3 EPL midfielders Chelsea may target this summer and how they fit in
By Aryan Singh
12th in the table, 15 losses to their name, and just 36 goals scored in the Premier League all season. You couldn’t have dreamt up a worse campaign for a team universally known as ‘The Pride of London’ if you tried, but such is the present state of Chelsea FC.
The players look dejected and uninterested, the manager in place is inept at best, and as indicated by the amount of empty seats at the Bridge these days, the fans don’t harbor any more optimism either.
With matters being so dire, perhaps it’s best to focus on the palliative uncertainty offered up by the prospect of ‘next season’. If the abrupt appointment of Frank Lampard as manager tells us anything, it’s that the owners have already written this season off. And so, perhaps it’s time we do the same.
In regards to the near future, the Blues will have to jump through plenty of hoops to sort themselves out, with the hiring of a competent manager being at the very top of that list.
Another matter of paramount importance for Todd Boehly and co is the midfield mess currently in place at the club.
Despite a £600 million plus transfer blowout across two windows, Chelsea have failed to address at least three gaping holes within the team. The most detrimental of which has to be absence of a proper midfield general.
Frequent Chelsea viewers will be well-acquainted with the chasms in midfield that form every time the Blues turn the ball over. The issue isn’t just reserved to counter-attacks either; how many times have you seen Chelsea get carved open through the middle, without much in terms of intricate play from opposition sides?
In case you need a refresher, might I suggest rewatching our embarrassing defeat against bottom-placed Southampton from February. The godawful Saints – no offense – made a mockery of our midfield throughout the 90 minutes, further underlining the lack of a reliable presence at the center of the park.
Jorginho and N’golo Kante operating together at the top of their powers briefly papered over this crack. But with the former gone and the latter out of form, Chelsea need a defensive-minded midfielder more than ever.
Fortunately for the recruiting department, they’ll likely be spoiled for choice while penciling down possible candidates for the role. And if media reports are to be believed, the club have already identified three Premier League players capable of taking up the mantle.