The January transfer window was a quiet one for Chelsea in terms of incomings, with the Blues completing just one signing in the form of young midfielder Mathis Amougou.
The Blues have agreed a £12million deal with Saint-Etienne for the 19-year-old with Enzo Maresca getting another option in the centre of midfield. However, plenty of Chelsea fans were left unhappy with the club’s lack of activity with many supporters feeling as if the club needed to prioritise a striker over the course of the January transfer window.
Chelsea do have a shortlist of strikers they are interested in. Among those on the list are Benjamin Sesko and Liam Delap, while interest in Victor Osimhen has never really faded. Evan Ferguson was also on the list but the Brighton striker completed a loan move to West Ham United on deadline day, so that situation has become a bit more complex.
The No.9 hunt will heat up in the summer, there is no doubt about that. The January window – to many people’s frustration – is a notoriously difficult period to get business done in. If business is conducted, the price of players tends to be inflated simply because clubs are less willing to sell their key men midway through a season.
There has been an overreliance on Nicolas Jackson this season. The 23-year-old striker has started 22 of the Blues’ 24 Premier League matches to date. Jackson’s form of late has massively deteriorated and many have put it down to the amount of football he has played.
There was an enormous concern around Stamford Bridge on Monday evening when Jackson went down clutching his hamstring. The Senegal international looked as if he was about to come off, with Marc Guiu stripped and ready to replace him on the touchline. Jackson, though, did play on and he made it to 52 minutes when he was taken off in place of Guiu.
Ironically, Guiu then hurt himself in the closing stages of the game as he stretched for a ball inside of the box. The Spanish teenager was then helped down the tunnel by Willy Cabellero, fuelling concern over Chelsea’s striker options. Thankfully, Maresca confirmed after the match that neither Jackson or Guiu’s injuries seemed too bad.
There was, however, a brief moment in SW6 where it seemed as if Chelsea’s worst nightmare had become a reality. Jackson and Guiu represent their only natural No.9 options in the senior squad at the moment. Christopher Nkunku has been used there, mostly in cup competitions, but Maresca is adamant the Frenchman is more natural in the No.10 position.
The focus in the summer surely has to be on bolstering Maresca’s squad in the No.9 area. Delap has been flying for Ipswich Town, who were understandably desperate not to lose their star striker midway through their first season back in the Premier League.
If the Tractor Boys were to be relegated, they would find it near-impossible to keep hold of Delap, who has aspirations to play for England in the future. Even if Ipswich were to stay in the Premier League, there will likely be a queue of clubs in the race to sign the 21-year-old forward.
Sesko continues to flourish in Germany with RB Leipzig, with 14 goals to his name in all competitions this season. However, Arsenal are known to be keen admirers of Sesko too, so getting Champions League football is imperative for Chelsea to be able to land a target of the calibre of the 21-year-old Slovenian striker.
Elsewhere, the Blues are likely to revisit the market for a left winger. The west Londoners considered moves for Mathys Tel, Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens in the January transfer window. Tel changed his mind on multiple occasions before signing for Tottenham on deadline day on a loan deal for the remainder of the season.
Spurs convinced the 19-year-old Frenchman, who Chelsea made a firm enquiry about last summer, to join the north London club with an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season, football.london understands. So, with a move for Tel off the table, Chelsea are likely to revisit the situations of Garnacho and Gittens.
Manchester United are said to be open to selling Garnacho with the Red Devils looking to comply with the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR). The 20-year-old winger has been praised by Ruben Amorim recently for taking advice on board and has been more involved in the Portuguese’s plans in recent matches.
Either way, Chelsea are likely to take another look at Garnacho in the summer with United having more time to replace the Argentina international in the off-season. There can be no certain presumptions about what will happen in the summer, but I think we can safely say it will be a busier period than the January transfer window — especially in terms of incomings at Stamford Bridge.
