How Chelsea would have fared if every Premier League season ended after 29 games

Chelsea are six-time English champions, with five of those successes coming in the Premier League era.

Indeed, the 2004-05 season proved to be the first time that they had finished at the head of England's top tier since landing the First Division title in 1954-55.

The Blues have won a further four championships since then, with their last triumph coming in 2016-17.

The capital giants are currently battling for a top-four spot in the Premier League, though, occupying fourth spot in the table with football currently at a standstill due to the coronavirus outbreak.

There is certainly a chance that the current campaign will not resume, effectively making it a 29-game season for the majority of top-flight English clubs.

With that in mind, Sports Mole looks at how Chelsea would have fared down the years if every Premier League season had ended after 29 matches.

Chelsea were actually in a relegation battle during the 1993-94 campaign, occupying 17th spot after 29 matches of that particular season. They ultimately finished 14th, but the Blues did not end a Premier League season higher than 11th until 1996-97 when they claimed sixth.

The capital giants improved from ninth after 29 matches of the 2000-01 campaign to finish sixth, while they finished second in 2003-04 under the leadership of Claudio Ranieri. The Blues were some way off the pace after 29 games of that season, though, sitting nine points behind leaders Arsenal.

Chelsea's first Premier League title came in the 2004-05 campaign under a certain Jose Mourinho; the capital side claimed 95 points during a hugely impressive season and were 11 points clear of second-placed Manchester United after 29 matches of that particular campaign.

Mourinho made it back-to-back titles in 2005-06, finishing top of the pile with 91 points. The Blues were again in a very strong position after 29 games of that season, 15 points clear of second-placed Manchester United.

Chelsea could not improve from second after 29 games of the 2006-07 season, though, as they finished as runners-up to Manchester United, six points behind the Red Devils. The Blues improved from third after 29 games of the 2007-08 season to finish second, but they did not reclaim the Premier League title until the 2009-10 campaign under the leadership of now-Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti.

The capital side were actually second to Manchester United at this stage of the 2009-10 season but managed to finish top of the pile, one point clear of Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Chelsea improved from third after 29 games of the 2010-11 season to finish second, but they let a lead slip during the 2013-14 campaign. Indeed, the Blues were top after 29 matches, seven points clear of second-placed Liverpool, but they finished down in third, four points off the champions Manchester City.

The London giants were top after 29 games of both their 2014-15 and 2016-17 title-winning seasons but could only finish fifth in 2017-18, which was also their position at this stage of the campaign.

Interestingly, Chelsea would have missed out on Champions League football for this season had the 2018-19 campaign been stopped after 29 games as they were sixth at that stage; Maurizio Sarri's side improved to finish third, but it was not enough to keep the experienced manager in a job.