Wow. Never a dull moment as a Chelsea fan is there? 

So I thought I would write a piece attempting to break down our transfer activity during this summer and layout my thoughts on why we signed the players we did and what the offer club. 

As we all know we had a pretty disastrous season last year and shake up of playing personnel was always going to be on the cards. 

Conte a stark contrast to the laid back Hiddink was always going to demand more from the team and it become clear very quickly that he would demand a higher work both during matches and during training.

Which leads nicely into our first signing:

 

 

N'Golo Kante

If a higher work rate was needed then Kante was the perfect signing. Leicester City's surprising league triumph was thanks in large part due to Kante's tireless work rate on the field but running around a lot alone does not win you matches. Kante's season for Leicester has to go down as one of the best ever by a defensive midfield player in the Premier League. 

Chelsea's midfield and defence was awful at times last season, teams far too often found it easy to play their way through the middle of the team with huge hole appearing in both defence and midfield. Kante will hopefully fix both. He is going to screen the defence and make it a lot harder for teams to play simple passes th rough the middle, already in just three games for Chelsea we are seeing how many times he intercepts passes from the opposition and it's no coincidence that Ivanovic and Terry are performing better already. 

But Kante is there to do an offensive job too. Much like Makelele did for Chelsea the beauty lies in the simplicity, often Kante doesn't hold onto the ball for long his passing is quick and simple, especially after winning possession and means the transition from back to front is a lot quicker. 

 

 

Michy Batshuayi

Diego Costa didn't start the season well last year but a big problem for Chelsea was that Loic Remy was an unreliable back up due to constant injury problems. Despite little playing time Remy was out for weeks at time with muscle injuries and it defeats the point of being a back up player if you aren't fit and ready when needed. 

So Batshuayi has been bought in to provide better, more reliable cover up front but hopefully better than that to actually push for a starting place, something Remy was never going to do. 

It's early days yet but with three goals and an assist already it's looking a promising signing and an upgrade on what we had already. 

 

 

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Now the really important bit, our defence. 

In my opinion we paid the price last season for not recruiting a first choice defender. We haven't bought anyone who was going to be automatic first choice since.... Well that's just the problem, I can't even remember. 

Baba and Djilobodji were bad signings, I don't think there is any other way to spin it. Baba was too young, raw and inexperienced to play in what was already a creaking back line and Djilobodji was never going to get ahead of Terry or Cahill because he simply didn't have the ability required so personally I think there was a the risk of complacency, no matter how poorly they performed the same four players would get picked. I'll be honest I wasn't the least bit surprised to see both players shipped out so quickly, in fact it only seemed to take a week for Conte to make his mind up about Djilobodji, he didn't even bother taking him on our pre-season tour in the US despite having little other defensive options to choose from at the time. 

We were unfortunate to lose Zouma through injury because he was beginning to develop well but even he has serious limitations to his game particular his distribution. 

Improving the defence and improving our defensive options was crucial, no ifs, no buts we had to do it. 

So let's look at who came in.

 

 

Marcos Alonso

At 25 the first thing I think is important is that he is more experienced than Baba and probably won't be looking to the players around him to assist him so much during matches. I haven't seen him play before I'll admit so I can only base an opinion on what I have read but he can apparently play at left back, on the left side of a back three, left wing back and left midfield. With a lack of naturally left footed players in our squad I think that versatility made him an attractive buy. It was often reported that Conte was weighing up playing a three man defence at Chelsea and I think Alonso really opens up that possibility by being able to play as either the wing back or in the back three itself.

The big question is, will he finally be the player that allows Dave to move over to the right hand side meaning we have natural width on both sides? Ivanovic is only on a 12 month contract and I would like to think that Conte is looking beyond this season, if we are to get back to being in the top 4/competing for the title then I think replacing Ivanovic is a must. Not so much based on performances but in terms of building a defence that can grow familiar with one another and feel confident of playing together for seasons to come. 

 

 

David Luiz

Possibly the most divisive transfer I can remember in my time supporting Chelsea, very much like Marmite fans seems to either love or loathe him. 

We needed another central defender, no two ways about it. We were obviously interested in signing Koulibaly from Napoli but rightly or wrongly, much like with John Stones last summer we refused to meet what appeared to be an inflated asking price. of £50m+. Personally paying that sort of money for a player with little experience playing at international level or in Europe is risky, based on reports he wasn't overly impressive in his first season at Naopli so I can see why the club might have been reluctant to pay too much for him. 

We then went for Romagnoli but were quickly told by Milan in no uncertain terms that he wasn't for sale with them taking the unusual step of making public our bid. 

With time and options and running out the club turned their attentions to David Luiz.. Was it a case of better the Devil you know? 

The way I'm looking at the signing is Luiz has more pace then Terry and better distribution than Cahill so regardless of who he replaces you are given the option of playing a higher defensive line or a quicker, more efficient passing  game. 

 

 

I mentioned it in another thread but I'll post it again here, something I noticed about our outfield recruitment this summer is that we have gone for players with Premier League experience a and by extension can already speak English.

I think this is to minimises adaptation time and reduces communication problems so you would think the new signings can slot in much quicker. Bats is the only outfield player signed without Premier League experience and Conte has been keen not to throw him in at the deep end.

All in all I think it is a very positive transfer window and I think we have strengthened key areas of the squad, there is a nice balance to the team now. My only concern would be being light on options and cover up front, we were led to believe that Conte wanted the option of playing two up front but now that's all of our senior forwards if we did that. Perhaps Solanke will be promoted to third choice striker or maybe Conte will persist with RLC being played as a forward although my suspicion is that he is doing that to shoehorn RLC into the squad as I get a feeling that he doesn't think he is suited to play in midfield for the system he is implementing.  

 

 

Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read through my thoughts on our transfer window, I'd like to know everyone else's thoughts and anything that you may disagree with me on. 

KTBFFH

 

Good post FC.

I think we have a better balance to our squad than this time last year and one that with no European commitments will be expected to get into that top 4 mix.

The one area I'm a bit unsure of is up top. If we are to play 3 at the back and the two strikers then that leaves us really short should as we almost expect Costa gets injured or suspended we are left with only Micy as a recognized striker. Should the two of them (cross everything you have!) be out at the same time we are pretty bare bar the youth and playing false 9's. I'd be far more happy had we kept Traore as that would have really balanced us out in this area IMO.

I'm nonetheless excited to see how we do this season, what formation we play and how our crazy Brazilian and Fiery Spaniard's personality's bounce off each other.

It's going to be a very interesting year and Swansea cant come quick enough!  

Edited September 1, 20168 yr by Chelsbear

ForeverCarefree agree with what you've said, good post. Batman, Kante an possibly Alonso were to do with/wanted by Conte but i think the luiz deal is a Roman thing.

Cant believe that out of the 38 loanees we have at Chelsea not one of them could have helped out rather than the 50m we've just spent on these 2.

Really disappointed with the obvious need for defensive players to have paid all that money for what.

Hopefully i'm proved wrong.

7 minutes ago, Kev56 said:

Cant believe that out of the 38 loanees we have at Chelsea not one of them could have helped out rather than the 50m we've just spent on these 2.

If anything I think it speaks volumes about the lack of quality of the loan army. Right now I see it as a wasted resource. 

I can see maybe 2-3 of those players becoming a part of the first team squad but other than that it's got to a point where it's a bit of a bloated mess and I would prefer to see us begin selling of the majority of those players so we can focus our efforts on establishing ourselves as top 4 side again. 

Kante is a perfect signing.

Bats is an exciting signing.

Alonso is a questionable signing.

Luiz is a concerning signing.

Eduardo is a signing.

 

That's my take on it anyway. We literally couldn't have asked for a better player than Kante. And in this crazy window, it can be considered we got him cheap, even at 30mil. Batshuayi seems to be a very talented young striker, with time, he could be outstanding. Fast and strong, and a real knack for being in the right position.

No idea what to expect from Alonso. It's a lot of money for a player who has never really shown outstanding quality. I suppose his fee could be considered to be more of a 10-15mil fee in a less crazy market, which makes him something of a project player like Ivanovic and Azpilicueta when they first arrived. Hopefully he has their success, and doesn't replicate the likes of Rahman and Luis.

David Luiz....I like the guy, I really do, but call me old fashioned, I like my defenders (especially CB's), to be really good at defending. When he left us a few years ago, I was sad for the loss of a Chelsea character, but relieved to receive good value from a suspect defender. I don't think he's evolved into a proper defender since then either. He's capable of course. His efforts in the CL final were magical...the real pinnacle of his career with us, but too often it was just terrifying watching him defend (though his goals were pretty fantastic). It's concerning because he clearly wasn't first choice. With Chelsea being too slow and ineffective with our CB dealings, we decided to shell out 30+mil on a 29 year old. Fan favourite, yes, absolutely....love the man, on my radar as an ideal CB...no, not in the slightest.

Eduardo is a goalkeeper. We have three now.

 

But it's a new dawn for this Chelsea team. Conte fills me with confidence. His passion is so obvious, and contagious. I need that, I daresay many Chelsea fans do. Last season became so bad, I just felt apathetic to it all, and watched games almost begrudgingly. But the fire has been re-lit, and despite my doubts, I'm certainly willing to give every player, new and old the benefit of the doubt. If the lads play with passion and intensity, maybe all the signings work. Maybe Kante can actually protect David Luiz? Maybe we get Costa and Bats playing together. Maybe Alonso becomes the new Ashley Cole. And if Matic returns to his best, and Hazard continues ripping apart the opposition, we may be looking at another great Chelsea squad.

We can always be optimistic until we have reason not to be I suppose. So my reservations aside, I'm excited.

4 hours ago, ForeverCarefree said:

If anything I think it speaks volumes about the lack of quality of the loan army. Right now I see it as a wasted resource. 

I can see maybe 2-3 of those players becoming a part of the first team squad but other than that it's got to a point where it's a bit of a bloated mess and I would prefer to see us begin selling of the majority of those players so we can focus our efforts on establishing ourselves as top 4 side again. 

Christensen, Ake for those 2 positions that we bought on the deadline day.

Boga, Musonda, Traore, Baker. Sorry, but there is PLENTY of quality in the loan army. What is required is trust.

Also, dont get how selling cuevas and other players has any link with us getting back to top 4.

10 minutes ago, didierforever said:

Christensen, Ake for those 2 positions that we bought on the deadline day.

Boga, Musonda, Traore, Baker. Sorry, but there is PLENTY of quality in the loan army. What is required is trust.

Also, dont get how selling cuevas and other players has any link with us getting back to top 4.

Conte, like with the Italian Euro squad, wanted to work with an experienced group of players this season.

Ake and Christensen are two of the loan players who I think could and should become part of the first team squad but I don't think either is ready to step in and play every week for us just yet so for benefit of their development it's better for them to play elsewhere this season.

As for the other names you've mentioned they've played little senior football, is it good for them right now to be 4th choice options for us or trying to prove they can cut it elsewhere? 

We've seen it before where young players are hyped from their youth team displays but when it comes to making that step up they lack that extra something needed to become top flight players. 

I personally think we could cut loose 80% of our loan players and we'd never regret it. 

24 minutes ago, ForeverCarefree said:

Conte, like with the Italian Euro squad, wanted to work with an experienced group of players this season.

Ake and Christensen are two of the loan players who I think could and should become part of the first team squad but I don't think either is ready to step in and play every week for us just yet so for benefit of their development it's better for them to play elsewhere this season.

As for the other names you've mentioned they've played little senior football, is it good for them right now to be 4th choice options for us or trying to prove they can cut it elsewhere? 

We've seen it before where young players are hyped from their youth team displays but when it comes to making that step up they lack that extra something needed to become top flight players. 

I personally think we could cut loose 80% of our loan players and we'd never regret it. 

3 years ago, it was the same with Jose. Sometime before that it was the same with AVB, the same with Carlo. THIS excuse of a manager wanting "experience" will never get old. Experience can be gained only by playing. And if the player does play and play well, we are ready with the next excuse of "it only being X,Y,Z team. Its not the same as playing for Chelsea". So unless we actually trust and put in effort to integrate youth, i dont see anything changing, and it wont be bacuase of talent.

Also, we digress.

The point I disputed was about the talent. I dont think I am hyping these kids unduly. Out of 38 loanees, I have high hopes for andreas (already a CL player), Ake (who has looked good everytime he has taken field, be it with us of watford), Baker, Musonda (who i feel is a serious TALENT), Boga (similar to musonda but not on that level) and traore (another player who has looked good).

I would also like to add Abraham to the list. So they are just a handful of players, but this group has some serious talent and potential. Not to mention RLC, Aina, Nate. 

Edited September 1, 20168 yr by didierforever

The strange thing with the David Luiz signing is no one in football spoke about it. No one claimed an exclusive over the summer in the written press or TV. He was a favourite of the board before he left so will be interesting to know who started the ball rolling and whether Conte wanted him.

14 minutes ago, didierforever said:

The point I disputed was about the talent. I dont think I am hyping these kids unduly. Out of 38 loanees, I have high hopes for andreas (already a CL player), Ake (who has looked good everytime he has taken field, be it with us of watford), Baker, Musonda (who i feel is a serious TALENT), Boga (similar to musonda but not on that level) and traore (another player who has looked good).

I would also like to add Abraham to the list. So they are just a handful of players, but this group has some serious talent and potential. Not to mention RLC, Aina, Nate. 

You're kind of backing up my point, of 38 players you've listed just 5 you have high hopes for. 

And this is what I'm getting at the loan army is completely bloated with so many players who just don't have a future at Chelsea so why do we insist on persisting with such a large group? 

We've had this business model of for loans for what five maybe six years now? What is the evidence to back up that this benificial to the club at this point. RLC is the youngster being given the biggest chance and he's never been sent out on loan.

I'd prefer we seriously cut down the size of the group and focused on the small number who do appear to have potential to offer us something in the future.

3 hours ago, ForeverCarefree said:

You're kind of backing up my point, of 38 players you've listed just 5 you have high hopes for. 

And this is what I'm getting at the loan army is completely bloated with so many players who just don't have a future at Chelsea so why do we insist on persisting with such a large group? 

We've had this business model of for loans for what five maybe six years now? What is the evidence to back up that this benificial to the club at this point. RLC is the youngster being given the biggest chance and he's never been sent out on loan.

I'd prefer we seriously cut down the size of the group and focused on the small number who do appear to have potential to offer us something in the future.

Some very good points from this whole thread. I believe that our sheer quantity of youth players to manage is just too hard to be dealt with efficiently. Every single player requires a negotiation with one or more clubs to get him in the right track. So is it possible to optimize each player career? My guess is no, and yet we persist for the detriment of the player career and the club too.

I think the whole system needs to be streamlined in some way. Sheer number is not getting it done as this talent needs to be nurtured rather than bet on. I would like for the Club to negotiate more youth sales with buy back clauses and longer loans with callback options that make sense for both clubs involved.

The club should identify the very best talent that we have and draw a more clear path to success. For example, send Kennedy to Santos for 2 years. They are famous for developing talent and we are working a partnership with them from what I read. Kennedy has the tools, he needs playing time and polishing and in his case this might be the best option. Lewis Baker to Vitesse? Bad move. He is too close too breaking out. He should be in a better league maybe even in the premier league. A loan to a team like Hull City could have given him a platform to show his readiness. And so on.

 

 

I have to disagree with the implication that Zouma isn't up to scratch, he is far and away the best tackler in the squad and his physicality is unparalleled. While he does look a bit cumbersome, lets not forget he did play in midfield in a couple of games early last season and actually played pretty well, showing he's more than just a tackle and hoof style player.

I think he and Luiz will complement each other very well when they become our first choice CB pairing from next season.

47 minutes ago, Boricua Blue said:

Lewis Baker to Vitesse? Bad move. He is too close too breaking out. He should be in a better league maybe even in the premier league. A loan to a team like Hull City could have given him a platform to show his readiness. And so on.

Lewis Baker wouldn't get a minute at any PL club

^You must not know Lewis Baker that well. But anyway, I assure you he is better than some playing in the PL. And like I said, maybe the premier or maybe La Liga where Musonda has excelled. Another Vitesse loan seems redundant.

3 hours ago, Boricua Blue said:

^You must not know Lewis Baker that well. But anyway, I assure you he is better than some playing in the PL. And like I said, maybe the premier or maybe La Liga where Musonda has excelled. Another Vitesse loan seems redundant.

Right i'm sure they would much rather have Baker than Ryan Mason, an England international who they have just signed for a club record fee in the same position.

After all, who could forget the notable top flight loan spells of some of our other youngsters, such as Van Ginkel, Bamford and Chalobah. Each of which arrived at their loan spells with more experience and bigger reputations than Baker, only to end up spending their loan spells warming the bench.

The transfer window, for me, in genreal was a success.  Sure we didn't have a great "marquee" signing, but we added up front with a striker I think shows more promise that Lukaku (never bought into the rumour that we were ever in for him btw), and is already scoring.  Also a great personality.

 

Kante.  A completely solid signing and addressed an area we greatly needed.  I thought initially it was to secure the Matic and Fabregas partnership, but it does look as if Conte is going to play Oscar deeper.  A position i prefer him in, despite the fact he plays further up for Brazil.

Alonso.  Again, addresses an area we needed addressing, and he has PL experience.  I don't pay too much to that price tag, as this summer was bonkers (which does make the Kante signing even better).  If he can switch Azpi back to the right side, and then drop Ivan into CB depth, then i think it's a solid signing.

Luiz.  Nutter.  I just hope he contributes more than he gives up.  A great personality, thats for sure, but the song by living color "Cult Of Personality" has certainly been ringing in my head since the signing.  It at least adds depth into an area we need, and in a few years if we have Luiz, Zouma, and Christensen, then that's not a bad 3 to have.  As others have said, it does give Conte options.  SO in all I feel it is slightly more positive; even given that it might gee up the crowd a bit.

 

Good transfer window.  Addressed areas without being spectacular.  7/10

9 hours ago, ForeverCarefree said:

You're kind of backing up my point, of 38 players you've listed just 5 you have high hopes for. 

And this is what I'm getting at the loan army is completely bloated with so many players who just don't have a future at Chelsea so why do we insist on persisting with such a large group? 

We've had this business model of for loans for what five maybe six years now? What is the evidence to back up that this benificial to the club at this point. RLC is the youngster being given the biggest chance and he's never been sent out on loan.

I'd prefer we seriously cut down the size of the group and focused on the small number who do appear to have potential to offer us something in the future.

I am not debating about the uses of loan system. You are talking to a person who is consistently berating Oscar and pedro because i feel there contribution to the squad can easily be replaced by the likes of baker and musonda, instead of being wasted in the black hole that is our loan system.

Also, Having 6 talented "youth" players is a massive thing in my opinion. When I say "talented" and the players I am counting, I have high hopes that they can be actual stars/superstars, which is a massive deal. I dont think any other club in the world can boast of such talents in their youth ranks. Also one of the reasons why we are dominating youth circuits so massively.

I also agree with you on selling off of players like Piazon, hector, atsu, feruz, omerou etc who have no chance of making it here. But i guess our expectations are different. For me 1 in 10 youth players have the ability to make it big. We have 6/7 which in my opinion is a big number. Another thing that simply ruffles my feathers is the way we use them, but I think thats a discussion for another thread and time.

To be honest, I prefer Dave at left back.  Has played 50% of his career there now and in my view his best games have been at left back.  I don't buy into the absolute necessity of left footers on the left, right footers on the right though I know the history of football would suggest otherwise.  i think it's equally as important to be unique and set up in a way that isn't so easy for the opposition.  Having said that, I think Dave is more than capable on the right, but I wouldn't have Alonso as a walk up starter just yet.  Brana will be well aware he has to play to his best every week from now on.  Happy with the window and cannot wait for this international break to get effed

7 hours ago, Jonty said:

Right i'm sure they would much rather have Baker than Ryan Mason, an England international who they have just signed for a club record fee in the same position.

After all, who could forget the notable top flight loan spells of some of our other youngsters, such as Van Ginkel, Bamford and Chalobah. Each of which arrived at their loan spells with more experience and bigger reputations than Baker, only to end up spending their loan spells warming the bench.

I think you are missing some aspects of my post. Hull City is a prime candidate for relegation as they just got promoted and I heard they have injury problems among other issues. They are just a name I threw out there to name a club in the lower tier of the league. It is up to Chelsea to make sure that they are picking destinations that make sense for the players. To do that they need to reduce the number of players on loan to be able to focus on the development of the marquee prospects.

Perhaps Chelsea can use their financial power to incentivize teams with financial issues to give time to our loanees in return for additional financial concessions and future access to our pool of young players. Also they should ensure callback provisions kick in if playing time is not achieved.