The funny thing is that now they have an easy series of games - out of 5 games, the only serious rivals were Liverpool and somehow Chelsea managed to draw with them. Further games will be more intense and if Chelsea loses to the favorites and the same losers (in the moment) like Newcastle or United, then they simply will not rise from 14th place where they are now.
Picking up just five points in a possible 15 points is absolutely a poor result for a club like Chelsea after breaking the world records for the most expensive transfer window for a club. Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino is supposed to do more than what we've seen so far.
After Chelsea's performance in their first English Premier League game against Liverpool, I thought that there was a very significant improvement from what we saw from the club last season but unfortunately, the club is still far from coming back to their best. It's still very early days of the season but I'll be surprised to see Chelsea finish I the top four at the end of the season.
Finishing in the Premier League in the top 4 is generally an interesting question, even if you play well. After all, there are too many clubs vying for this place - for example, now, even taking into account the failure of Newcastle and United in the top 4, Arsenal, City, Liverpool, Tottenham (and next to Brighton). All the teams are quite solid and despite Tottenham's losing streak, sometimes they can even rise to 2nd place. In such conditions, the top 4 for Chelsea looks like a pipe dream.