Chelsea into the depths part 6: Strikers will make or break the season

Chelsea’s biggest issue under Frank Lampard was conceding goals. Even during the long undefeated run, the Blues still shipped goals at a high rate. Once the goals scored dried up, there wasn’t much else to lean on. He was eventually sacked and replaced by Thomas Tuchel who immediately prioritized defense. Tuchel felt that if the Blues could simply keep a clean sheet, they could find their way to a winning goal or two.

For the most part, that worked. Chelsea has been fantastic under Tuchel though goals remain an issue. The Blues spent big to get Romelu Lukaku to fix that problem, but who else is in the pipeline if he goes dry or is unavailable?

1. Romelu Lukaku

Obviously Lukaku goes to the top of the depth chart. It’s rare to find a striker with such a complete skill set. He’s able to receive the ball and flick it on to supporting teammates like a target man. He can drop deep and get involved in buildup like a false nine. He’s able to dribble his way out of trouble if it comes to it and he’s surprisingly good with his passing. If necessary, he can make darting runs in behind. And, of course, he’s able to find ways to score where others can’t.

Lukaku offers something Chelsea didn’t have last season (or, rather, didn’t opt to use but that is a whole other article). Everywhere he’s been, he’s scored. Only one “bad” season at Manchester United taints his image and he’s shown in his brief time back at Chelsea that was an exception, not the rule.

And above all else, he offers yet another leader to a very young squad. When Lukaku left Chelsea, he was still a kid hungry to prove himself. He’s proven himself now and he’s learned lessons along the way that are invaluable for this Chelsea team going forward.