{"id":1089768,"date":"2019-05-20T13:02:40","date_gmt":"2019-05-20T12:02:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1089768"},"modified":"2021-09-14T16:35:36","modified_gmt":"2021-09-14T15:35:36","slug":"transfer-moves-chelsea-this-summer","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/transfer-moves-chelsea-this-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Transfer moves to expect from Chelsea this summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a rollercoaster maiden campaign at the Chelsea helm, Maurizio Sarri will look to build on his side’s third-place Premier League finish.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Drafted in last summer by Roman Abramovich, the former Napoli manager was tasked with upsetting the Manchester City apple cart and thwarting Pep Guardiola’s domestic stranglehold.<\/p>\n

And things started brightly for Sarri, but Chelsea’s early-season form soon fizzled and discernible question marks were raised about his tenure. However, after a slight mid-season resurgence the Blues finished the campaign on a high: placing third and reaching the Europa League final.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/audioboom.com\/posts\/7259525-if-guardiola-s-to-be-believed-liverpool-lost-the-league-with-one-result<\/p>\n

Sarri will therefore want to bolster his squad this summer as he looks to put up a more iron-willed title charge, but that may not be possible, as an impending two-window transfer embargo hangs over the club’s head.<\/p>\n

An appeal to uplift the ban has already been rejected by FIFA, but the club are exploring the possibility of taking the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, in an effort to have the governing body’s decision overturned.<\/p>\n

Should a successful plea materialise, then the Blues will no doubt want flex their financial muscles in the market, and Sarri could be flushed with cash to spend where he sees fit.<\/p>\n

However, as things stand the club are currently in limbo, not knowing whether they can sign players. And so, we’ve had a look at five different sources to suggest five possible transfer scenarios the club are expected to encounter. But who are the sources, and what did they have to say? Read on to find out!<\/p>\n

1. What the manager wants<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sarri wasn’t quite able to cater to Chelsea’s thirst for domestic success in 2018\/19 as Liverpool and Man City dominated Premier League proceedings, creating a massive gap between themselves and the rest of the ‘Big Six’.<\/p>\n

And that gulf will only widen if Chelsea are not able to recruit, with Sarri admitting his side will “need something from the market” if they are to close the gap.<\/p>\n

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He said<\/a>:\u00a0“It\u2019s very difficult to cover the gap, at the moment. We need to work. Probably we\u2019d need something from the market. So it\u2019s not easy because the level of the top two is very, very high.<\/p>\n

“I don\u2019t believe in buying 10 players. I think we have to buy only one or two players. Otherwise, it\u2019s very difficult to improve immediately. I think we are a very good team, and so we need only one or two players, no more.<\/p>\n

“And, as we can see in Europe, it\u2019s not easy. We have to work and we have to try, of course. In my opinion, we can reduce the gap.”<\/p>\n

2. A view from the press box<\/strong><\/h2>\n

BBC Sport’s transfer guru David Ornstein<\/a>\u00a0has predicted a\u00a0turbulent summer for Chelsea, with suggestions the Court of Arbitration for Sport may not rule on the Blues’ appeal until July – right in the middle of the window – leaving the club in a pretty perilous and precarious position.<\/p>\n

Should the ban withstand, however, Chelsea will refuse to sanction Eden Hazard’s potential move to Real Madrid, while the club will also trigger an option to extend Olivier Giroud’s contract by a year, as well as affording\u00a0Tammy Abraham and Michy Batshuayi significant playing time next term.<\/p>\n

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A loophole in the clauses of loanees\u00a0Gonzalo Higuain and\u00a0Mateo Kovacic could also see them make their temporary stints permanent, which the club will consider if the embargo remains intact.<\/p>\n

If the ban is lifted, the Evening Standard<\/a> has linked the club with Lille’s prodigiously-talented winger\u00a0Nicolas Pepe, who is set to leave\u00a0Les Dogues this summer after manager\u00a0Christophe Galtier confirmed his departure.<\/p>\n

“Nicolas Pepe will leave. Life’s like that, football’s like that today,” he told Canal+.<\/p>\n

“He is a player of the highest level who will have a big decision to make on the choice of his next club. There will be a battle between the great European teams.<\/p>\n

“I hope that he will take good amount of time to think about it, do his research.”<\/p>\n

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READ MORE:<\/span> Nicolas Pepe is set to leave Lille, so where next?<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

With 22 Ligue 1 goals and 11 assists to his name this term, the coveted forward, who helped power Lille to a runners-up berth in the French top-flight, has seen his name associated with most of\u00a0Europe’s top heavyweights.<\/p>\n

Should a move to Chelsea come to fruition, it would likely mean that Hazard has secured his “dream” move to Los Blancos, but would the Ivorian be able to remedy the void and follow in the footsteps of his Lille predecessor?<\/p>\n

3. An ex-player’s thoughts<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Despite the potential of a two-window transfer ban looming, forming Chelsea winger\u00a0Shaun Wright-Phillips believes this could have a positive impact on the club.<\/p>\n

The ex-Blue, who won the Premier League title in 2006, has urged Sarri to look at the club’s current crop of starlets out on loan as potential potions to the\u00a0forthcoming transfer\u00a0ailment.<\/p>\n

With the likes of Mason Mount, Fikayo Tomori and Reece James enjoying productive loan spells, Wright-Phillips believes Chelsea could unearth “England\u2019s next superstar” if Sarri looks from within.<\/p>\n

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He said<\/a>:\u00a0“I don\u2019t think the ban will hinder them that much \u2013 we\u2019re forgetting that they have something like 40 players out on loan.<\/p>\n

“Of course not all of them are worthy of a place in the Chelsea side, but there\u2019s a lot of people with the potential and this could be the start of somebody\u2019s career by bringing them back and giving them a run in the team, and maybe even the next England superstar, or French or Belgian superstar on our hands.”<\/p>\n