Chelsea have a lot of work to do this summer following a deeply disappointing 2022/2023 Premier League campaign which saw the Blues slump to 12th place in the table. New manager Mauricio Pochettino has been tasked with trimming down Chelsea’s bloated first-team squad and has been very active this window.
However, the west Londoners still need to complete a few more deals before it can be deemed a successful summer. So, here, Express Sport takes a look at the most important ones that could decide the success of Chelsea next season.
Losing Colwill
Pochettino must do everything in his power to keep hold of Levi Colwill. The 20-year-old centre-back is among the most promising young defenders in the world and is attracting interest from several top English clubs.
Brighton, who had him on loan last season, are keen to re-sign the youngster while Liverpool are chomping at the bit to snap him up. Colwill is understood to want regular first-team football after impressing at the Amex Stadium and Pochettino would be advised to give it to him considering his ceiling. Losing him to Anfield would be a bitter blow.
Caicedo deal collapsing
Chelsea are in desperate need of a holding midfielder and there are few better options on the market right now than Brighton’s Moises Caicedo. The 21-year-old’s ability to turn over the ball and break up play ranks among the best in the Premier League and his inclusion in Pochettino’s side would free up Enzo Fernandez’s defensive responsibilities and bring the best out of the Argentine.
But he won’t come cheap. Brighton want no less than £100million for their star man and aren’t willing to budge. Chelsea have seen bids of £60m and £70m rejected by the Seagulls so far and will need to up their offers to get him in.
Not clearing their unwanted list
Chelsea have already let go of several players this summer including Kai Havertz, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mason Mount, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Christian Pulisic. But there are still a fair few names deemed surplus to requirements that need shipping out.
Chiefly, Romelu Lukaku, who is the club’s joint-highest earner alongside Raheem Sterling at £325,000-a-week despite falling out of favour at Stamford Bridge almost upon arrival in 2021. The Belgian striker appeared to be on his way back to Inter Milan on a permanent deal but the Italian side swiftly pulled out of negotiations after discovering that Lukaku had also been in discussions with rivals Juventus. His future remains uncertain with Juventus said to be far keener on a loan move than a permanent switch.
Meanwhile, Chelsea are also hoping to sell Hakim Ziyech and Callum Hudson-Odoi this summer which is also proving to be harder than expected.