A lot has been made about Chelsea and the imminent appointment of Frank Lampard, with many, including Blues legend Dennis Wise, saying they could be due for a season of struggle next year if the 41-year-old is appointed. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth, and Chelsea have a great chance at maintaining their status as a top-four Premier League club.
While you can’t assume much from just a transfer window, both Arsenal and Manchester United don’t look in the greatest of shapes to challenge Chelsea for a top-four place.
Arsenal are in the midst of a first-team squad rebuild, and after losing to Chelsea in the Europa League final, the North London club were forced to have a rethink of their transfer targets. It’s been made quite public that Arsenal will only have around £45 million to spend, and while Chelsea are under a transfer ban, that figure is hardly enough to see Arsenal sign the quality of players to overhaul a squad that can displace Chelsea in the top four.
Manchester United aren’t in a much stronger position with the club seemingly targetting the younger players in this summer’s transfer market. After signing Daniel James and agreeing on a fee for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Manchester United have been seriously linked with the likes of Sean Longstaff. The young age and lack of Premier League experience for James, Wan-Bissaka, and Longstaff mean it will take time for the players to make the required impact.
Despite a transfer ban and the sale of Eden Hazard, Chelsea are in a pretty strong position ahead of next season. They retain a squad who have the experience of winning trophies in each of the last three seasons. As well as the experience, there’s also the return of loan players who started and enjoyed great seasons with Lampard at Derby. Chelsea loanees Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori enjoyed stellar seasons under Lampard last season, as the club reached the Championship playoff final.
The threat from Manchester United and Arsenal looks to be minimal next season. Both Arsenal and Manchester United are struggling to sign the calibre of players which make you think Chelsea’s top-four place is under threat. Chelsea have the players with vast amounts of experience to keep a hold of their top-four place next season.
