Ivan Perisic would raise the tempo and precision of Chelsea’s offence

Chelsea may make a move this summer for Inter Milan’s winger Ivan Perisic. The 28-year old Croatian is a speedy playmaker who would challenge Pedro and Willian for the starting XI.

Pointless rumours about Antonio Conte leaving Chelsea for Inter Milan persisted throughout the second half of the season. The clubs may still conduct some transfer business this summer, though. Ivan Perisic is on Chelsea’s transfer radar for what he could bring to Chelsea’s attack both as a scorer and creator.

Perisic was Inter’s second-highest scorer (11) and tied for second-most assists (8) this season. These were career-best tallies for him, a result of a career-high amount of playing minutes. He played on the left side of Inter’s attack, mostly in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation. However, like Eden Hazard, he had free rein and frequently drifted around to the right when Inter held possession in the offensive third.

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Perisic’s quick footwork on the ball, particularly from a standing position, are also reminiscent of Hazard. When he moves in from the wing towards the box, he is equally likely to cut back sharply and send the defender off balance or to cut straight into the box and move laterally across the face of goal.

Complementing his directness on the ball – and distinguishing him from Hazard – is the quality of his passing. Perisic’s sends precision crosses into the box, both on the ground and in the air. From the top of the box his through-balls can find Mauro Icardi from any angle and through any number of defenders.

Perisic would offer Chelsea a new style of goal creation. He would complement Fabregas’ perfectly-weighted, floating longer passes with his incisive passes from the wing and top of the box. He would also offer such passing at pace, requiring a fraction of the time that Fabregas needs to set up. Chelsea would need to adapt to this new dimension. Perisic’s passes are incisive, demanding a strong first touch by the receiver to corral their pace and turn them into a scoring chance.

Perisic has many of the attributes Chelsea could use and Antonio Conte values. However, he would not slot in immediately with this Chelsea squad. Conte would need to rearrange his lineup to make the most of Perisic.

Both Eden Hazard and Ivan Perisic play best on the left. Hazard is better on the right side than Perisic, so Hazard would be most likely to shift. The distinction is somewhat less important given that both would move freely through the box.

When I sit on the bench, I’m dying – ivan perisic

Chelsea already have a strong crosser in Marcos Alonso. His passing statistics are deceptively low because Chelsea – Diego Costa in particular – are ineffective receiving crosses in the box. Chelsea need a strong, wide passer on the right, particularly if Victor Moses remains the only right wing-back.

Perisic would add another layer of competition – and further reduce minutes – for Pedro and Willian. Perisic and Willian are more similar than either are to Pedro. Conte favoured Pedro this season, but would likely prefer Perisic’s directness, precision and focus – in passing and attack – to Pedro.

Chelsea could sign either Perisic or Alexis Sanchez – not both. Sanchez is more motivated to join Chelsea than Perisic, who is also linked with a move to Manchester United.

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Inter Milan finished seventh in Serie A this season. Ivan Perisic said that he willingly “sacrificed Champions League football” when he signed with Inter. He may be ready to return to Europe’s top competition with Chelsea.