Updated 22 Aug 2023 3:16 pm:
After picking up one point in their first two games, we look at the concerns for Chelsea and the areas in which Mauricio Pochettino must strengthen in the Summer Transfer Window.
Goalscorers
A big part of Chelsea’s struggles over the past few seasons is the lack of a clinical striker.
Signing Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang from Barcelona on a two-year contract in September 2022 would have given The Blues hope of a successful season, but it seemed as if the manager merry-go-round at Chelsea was too much for the Gabonese striker as he was unable to cement a place in the starting XI under the management of Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, or Frank Lampard.
This began to frustrate the 34-yaar old, who then left the club to join Olympique de Marseille on a three-year deal from August 2023.
Signing Nicolaas Jackson from Villareal for just over £ 30 million looks to be a promising move, but is it enough? Jackson bagged a total of 12 goals in his 35 appearances for Villareal, and looks a good prospect, but can he be the 30-40 goal a-season striker that The Blues desperately need, I’m not so sure.
If you look at Chelsea’s success under Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, the Blues had Didier Drogba and Diego Costa, whose physicality in and outside the box proved to be a nuisance for defenders.
What was also devastating, was their killer instincts in front of the goal.
Two matches into a season, is still too early to be judging a player, so can he show why he deserves to be the number 9 Chelsea so desperately need?
Goalkeeper
Another issue concerning the Blues is finding the right man between the posts. The Club spent £25 million on Robert Sanchez, who looks like a good prospect in goal, but can he be as good as Thibaut Courtois or Petr Cech?
Sanchez made 89 appearances for Brighton&Hove Albion, where he picked up 27 clean sheets, but I’m still not convinced that he’ll be able to reach the same level as Courtois or Cech.
With the amount of money the Blues spent this season, it’s amazing that they didn’t consider someone like Hugo Lloris, who is on his way out of Spurs.
If you want to be a regular challenger for the top 4 spots, the one thing you need is a top-class keeper, and I’m not sure Chelsea have that at the moment.
I just think an experienced keeper like the French number one, would have possibly helped Chelsea a lot because of his leadership qualities.
One More Centre Back?
With Tiago Silva leading the line at the back, Pochettino has chosen the academy graduate Levi Colwill to join the back three to compensate for an injury-prone Reece James.
While we know that Pochettino is a man who likes to work with and develop young players, I just feel that he needs another experienced body at the back, in case Thiago Silva is unavailable due to injury or suspension.
And with James potentially being out for a few weeks, you start to feel whether or not The Blues will be able to string a few clean sheets in their upcoming games.
Axel Disasi from AS Monaco looks to be a decent buy for the Blues, but could they have had a look at the possibility of re-signing Marc Guuhi, who started his career at Stamford Bridge before moving to Crystal Palace?
The Eagles have kept 18 clean sheets in his 74 appearances for the club, but he has the potential of being a top-class defender and could flourish under Pochettino. Although the £50m defender is being looked at by Manchester United, It could be worth Pochettino having a look at the Palace Defender.
Sterling Starting to Find His Groove?
One positive to take out of Chelsea’s first two games is the re-emergence of the England winger. The 28-year-old was a sensation at Manchester City, scoring a total of 121 goals in all competitions including 106 assists.
However, his Chelse career is struggling to find its groove, with only nine goals from 40 appearances for Chelsea.
“It was a difficult transition period last year. I was raring to go from the off season, looking to get back to the levels I know I can get to, it is as simple as that. ”It’s about being aggressive. A lot of the time it’s back to goal so it was nice to get on the half turn. I’m a player that needs to be driving, action after action. “If I’m not doing that I’m nowhere near my best, so that’s what I need to keep doing every time I get the ball. I have to turn, drive and be aggressive. That’s what I plan on doing.”
Sterling: Mirror
But against The Hammers, there were certainly some signs of the old Raheem Sterling, getting into one on one races with the opposition’s fullbacks, and putting crosses into the box. I’m sure if The Blues had someone like Earling Haaland or Harry Kane, those opportunities would probably turn out to be goals, and this may have been a completely different game.
Whether Jackson can get to that level is yet to be seen, but a clinical number 9 is what Sterling desperately needs to make him shine.
According to The Sun. Chelsea are targeting four more signings for the likes of Folarin Balogun (Arsenal), Brenan Johnson (Nottingham Forrest), Mohammed Kudus (Ajax), and Bradley Barcola (Lyon). With nine days to go before the Transfer Window shuts, it may be difficult to get all four in one Window, but this is Chelsea Football Club, one of the richest in the world, so you never know.
In terms of an overall assessment of the squad, this should be good enough to challenge for a top-four spot,
Chelsea fans, what are your opinions of Chelsea’s new-look team under Pochettino?
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