“Rafa Out!” will read the banners in the away end of the ground formerly know as the Sports Direct Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Chelsea fans were angry when Rafael Benitez turned up at the door of Roman Abramovich’s empire. They were livid when they realized he wasn’t there as a member of the catering staff.

They’ve been calling for his head ever since, and draws with Queens Park Rangers and Brentford, a loss to QPR, and the inability to bring home a World Club Championship, have done nothing but add fuel to their fire. A fire that once burned an effigy of the former Liverpool manager, is now being prepared for the real thing, as Chelsea threw away a two goal lead in spectacularly late style to draw away at relegation fighters Reading on Wendesday night.

If their title hopes were almost extinguished before their midweek tie, even the most faithful of Blues fans can now be seen just praying for a Champions League birth come the end of the season.

But should we blame the manager?

Sure he’s still playing the ever frustrating (if a little harshly treated) Fernando Torres over a fully fit, and frightfully dangerous, Demba Ba, and Chelsea are still playing the 4-2-3-1 formation that Roberto Di Matteo used to win a Champions League and lose his job under a year later.

There must be something in the water…… or at least in the board room.

Benitez has not stamped his usual calm, solid, defensive stamp on this Chelsea side, despite the extended amount of time he’s had in the job, and has instead stuck with Di Matteo’s style of football. Torres remains isolated and is becoming more then useless in his form and presence on the pitch, so much so that even the most bemused manager in football can see he either needs a long break or a strike partner.

So are these the tactics that Rafa -or Di Matteo - wants to employ?

Abramovich’s influence on the club is well known. He wants to win games, but wants his club to do it with style and beautiful football – which explains why he was so desperate to land Pep Guardiola before his major move to Bayern.

He buys the players he wants, and you have to wonder if he too picks the team sheet. Why else would Fernando still be involved during such a torrid run of form?

Managers are there to manage, and there is a worry filtering through some of Chelsea’s supporters that at Chelsea, they’re not allowed to do just that. It may in fact be Roman’s drive and desire to succeed that is preventing Chelsea from progressing on from the fairy tale of last season.

Three good managers have tried and failed at the club in the last 18-months and a pattern is emerging at Chelsea.

Andre Villas-Boas struggled at Chelsea but has begun to create something that could be a little special at Tottenham since his departure from the club that almost killed his managerial reputation. Di Matteo hit problems this season with Roman breathing down his kneck, and now Benitez is in the same situation, with almost the same team, and the same tactics as the previous two.

Rafa may be an easy scape goat for the fans to moan at considering his history with the club – and that’s a fact Rafa – but Roman, despite the success his chopping and changing of managers has brought, may have reached breaking point with his side if he is indeed involving himself with the on pitch decision making.

What happens next for Chelsea is unknown. But my goodness they need something to change, because, “Champions of Europe…… You’re having a laugh.”