Good riddance 2011 - but Chelsea still have drastic problems to address if 2012 is going to be any better

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Given Villa’s miserable form, few expected Alex McLeish’s side to escape from Stamford Bridge with dignity, let alone three points.

Yet Chelsea were woefully short of ideas all afternoon, benefitting from Richard Dunne’s rush of blood to the head for Didier Drogba to untidily dispatch from the spot in the only moment they looked like genuinely worrying Brad Guzan.

From there on, despite what the score line suggests, it was all Chelsea. The lead was one they could and undoubtedly should have protected. Indeed, such capitulation would have been inconceivable in years gone by, as organisation and fortitude were sacrificed for unbalanced and giddy attack, leaving them shapeless and vulnerable at the back.

Chelsea were time and time again the architects of their own undoing as misplaced passes, dalliance on the ball and constantly bemusing decision making in possession of the ball became the order of the day, with Ramires and Oriol Romeu partners in crime. It felt like the simple things were never done correctly.

Luizing out | Chelsea's loss to Villa has effectively ended the Blues' title chances this season

Credit to Villa, their equaliser was the product of an incisive Stephen Ireland burst and untouchable Charles N’Zogbia slalom down the left flank. Villa’s two late strikes, though, were the product of schoolyard stuff from Villas-Boas's side.

Chelsea twice lost possession immediately after winning the ball, with the back four disheveled to say the least, as Stiliyan Petrov lifted over Petr Cech and Darren Bent pounced to seal victory.

The fact that Villas-Boas spent a reasonable chunk of his press conference comparing their errors at the back to recent experiences against Fulham and Arsenal suggests that his team are incapable of learning from recurrent themes. Such recognition also renders the Portuguese’s suggestion that little needs to change tactically somewhat baffling.

The straight and narrow is that Chelsea have stood still during 2011, an opinion firmly backed up by statistics.

Chelsea have exactly the same amount of points that they had this time last year yet sit one place lower in the table. They currently trail the two frontrunners by 11 points and third place by five, last year it was by four and two.

As Tottenham have evidently progressed, Arsenal and Liverpool have improved and Manchester City have proved their mettle, Chelsea have stagnated.

2012 presents the perfect opportunity for Villas-Boas to address the issues that have seen his team slip outside of the top four at New Year for the first time in a decade.

Signing Gary Cahill would be a start, if, of course, they can pay him enough money to want to be at Stamford Bridge, yet the problems that were prevalent against Villa and symptomatic of the year past, will not be doctored so easily.

It could be argued that a departure away from Villas-Boas’ favoured 4-3-3 would be a starting point. It was evidently the case today, and against Arsenal and against Fulham ad nauseum, that Chelsea would benefit from the deployment of two holding midfielders.

Losing the ball when in the transitory stage of having just gained possession is criminal enough yet today it became clear that Chelsea would have benefitted from a more stable foundation in the middle of the park. It certainly worked for Villa at any rate, as Petrov and Ciaran Clark snuffed out danger and acted the counter balance for the visitors’ swashbuckling advances.

Any remedy would invariably be reliant upon Roman Abramovich's funds, yet it seems unlikely that the Chelsea owner will be keen to splurge in the light of expensive duo David Luiz and Fernando Torres’ dubious output.

It is a critical time for Villas-Boas, with this January potentially making or breaking the young manager’s tenure at the club. Investment is needed, yet perhaps going back to basics and a slight rethinking of some fundamental ideas would be more prudent.