One of Xabi Alonso’s many decisions he has to make at Chelsea will be in the striker department, where Liam Delap and Emanuel Emegha’s futures need to be decided.
Liam Delap and Emanuel Emegha represent Chelsea’s ongoing investment in high-potential young forwards, though both have much to prove.
Delap arrived from Ipswich Town to act as a physical backup striker, but he found regular goals hard to come by during his first season at Stamford Bridge. While he showed great work rate and aggression, his limited output highlighted the massive jump in expectation when playing for a top-six club.
Emegha, meanwhile, comes through the BlueCo pipeline after showing promising signs of pace and power at Strasbourg.
Both players possess the raw physical traits required to succeed in the Premier League; neither is currently a finished product. But the problem is, Chelsea can’t afford to waste their time.
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Chelsea see both Liam Delap and Emanuel Emegha as options
According to the BBC, Joao Pedro is likely to be among those retained, with Chelsea deeming him not for sale amid interest from Barcelona, while Liam Delap and Emmanuel Emegha are also considered options.
One of the main reasons behind Jackson’s exit on deadline day last summer was that he had lost the faith of former head coach Enzo Maresca.
It will be up to new manager Xabi Alonso, in conjunction with the sporting directors, to assess his options at Chelsea and decide which strikers to include in his squad next season.
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Chelsea are going to end up with too many options
Chelsea already have too many striker options on the books, creating a headache for Xabi Alonso.
Between Player of the Season Joao Pedro, Liam Delap, Emanuel Emegha, Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu, the first-team squad is crowded with forwards.
Dusan Vlahovic has also been spotted in London after links to Chelsea, so there may even need to be two or three spaces created this summer.
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