#1 Michy Batshuayi
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Chelsea bought Belgian striker, Batshuayi, for a hefty sum of €40 million and he was expected to be a capable backup striker; someone who can easily slot into the team and score goals when it’s asked of him.
It could also arguably be said that he was brought in as a fail-safe option, after Diego Costa had a less than exemplary 2015/16 season scoring only 16 goals in 41 appearances in an injury-ravaged year.
Batshuayi, still only 23, had built quite the reputation for himself in the Belgian League with Standard Liege and in the French League with Marseille, with the forward scoring an impressive 23 goals across all competitions last season. Many pipped him to be the next Didier Drogba for Chelsea, with his frame and hold-up play reminiscent of the popular Ivorian.
However, the forward has found his first few months at Chelsea to be quite a disaster, with the physicality and intensity of the Premier League offering up an entirely new challenge. It could be argued that he’s been stuck behind Costa in the pecking order, but he’s not exactly taken all the chances he’s been given either.
In 16 league appearances for the Blues this season, he has managed to muster only a solitary goal. Tally up goals across all competitions and it’s still a meagre five in 21 appearances. For someone who commanded such a massive price tag, a lot more is definitely expected of him.
It’s still early days for him at Stamford Bridge, but with the January transfer window already throwing around rumours of a move away, he’ll have to do quite a bit between now and the summer to convince Conte that he deserves his spot in the squad.
