A new era begins at Chelsea next season, an era that will stabilise the club and push them up again, rubbing shoulders with the top four clubs in the country. Todd Boehly has injected Chelsea with sizeable investments, some of which were seen as wasteful but, with the right man in charge, this could all turn out to be a stellar season. After hiring and firing Graham Potter, the squad would relish a season with no disturbing changes.
Make sure to refresh the memory of what went down last season at Stamford Bridge as we now look ahead to what the era of Maurizio Pochettino might bring for the Blues. It’s all here on the LV BET Sports Blog, where we cover all the major games and news from the Premier League, Champions League and much more.
HIGH EXPECTATIONS
After the astronomical investment in the squad, bringing in Enzo Fernandes and Mudryk for record fees, naturally, we come to expect big things from both players. Mudryk had a terrible season, with uninspiring cameos, and when he started games, he did not leave a lasting impression on proceedings. The Argentine, Enzo Fernandez, managed to steal the show during the FIFA World Cup, but has yet to leave his mark at Stamford Bridge. Next season might be a big season for both of these players as they step up to the plate.
Having a young squad requires the manager to carefully manage expectations whilst also knowing how best to extract their potential. Maurizio Pochettino has been applauded for his great work at Tottenham when he had a young team, the same is being expected from him next season.
During some of the pre-season friendlies that Chelsea played, one can clearly see that the players are more confident in their ability and are expressing themselves better on the pitch. Something that they were devoid of last season, as teams knew that Chelsea would crack if they put them under pressure.
A byproduct of the horrible season they had last year is that they will only compete in the Premier League; there will be no European competition to contend with. All the efforts will go to improving their status in the Premier League and other domestic tournaments.
FINANCIAL SITUATION
Last summer, most of the activity in the transfer window was incoming players, but this time it was all about getting players out of the squad. This generated a great deal of money from transfers, especially Kai Havertz and Mason Mount, who, in theory were sold to competitors but for a great price. Kai Havertz was sold for €75M, whilst Mason Mount was sold for €64M. Other players who where moved on from Stamford Bridge were Matteo Kovacic who moved to Manchester City for €29m, Mendy to Al-Ahli for almost €20 and Christian Pulisic together with Ruben Loftus Cheek to AC Milan for a combined fee of €36M. Income from all the outbound transfers amount to €252.8M.
Harmony within the squad will surely improve as there are less players to include on a weekly basis. This transfer window will be seen as a big step towards offsetting the big spending done last summer, mostly thanks to the Saudi Pro League teams and competing clubs in the Premier League.
PREMIER LEAGUE PREDICTION
It will be difficult to predict where this side could potentially end up next season. They have abundant talent in their squad to trouble Arsenal and Manchester City, but realistically for a team to push for the title they need some time to understand the tactical shape-up and also the mental side of it all. We are pricing Chelsea to win the Premier League at 17.00, placing them fifth overall on the probability scale. Breaking into the top four will be difficult for any team as there are potentially seven clubs fighting for four spots, Chelsea are priced at 2.65 to get into the top four next season.
A spark throughout the season might come in the form of Christopher Nkunku, who scored three goals in as many games in the pre-season tour. His form with RB Leipzig has been outstanding and he will be keen to continue troubling defences in the Premier League.
A player that won’t feature for Chelsea is Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian striker is in advanced talks with Juventus to move permanently to Juventus, whilst Dusan Vlahovic goes the other way. The young striker has had a decent run in the Serie A, and he will be a welcome addition to the Chelsea squad should the deal go through.
Make sure to read more about what is expected from the opening weekend of Premier League football on LV BET.