Todd Boehly and Graham Potter are going to be busy in the January transfer window, according to journalist Dean Jones.
Chelsea previously shelled out €282m (£247.9m) in the summer but Boehly is set to put his hand back in his deep pocket as his era begins to take shape at Stamford Bridge.
The American has already made one key decision this season by bringing in Potter to replace Thomas Tuchel, the former Brighton manager will now be able to shape the squad in his vision by welcoming new additions after inheriting the German’s side.
Speaking on the Chasing Green Arrows live stream, Jones spoke about Chelsea’s plans for fresh faces in January, saying:
“I’m sure Chelsea will sign one or two.
“But at the moment, I’m not sure what kind of players they’re even looking at. They’re all over the place with their strategy – some of them are 18-year-olds, some of them are 23 and some of them are 27. There are all sorts of tiers of players that they’re looking at.
“In two or three years, it looks great at Chelsea, but for this season, it seems a little bit all over the place.”
Our thoughts on Jones’ comments…
The Blues suffered during the run into the World Cup with key absentees in Reece James and Ben Chilwell flawing Potter’s plans to play a successful back-three formation, with the Blues ultimately falling to four domestic losses in a row, so it’s no surprise their keen on bringing in fresh faces.
This form has seen the West Londoners slip to eighth in the table and eight points behind fourth-placed side Tottenham Hotspur, meaning January additions could be essential for Potter to get his side back on track to avoid finishing outside the top four for the first time since 2017/18.
An overhaul may be needed in the summer with Jorginho, N’Golo Kante and Thiago Silva all set to be out of contract in the summer with no breakthrough in any of their contracts.
Boehly could kick off the arduous task of replacing the stalwarts in January, as well as bringing in alternatives at right and left wing-back with no suitable alternative to James available to Potter and Marc Cucurella preferred in a left-back or centre-back role early in his Blues career.
There are big doubts over Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang’s ability to spearhead a Champions League-pushing outfit at 33, paired with a reluctance to reintegrate Romelu Lukaku back into the squad when he returns from Inter Milan in the summer, meaning a striker could also be on the cards.
Potter will need financial help in the new year to turn his fortunes around and Boehly’s already shown his commitment to firing the Blues back to the top of English football, with Jones stating there’s no set strategy, the Blues could go after anyone and everyone, watch this space.
