As the title suggests, when Chelsea have supposed transfer targets, question marks abound and pinches of salt are taken in unhealthily large doses. The three prized men above are the latest in a long line that, according to media sources and in varying degrees, we have been interested in, monitoring, linked with, tracking and targeting. Of course, the one thing we haven’t been doing is buying any of them, and there is one very good reason why this should be not only the case, but also the only conclusion to come to, unless your specialist field of expertise is tautology. Quite simply, HMS Chelsea’s course is set fair and the shipping-in forecast for the rest of this season [and beyond] is settled, thank you very much. 

 

Yet still the rumours persist, at variance with each other and cobbled together in the clearest illustration of reflex reporting you could ever wish(?) to see. Let’s take Lionel Messi first, the 27yr old superstar could command a transfer fee of 200 million pounds and an annual salary of around 20 million pounds, but this FFP accident-waiting-to-happen doesn’t stop us ‘registering an interest’, allegedly. Nor, when the said interest is then rubbished by the Media for this very reason, does it stop the spotlight turning towards an ideal Man Utd, as being the unique, somehow shining, example of a business model and financial structure providing the additional income required to stay within FFP limits. Amazingly, and through all those Glazer-driven years of debt-loading ownership, who knew?

 

Next comes young Harry (age 21), whose stairway to stardom and ultimate linkage [to Chelsea] includes a naughty step stopover at Leyton Orient [on loan three years ago] rendering direct comparison with Messi non-existent. Yet still we’re deemed to be as keen as mustard on Kane, as we are in love with Leo, allegedly. Strict adherence to a specific player profile being what it is in this day and age, most observers would expect at least some sign of continuity regarding potential targets, primarily based on age, cost and availability, but apparently not where we are concerned. Still, ours not to reason why, especially during the whacky January transfer window, best to just grin widely and wonder at the sheer stupidity of it all. I’m sure every member of Chelsea’s Academy does too, if they ever deign to dip into print and SSN speculation, but more of them later.

 

Finally, we have Wilfred Bony, or rather we don’t have him, because Man City do. We were ’offered’ him [allegedly] and, incredible as it may seem, declined the invitation to purchase. A year younger than Messi, the Ivory Coast player agrees a four-and-a-half-year deal that sees him join a team already stuffed to gunnels with similar striking talent, so much so they could afford [in more ways than one] to ship out Alvaro Negredo to Valencia in what can only be described as classic loanee reverse psychology. Naturally, no hint of criticism in print or punditry for the Mancunian club over the confused state of their transfer policy - it’s in the wake of a near-neighbour blow-out of £150m on perilously little and perish the thought that both Salford stalwarts should be suffering managerial fools anything but gladly, let alone at the same time.

 

And so, faced with this never-ending mass media turn of a blind eye to the bleeding obvious, we find Jose Mourinho returning to the press conference circus and more of the same. Unrepentant as always, he treats the opening question [the Bony transfer and his view on it] like the tempter it so clearly was and lays into it in typically sardonic fashion:-

 

“Good striker, good player… they can only play with 11, unless the rules are changed for them and they can play with 12. The rules have been changed for them in other ways, but not in this one.â€

 

Asked to elaborate,  Jose declined as only he can - by not really doing so and instead he led the assembled messenger boys down as many paths of righteousness as they might wish to take over the forthcoming day’s copy or the same day’s severely edited SSN press conference clips. The implication was evident - be my guest, go down whatever inquisitive route you feel inclined to take, whether it be relative squad strengths and the need to buy, FFP adherence, unfair treatment of our players, [my] genuine belief that referees are being influenced by you lot, so why the heck don’t you do something to improve your attitude towards CFC? Okay, that last inference would have been made more in hope than expectation, but, when your team immediately follows it up with a five-goal thrashing of one of the better Premiership sides, honest appraisal and well-earned praise is almost demanded as of right.

 

Moreover, with Diego delivering 17 goals in 19 league games the penny will surely drop soon - Chelsea are simply not in the market for the likes of Messi, Kane or Bony - and no doubt Jose would have ‘elaborated’ further (if he thought the scribes capable of sensible, as opposed to unsound byte, reporting) by outlining the forward-thinking future of our club. Costa and Remy have [so far] proven more than capable of carrying the attacking load this season and in the wings we have Patrick Bamford (21), Isaiah Brown (18) and Dominic Solanke (17) stacked, like three of Phil Taylor‘s darts, at various stages of impressive development behind this pair. Indeed, the analogy doesn’t stop there, because, whilst we don’t have that darting powerhouse, we do have Didier ‘The Power’ Drogba ready, willing and extremely able to coach these three in the years to come…and no doubt Tammy Abraham (17) thereafter. Bases covered, I’d say, and certainly no need for reinforcements for quite a while. 

 

.

Edited January 18, 201511 yr by Dorset

I just really hope we can finally produce some world beaters, we've got players with the potential.