Chelsea draining all the fun and excitement out of the transfer window

Transfer windows used to be a time of excitement, expectation and hope for the future. Now it’s just a month of cheap clickbait and watching other teams do what Chelsea used to do best.

The transfer window has been open for ten days now, and Chelsea made a splash on day one with the signing of Christian Pulisic. But since Diego Costa, who has been a big name signing to transfer to Chelsea FC? There is none. These days, there isn’t even the excitement of “Hey, the transfer window is just around the corner!”

I no longer expect the Blues to do anything that would make me stand at attention. If a Chelsea fan sees a rumor that says “Chelsea in for Paulo Dybala”, and they don’t instantly know it’s clickbait, they live in a fantasy world. When I heard Manchester City and Pep Guardiola were interested in Paulo Dybala, my immediate thoughts were: “Yeah, that’s a team that goes and gets what they feel they need, regardless of price.”

If Manchester City is that shopper who grabs whatever they want off the shelves, Chelsea are the mother with nine kids, clipping coupons, getting to the checkout and putting products back when they see how much things cost.

Since the departure of Michael Emenalo the board focuses on bargain players, the cheap alternatives to current Blues who want to leave for lack of playing time.

Alvaro Morata was the biggest transfer financially Chelsea has had since Fernando Torres. Sure, Torres helped win some silverware, but he was overall not worth the splurge. Morata has been  similarly unimpressive as a replacement for wantaway Diego Costa. He has spent almost the same amount of time out of the lineup as in, and now Sarri prefers to use Eden Hazard as a false nine.

Before Morata came to Stamford Bridge he was on the bench at Real Madrid. Maybe that’s because he lacked then what he lacks now: finishing ability. But Chelsea made him their problem, not Real’s.

It’s one thing to say some clubs are bad at transfers or transfer windows. Chelsea take it to a whole different level. I now dread the idea of the transfer window. The club are outstanding at getting value on departing transfers, sometimes more than a player is worth. Great, but that’s just how buying and selling works. When you have someone another club wants, opposing teams don’t care about fair value.

In the same way Chelsea get more for departures than the player may be worth, they refuse to do the same and pay above market value, or above their pre-determined threshold for the player. They have the mindset of a team that should not be considered top tier.

Never mind Eden Hazard leaving or whether Sarrismo is legitimate. The more pressing issue Chelsea fans should be looking at is the 400+ day lack of a technical director. Without a new Emenalo, the board seems more interested in making a profit than winning.

Eden Hazard is the big fish in the small proverbial Chelsea pond. He is overdue to have other big fish join him in his pond to get the Blues where the players want to go: the top.

But keeping Hazard with no continuity is a waste of Eden Hazard. He deserves to have a system built around him, with players who can carry his jock strap. The more organization and quality in the side, the harder it is for opponents to single out Hazard and completely stunt the team’s attack.

Chelsea FC are everything that annoys me about a sports club. They look confused, unorganized, frugal, and with no conviction about any direction they choose to take. And yet jumping ship isn’t an option. I just can’t walk away. There is something about struggling with a club through tough times so you can be emotionally invested when they are on top again.

Three Premier League titles and a Champions League in the last ten years isn’t exactly a tough run. But since Jose Mourinho’s last stint and Antonio Conte’s brief stay, the turnover and drama makes life at Chelsea seem very turbulent.

The light at the end of the tunnel is really, really small, but there’s a light. We just need the board to walk towards it in the next 20 days.