traditional wingers such as Noni Madueke and Mykhailo Mudryk.

Sterling is also comfortable operating out wide, as is new signing Cole Palmer, providing Pochettino with plenty of options on the flanks. In Chilwell and Gusto, as well as Reece James when he returns, the former Tottenham boss also has full-backs capable of providing effective support.

Chelsea have scored five goals this season from an xG of ten, while also having missed more big chances than any other side in the division (12). Pochettino can't afford to not make a change to his system soon.

Revert to the 4-2-3-1

Pochettino has arguably been guilty of changing his system too much already this season. The Argentine was expected to use his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation, but has often opted to play an unconventional 3-4-2-1.

Perhaps going back to basics and playing a more orthodox and familiar system can improve performances.

It was a system employed by Pochettino against Bournemouth where he used Enzo Fernandez in the number ten role to little avail. Pushing Fernandez further back and using someone like Palmer in an attacking midfield role could prove more fruitful, while also offering Jackson support and providing greater width.

Against the majority of teams in the division, Chelsea's three centre-back system is a little too negative, especially when Fernandez and Moises Caicedo are sitting just in front of them. Playing with more bodies in attacking areas is a pretty simple way to increase the number and quality of chances being created.

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