New kid on the block for title tussle!

How Chelsea level upped during the summer window!

Chelsea had a transfer ban last summer, breaching FIFA's policy for signing minor players. Initially ban was up until the 2020/21 season, But the Court of Arbitration for Sport halved it to one window ban and also reduced the fine. Chelsea has surprised everyone with their eye-catching transfer activity this summer. The blues have seriously strengthened their squad with six quality signing. With a seventh addition expected imminently, Edouard Mendy set to be their latest addition. It'll take their spending close to £250m. With a defensive midfielder also on Lampard's wishlist, Rice looks the player Blues manager wants. With West ham expecting a fee in between £50 mil to £80 mil. It looks highly unlikely that a transfer might happen, But Boubakary Soumare has been targetted as a backup. Last time they went on this kind of spending spree they halted the domination of Manchester United and Arsenal. This time they are looking to entangle with Manchester City and Liverpool.

It brings back memories of Chelsea’s mad spending spree in the summer of 2003, the same summer Roman Abramovich bought the club. The Russian billionaire immediately transformed the team by splashing out millions of pounds of 13 players, shocking Premier League fans in the process. With the addition of Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, and Kai Havertz. Attacking power at the Bridge already looks jaw-dropping.

Werner is a dynamic, eccentric center-forward capable of playing as a lone striker or as part of a duo. Usually taking up the role of a complete forward, Werner is clinical and that is seen in his goal scoring exploits of 28 goals in the current Bundesliga season. Werner had one of the most prolific seasons in his career scoring 28 goals. With his Expected Goals at 20, he massively outperformed by scoring 8 goals. He averaged a goal every 98 minutes. Kai Havertz is one of the unique players in the current footballing scene. Kai can be described as a chameleon. Just in the last three seasons, we have seen three different versions of him. Kai is a complete passer. Long passes, short passes, through balls, crossing on the ground, crossing in the air, he can do it all. According to One vs One, his conversion rate is 24.44(!) percent, which is higher than Timo Werner’s (22.73%) and Sergio Agüero’s (23.53%). He loves to smash volleys and first-time finishes, but he is also excellent at cheekily chipping the ball over the goalkeeper. All this combined with his excellent first touch is the reason why Bayer has even tried him as a striker this season. His positioning is almost always perfect and he naturally and immediately finds gaps in the defense to exploit to his advantage. Predominantly a winger, Ziyech’s natural positioning from a very wide starting position on the right means he drives infield with possession, where he poses his greatest threat. His ability to cut inside from a wide starting position and to target the goal directly contributes to him also providing a goalscoring threat similar to that posed by one of his predecessors at Chelsea, Arjen Robben. Ziyech’s relationship with Ajax right-backs Noussair Mazraoui and Sergiño Dest has contributed to him becoming an influential figure at the Eredivisie club. Their overlapping, supporting runs encourage him to attack as effectively as he does through the inside right channel; without their supporting runs, his attacks would prove significantly less potent. Whoever plays as Chelsea’s right-back, they will need to provide overlapping runs beyond Ziyech into more advanced territory.

No doubt these three new addition will help Chelsea will reach new heights this season. Expect Chelsea to be in the mix for the title. The downside to this type of transfer windows is that the team takes time to gel. They will be in the mix for title and will secure the top 4 easily, But the 2021/21 season this team is going to be menacing.