Chelsea fans are finally looking forward to the future following the appointment of Xabi Alonso. The Spaniard is being viewed as the one who can turn things around for the Blues and get them back to challenging at the top. And as a manager, he does have that talent. That being said, it won’t happen unless the club end up backing him in the summer transfer window.
If there is one thing that has become clear over the past four seasons, it is that BlueCo have wasted a lot of money assembling a squad that is not good enough to be competing with the best. What is done is done. But the approach needs to change and lessons need to be taken from the plethora of mistakes that have been made.
Striker is one position where Chelsea could look to improve this summer. After all, just look at their record in front of goal over the last couple of months. That is pretty much self-explanatory.
According to Fussball Daten (via TEAMtalk), Alonso has ‘asked Chelsea’ for Igor Thiago’s signing after ‘naming him a priority target’.
Chelsea linked with move for Igor Thiago but is it plausible?
Thiago has been one of the most productive strikers in the Premier League this season. Interestingly, he has also been selected ahead of Joao Pedro in the Brazilian squad for the World Cup.
It remains to be seen if Chelsea are able to sign Chelsea or not. It is believed that Brentford could be looking for around £80 million. Even for a striker who has signed 25 goals this season, 22 of them in the Premier League, that seems steep.
Chelsea might need to see a few strikers leave first in order to fund such a move. They do have a lot of potential candidates for that.
Strikers who could leave this summer
Obviously, Liam Delap is the name that comes to most fans’ minds in this regard. The Englishman has not been good enough, or anywhere near, this season. He has scored just one Premier League goal, and three in total, since joining last summer.
Despite this, Delap has been linked with the likes of Newcastle United and Everton. If a satisfactory offer comes in, Chelsea should not think twice.
Nicolas Jackson is another striker who could be a potential candidate to leave this summer. But after a brilliant run of form for Bayern Munich, perhaps Chelsea should reconsider their stance on the Senegalese international.
Marc Guiu could be a potential option as well. But it is more likely that he could find himself out on loan rather than a permanent exit already.
Sourav Mahanty
Sourav Mahanty has covered teams like Chelsea, Celtic, Real Madrid, Manchester United, PSG and more over a career that has now lasted a decade. His work has been featured on Sports Illustrated, Athlon Sports, SB Nation, FanSided, The Sportster and aggregated through Bleacher Report and NewsNow. Outside of football, he is also interested in basketball, cricket and professional wrestling.
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