Chelsea renewing contracts might be more important than signings

Since the start of the transfer window, every other report is about Erling Haaland and whether he will join The Blues or not. It was obvious from the start that Borussia Dortmund would demand an astronomical fee for him. Having bought the Norwegian from RB Salzburg for £18 million, Erling Haaland has proved his worth more than expected with his market value skyrocketing to £117 million.

After the end of the 2020-21 season despite winning the UEFA Champions League, it was clear that Chelsea needs a clinical goal-scoring striker. Haaland fits that mold completely but this deal was never as easy as putting money on the table and Dortmund easily accepting it. As we have now known after negotiation for Kai Havertz from Bayern Leverkusen, German clubs are very difficult to negotiate with especially when they hold all the cards.

Let’s just say, hypothetically, Chelsea do end up paying an enormous fee for the striker but it does not end there. The wage demands from Haaland would definitely break the wage structure maintained by the London club. And with Mino Raiola being his agent, high agent fees will also be demanded to complete the deal. All of this could raise the total finances of the transfer to over £200 million. Many reports also say that if Chelsea signs the Norwegian then they are sorted for five or six years. No, this is not the case. Even if Haaland signs for The Blues, he will level the club after two or three years maximum as he sees Chelsea as a stepping stone to a bigger club say Real Madrid. So is it even worth spending over £200 million on a single player after which the club might struggle in future transfer windows financially?

For that sort of money, the West London club can sign two world-class players. But before signing players, one thing that the Chelsea board should definitely prioritize is renewing contracts of first-team players and other players from the U-23 level. As of this day, Chelsea has 14 first-team players which will be out of contract in June 2022. These 14 names include Thiago Silva, Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger, Danny Drinkwater, Charly Musonda, Michy Batshuayi, Emerson Palmieri, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Andreas Christensen, Lewis Baker, Abdul Baba Rahman, Matt Miazga, and Jake Clarke-Salter.

Out of these players, I expect Azpilicueta, Rudiger, and Christensen to be given a new contract offer due to their important first-team roles. The remaining players should be sold if Thomas Tuchel doesn’t fancy them, freeing up much-needed wages and funds for future transfers.

When it comes to youth level football we all know Chelsea has one of the most highly-rated academy which has produced world class talents like John Terry, Mason Mount, Reece James, and many more. And now another batch of academy talents have been performing very impressively in the U-23 level. But just like the contractual situation in the first team, the same thing is happening with 16 players having only a year left in their contract. Many highly rated players like Valentino Livramento, Myles Peart-Harris, Lewis Bate, and many more are now attracting interest from other Premier League teams and Championship teams.

With so many players out of contract next year, Chelsea should look to renew the contract or at least sell them with a buy-back clause. This would give the Blues first right to take these players back just in case they turn out to be world-beaters. The Chelsea board should not be in a situation where the players run down their contracts. It’s better to cash in rather than losing players on a free, especially players who do have the capability to play in the first team.