Tactics and Transfers: Don’t panic about lack of Chelsea business

5. Conclusion

A stable summer with the players in good health and Tuchel and his team able to get their first full summer training program implemented is really all Chelsea needs to do to improve right now. The German coach is a tactical genius and someone who will benefit from the greater amount of time given to him in order to coach his players.

Impact players like Haaland or Ronaldo would be great additions and if Kounde does come in, it will mainly be to support the manager. Outside of moves like that though, this is mainly an example of Chelsea’s continuing maturity as an organization. Last year, it was able to add a lot of players to the squad because of the opportunity in the market. One could even make the argument that the Blues overdid it and it destabilized the team and led to Frank Lampard’s exit.

That said, continuing to integrate a non-COVID having Kai Havertz—who has been under the radar recently but shouldn’t be forgotten—could wield huge results. The chance of this happening grows exponentially when one factors in the growth of Mason Mount, Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi with the defensive stability that the Blues have gained. This core could very well lead Chelsea to a top three challenge in the league.

It will be hard to catch Manchester City, particularly given that the Citizens are trying to add Harry Kane and Jack Grealish. Liverpool have their full squad back to a healthy standard again, as well. They still seem to be the best two teams in the league. Manchester United are vastly improved after having done excellent business by adding both Rafael Varane and Jadon Sancho. Arsenal appears to be the team fighting Chelsea for fourth right now.

If Chelsea simply cuts out the mistakes that defined the first half of the season last year then the club could easily reach at least 12-15 points higher in the table without making any new additions.  Rushing to make unnecessary moves could destabilize that simple process. Therefore, unless the move is Haaland or Ronaldo (I’m willing to try Dusan Vlahovic of Fiorentina, as well) then the Blues should just batten down the hatches and try to play effective, resilient football next year. If so, they’ll already be a much better side.

What do you think the Blues should do during the remaining month in the transfer window? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!