The summer transfer window officially opens in a week’s time, but crazy season is already upon us as clubs look to strengthen their squad with clever signings. After enduring a poor couple of games in the past season, Antonio Conte made a quick shift to a 3-man backline and reaped the rewards for it as Chelsea won the Premier League.
Over the course of the season, the Blues constructed their campaign beautifully and never gave anyone a sniff of the title. Right now, with both the Manchester clubs strengthening their squads for a title push this time around, Conte must also make signings that will help him retain the title.
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Also read: Ranking all of Liverpool's summer transfer targets
They have already been linked with quite a few players, so here are five of the most prominent names and the possibilities of them arriving at Stamford Bridge in the summer.
#5 Romelu Lukaku
Transfer fee: North of a €100 million, Chances of joining: 50%
He is somewhat of a prodigal son of Chelsea. After being purchased as an 18-year-old kid from Anderlecht, a lot was expected from him as fans hoped that he would go on to fill in the boots of club legend, Didier Drogba.
As it turned out, Chelsea had one too many strikers in their roster at that time and chances were scarce for the young Belgian. After year-long loan spells at West Brom and Everton, he joined the Toffees on a permanent basis in 2013.
Since then, he has been in sublime form, scoring 71 goals in 133 appearances. And now, apparently, Conte wants him back at Chelsea. He is a strong striker with an amazing box presence who poses a genuine scoring threat, but the Belgian has a dreadful first touch while his technique leaves a lot to be desired.
And for the €100 million+ price tag that Everton have stamped on him, he would be a 6/10 signing.
#4 James Rodriguez
Transfer fee: €80 million, Chances of joining: 50%
After enduring a tough campaign under Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid, where he didn’t get the minutes that he had hoped for, James is apparently looking for a way out of the Spanish capital – and Chelsea are one of the clubs that could provide him just that.
It was only three years ago when Florentino Perez opted to splash €80 million on the World Cup 2014 Golden Boot winner. In his time with the Whites, he won two Champions League titles and a La Liga title – numbers that prove his stint at Madrid was successful.
However, his personal development has stagnated due to the lack of playing time. In any other club, he would be a sure starter, but the star power at Madrid keeps even the likes of him on the bench.
In James, Chelsea will get an astute playmaker who can not only dribble out of tight spaces, but can also unlock the sturdiest of defences with his slick passing. His attitude could be an issue, but with regular playing time, it is unlikely that he would sulk.
Keeping all this in mind, and the fact that €80 million for a player like him in this market is a bargain, he would be an 8.5/10 signing.
#3 Alvaro Morata
Transfer fee: €90 million, Chances of joining: 50%
This will be a tug-of-war between Chelsea and Manchester United as both are keen to bring the Spaniard to their respective teams. With Cristiano Ronaldo’s Real Madrid future uncertain, Morata’s transfer has been put on hold, but it is only a matter of time before things resume again.
Both United and Chelsea need an explosive striker who can score and turn the game on its head. While Morata might never have been a regular starter for any of the teams that he has played for, something that renders his price tag a little too high, he is a sublime player of the beautiful game.
Indeed, he is what one would call a classic number 9; someone who is tall, bullies defenders with his physicality, possesses great on-the-ball skills and, above all, has the potential to be one of the finest goal-scorers in the game.
However, it will be interesting to see how he fares as the first-choice striker for the first time in his career. For all these aforementioned reasons, he would be an 8.5/10 signing.
#2 Virgil van Dijk
Transfer fee: €75 million, Chances of joining: 80%
If it wasn’t for some astonishing carelessness on Liverpool’s behalf, van Dijk might have been a Red by now. After Liverpool convinced the Saints player to join them, Southampton lodged a complaint against the Anfield outfit for apparent wrongdoing in their pursuit of the player.
In response, the Reds apologised and dropped their interest in him. However, the ‘dropping the interest’ part might have been exaggerated as Jurgen Klopp still seems interested in signing the Dutchman. However, as per reports from the reliable Gianluca di Marzio, Chelsea have won the race to sign the defender.
The Dutchman is a fantastic reader of the game who can sense danger even before it arises. He is also very strong aerially and nullifies almost every aerial threat thrown at him. If he joins Chelsea, he will provide adequate cover at centre-back.
However, his price is a bit too high for someone who is most likely to be a squad player at Stamford Bridge – and that’s why he would be a 6.5/10.
#1 Tiemoue Bakayoko
Transfer fee: €50 million, Chances of joining: 80%
Ray Wilkins might be furious with Chelsea’s interest in the French defensive midfielder, stating that he is 23 years old and can’t book a place in the well-decked France national team, and that Nathaniel Chalobah would be a better option, but if anyone has followed Monaco with a keen eye, they would know just how important he was for them.
While the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Bernardo Silva hogged most of the limelight, Bakayoko worked in silence and forged a strong base in front of the defence. From him began most of Monaco’s attacks and with him ended many of the oppositions’ plays.
It is little wonder, then, that Antonio Conte is so keen to bring him to Stamford Bridge. The Monaco man would be an upgrade to Nemanja Matic and his presence would allow N’Golo Kante to play even more freely and completely unlock his box-to-box abilities.
Regardless of the high transfer price, he would be an 8.5/10 signing for Chelsea.
