Eclipsing the work of Jose Mourinho this season may not be the most difficult of tasks, but the Chelsea board will expect performances more like last season.

The Blues may have started this season poorly, but they’ve still got a lot of class on FM and you should be looking to dominate Europe within a few years.

Mr Mourinho may be a Special One, but the talent at your disposal on this version of Football Manager should allow you to create a dynasty that no one has managed under the ownership of Roman Abramovich.

What you start with...

The budget begins at £40 million, but the high level of revenue retained helps to increase this. An excess wage budget of over £400,000 a week makes for good reading and allows you to splash the cash if looking for a bit name.

What's expected...

Premier League: Unsurprisingly, the Blues board demand that you retain their Premier League title and won’t expect much less than a top two finish.

FA Cup: From the start of the game it’ll be lucky if they expect anything less than an appearance in the final.

Champions League: The minimum requirement in Europe’s premier cup competition is the reach the semi final. We would advise that you stick with this as the budget doesn’t gain a significant amount for promising more.

Capital One Cup: As with so many of the big sides, the minor domestic cup won’t effect your end of season evaluation.

Three to buy...

Jose Gimenez: This Uruguyan rock is a stalwart for Atletico Madrid and, although he may set you back a fair bit, his definitely worth the investment. With Cahill poorly rated on the game and Terry likely to decline quickly, Chelsea are in dire need of a partner for Kurt Zouma. A tackling rating of 15 at the age of 20 is going to increase rapidly and he will quickly be one of the best around.

Marco Reus: Since signing his new contract (and losing that brilliant release clause) Reus’ transfer will now set you back over £50 million. The money becomes a lot less concerning when you think of a Hazard-Costa-Reus front three and the mouth watering football that would result. Reus is best as an inside forward and can provide crucial goals from wide areas that Willian and Hazard sometimes fail to produce.

Paul Pogba: Cesc Fabregas can’t do all the midfield creative work on his own and Nemanja Matic needs some help defensively, fortunately Pogba can do both of those roles at once. Within a few years, Pogba will be a contender for the Ballon D’or and, although it may take a lot of your budget and a couple of players, his signing would be of great long-term benefit to your squad.

Three to sell...

Gary Cahill: Cahill begins with his rating only at two and a half stars on this version of the game and his sale would helpfully raise funds for a younger, and more talented, central defender. As ever, the revenue won’t be as high for a defender, but Cahill is more than likely to block the development of Kurt Zouma if he stays at the club.

John Obi Mikel: Mikel has seemed on his way out the door at Chelsea for years, but it may well finally be his time. With Matic given a much fairer rating on this game, Mikel is unlikely to make a regular starting place his own and his poor movement ratings make him inflexible. Fortunately, the presence of Ruben Loftus-Cheek means that no direct replacement needs to be signed and it will help Chelsea with their troublesome homegrown quota.

Branislav Ivanovic: After a poor start to the real season, Ivanovic has suffered a downgrade in the virtual world. Despite several very generous ratings, a crossing rating of 10 is simply too low for a full-back at a club of Chelsea’s standard and Cesar Azpilicueta is a far better option for the right-back slot.

Youngsters...

Bertrand Traore: Traore has been as messed around by the Chelsea loan policy as anyone, but this starlet is ready to take up a first team berth on your Football Manager save. His electric pace makes him an adequate option from the bench as the game is getting stretched, whilst a dribbling of 13 is likely to reach the late teens as he develops.

Jay DaSilva: Dasilva can offer you an option anywhere down the left hand side of the pitch and, at only 17, could be an option in the first team squad for the next ten years. Similarly to Kenedy and Traore, Dasilva demonstrates rapid acceleration that allows him to compensate for any defensive mistakes he might make.

Kenedy: Despite only being signed this summer, Kenedy has already shown his potential in a Chelsea shirt. At 19 years old, the Brazilian has a finishing rating of 14 and is already a guarantee of goals from wide positions. To put into context how good Kenedy is, his potential has him on course to exceed the current abilities of Willian and Pedro.

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