The Blues suffered their third defeat in nine days under interim manager Frank Lampard on Saturday with a 2-1 home defeat to Brighton, external.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast Edwards said: "They are a laughing stock. They are the punchline to a hundred different jokes now.

"You've got a manager who's been there nine days and lost three games - very very fortunate to be given that chance again. Frank Lampard's managerial career is underwhelming by all accounts, and somebody needs to say that. However, this isn't Lampard's fault. He's gone into a mess, he's gone in to try and clear up somebody else's mess. We are talking about a football club that spent £600m with no coherent strategy.

"They are ridiculous in what they have done, they've recruited without a strategy, without a plan, they've just gone out and bought a load of players because other clubs wanted them.

"They've got clueless owners. They have not gone backwards, they've gone into freefall. They are an example of what happens when people new to football come in and think they are experts and have loads of money.

"What I would be worried about with Chelsea is it could get worse. I think the summers going to be a problem for them with Financial Fair Play, they've got a bloated squad. There are a lot of other clubs who know they're going to be desperate to sell. They've created an unhappy working environment where you've got players who know they aren't playing. If the results dip you blame the manager so there's an excuse culture in the dressing room with the players.

"There is no strategy, there is no plan."

Did you know? Chelsea faced 26 shots against Brighton, their most on record (since 2003-04) in a Premier League home game, while the 10 shots they faced on target was their joint-most in a home match in the same period.