Chelsea: Two January transfers to turn the team around

Chelsea needs to be bold this month and add Jack Grealish and Dayot Upamecano to infuse some life, toughness, and attacking talent to the side.

Watching (if you can stand it) recent Chelsea performances, even wins at times, is painful and here’s a suggestion to try to bring in two good players to energize and bring some life to this team going forward. Add Jack Grealish of Aston Villa and Dayot Upamecano of Leipzig to the squad, now. These are two players who could revitalize this moribund team.

The problem is prying them away from their current teams in January but if Chelsea needs to wait, then wait. But there is no time like the present and this season is slipping away. These two players add steel to the squad and their particular talents could jump-start a team that’s as flat a tire with a hundred nails in it.

First, Jack Grealish. No one has to hear anything here about how good a player Jack Grealish is. This season he has five goals and nine assists in 15 games. He’s exactly what Chelsea needs now in its midfield. He’s a driving, take no prisoners attacker who’ll do whatever it takes to do something Chelsea can’t do now, “Just Win Baby!”

Grealish is a driven player. He’ll drive into the opposing defense and split them apart for a pass. And, he’ll also run until he collapses to get the job done for his squad. There are too many lackadaisical attitudes on this current Chelsea squad. “Let someone else do the job, trackback on defense, press, make a tackle.” Someone else can do those mundane jobs. Those jobs are exactly where Grealish will excel. And he’ll shoot the darn ball at the net and score as well.

Now, Aston Villa is unlikely to let Grealish go easily. But he’s one part of what Chelsea needs right now if they are to salvage what is quickly becoming a mid-table level season.

Grealish is Captain material, as well. He’s a leader and he’ll help keep people accountable. No one on Chelsea is doing that at present. It’s blatantly obvious that there is that void in the team. Since John Terry left, there’s been no real leader. Grealish can assume that role.

He should be sought after now and Chelsea should pay the freight. Otherwise, kiss a top four and probably even a Europa League berth away. With this team, it isn’t happening. Start selling now and take what you can get for bench players and squad players who may have interest elsewhere like Marcos Alonso and Emerson. It’s called aggregation of assets and Chelsea can recoup some cash through multiple sales. Forget about recouping all of or even near the investments you made in this type of player. Just sell for what you can get and accumulate funds to buy the players you need. Like Jack Grealish.

Second, Dayot Upamecano. All one has to do is watch a few highlights of Upamecano and you’ll be sold. This central defender is a big, strong, tough player who’ll tackle anyone who’s in his vicinity. He has the grit that’s lacking on the Chelsea backline. There is no enforcer there. Again, no John Terry to lay down the law to opponents. Upamecano can be that player and much, much more. His skills on the ball will bring a new dimension to the Chelsea attack. Yes, that’s correct, to Chelsea’s attack, emanating from the backline of which now there is virtually none.

Upamecano is like a freight train barreling his nearly 200 pounds forward with pace, power, perseverance, and passing ability. He can singlehandedly do what no Chelsea center-half now can, stop an opponent in his tracks with a strong tackle and begin the counterattack himself. His ability to advance the ball up the pitch and get the attack moving from deep in his own zone is a thing of beauty. Just an amazing aspect of his game. Upamecano will immediately improve Chelsea’s defense and its attack. A two-for-one acquisition.

Chelsea should try to pry him loose from Leipzig now, as they did Timo Werner from RB Leipzig. If Chelsea can’t get Upamecano now, pay some money up-front for him a la the Christian Pulisic deal, and loan him back to Leipzig until next summer, if that’s all the club can do. But the best alternative if they are looking to turn this “going-off-the-rails” train around this season, is to sell off all the unused or unusable parts, pay the necessary freight and get Upamecano, now.

Those are suggestions for two not-so-cheap transfer acquisitions this month that could help this flat, slow, sluggish, and listless Chelsea team maybe revive itself and rebound in the second half of the season. Whatever investments have to be made would be well worth it if these two top performers help Chelsea earn a top-four spot in the table, which is looking more and more like a pipe dream every game. Just sell the non-essential players, squad players (at a loss if you have to, and you will have to), bring in these two stars, and utilize the great young talent in the academy to fill in the squad player roles. At this point, whatever it costs, the club has everything to gain by bringing in these two excellent players.