Chelsea tactics and transfers: Clearing out the dead wood
Following key contract extensions, Chelsea should look at clearing out dead wood. They should be replaced with youth either within or from outside.
If Chelsea hand out a large sum of money on key contract extensions, they will not particularly need to sign other players to have a successful summer. The extensions send just as much of a message, and provide stability to the squad.
However, if they sold four players whose interests were not in the best nature of the team, they would be in an even stronger place then ever. The Blues need to learn from Marcello Lippi: the best players don’t always make up the best team.
If Chelsea are to let players leave, they should hold the door open for David Luiz, Pedro, possibly Cesc Fabregas, Alvaro Morata and Thibaut Courtois. The Blues would be doing good business not just economically but on an administrative level.
David Luiz should leave based on his recorded incidents of indiscipline and public disputes with the manager. The manager is more important than a single player. Enough teams are seemingly interested in the Brazilian to make it worth while. With Juventus, Arsenal, Milan, Bayern Munich and Newcastle all interested in the player for a backup role, Chelsea have options.
Of those options, their best move would be selling Luiz to Bayern for £10 million and Christian Fruchtl. This would solve two problems. First, the Blues receive some cash and get out of an expensive contract for a player the manager has no interest in playing and will not work his way back into the squad. Paying £150,000 a week to a player who will not play is absurd. Second, it strengthens Chelsea’s position in negotiations with Thibaut Courtois.
The Blues idiotically broke the first rule of negotiation: do not be desperate. Courtois knows Chelsea have no other options. Christian Fruchtl may be the next Manuel Neuer. He has had suitors in Schalke and Dortmund. If added, the Blues will show they do not necessarily need the big Belgian in the same way they did before.
The other, perhaps even better, option is Alban Lafont. He is a technical goalkeeper similarly to Gianluigi Donnaruma. The only knock is that he is slightly smaller.
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If Thibaut Courtois will not sign a new contract, he needs to go so Fruchtl or Lafont can begin to build a successful relationship with Chelsea’s new defensive pairing. The Blues can arrange some sort of swap if Courtois and Real Madrid are so determined to come together. A player-plus-cash deal that brings any of Isco, Gareth Bale or Mateo Kovacic to Stamford Bridge could work.
Or, Courtois can realize he is no longer Chelsea’s only option and sign a contract with the Blues. Then the Blues will have one of these youngsters as a decent back-up goalkeeper to provide competition for the Belgian.
Pedro can stay if he wants. However, at his age and with extra weight thrown behind Willian, he is taking up a squad role for Callum Hudson-Odoi. Hudson-Odoi can make every contribution Pedro would in 20-25 games a season.
Cesc Fabregas is a similar situation to Pedro. If Chelsea bring Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Marco van Ginkel back to the squad he and his salary become unnecessary.
If there is any truth to the rumor of Paris Saint-Germain eyeing Alvaro Morata, Chelsea must make the most of it. PSG apparently have let Neymar decide on a player he would like to replace Edinson Cavani. Neymar has magically decided on the Blue’s record signing.
Morata has only been at Chelsea for a single year. But his attitude has shown weaknesses time and again. The Blues could fleece the Parisians and solve several problems in the process. Then, with the additional loan recalls of Kurt Zouma, Matt Miazga and Tammy Abraham, Chelsea have a fighting fit squad for the next season.
They could also, if not simply recall Michy Batshuayi, add him and a minor sum in a fee for Christian Pulisic. The American would give the Blues a better grip on the American market and can play any of the positions on Chelsea’s right. His work ethic and high developmental upside make this deal too hard to turn down.
Chelsea’s goal should be to have a third of the squad made up of youth and homegrown players. It is better for the team’s spirit and allows the club to build an ideal philosophical foundation for the future. This is true even if they do not start matches as often as more expensively purchased players.
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Any of these are good options. Chelsea supporters should be hoping that maybe, just once, the Blues decide to play chess instead of checkers. The game is played now on far more levels than just the pitch. It is about time Chelsea started winning there as well.