Chelsea came into the beginning of last season with none of the famed pundits predicting anything more than a top four finish at best for the West Londoners. In fact no-one really knew what to expect from a team that had finished 10th in the Premier League under Jose Mourinho and interim boss Guus Hiddink.
Antonio Conte took over at Stamford Bridge and sensationally guided the team to the Premier League title in his first season in charge in England. Conte has not received much praise in the media for his transfer dealings or at least the moves which presumably he agreed with as other clubs like Manchester United with Pogba and Ibrahimovic grabbed the headlines but it is hard to argue that Chelsea were the most successful movers in the transfer market last summer. They made a number of transactions overall with many players finishing loans and signing new loan deals but they made 5 major signings including 4 outfield players and a goalkeeper – Eduardo from Dinamo Zagreb.
The Blues signed David Luiz, Marcos Alonso, N’Golo Kante and Michy Batshuayi before the end of the 2015-16 summer transfer window. Three of those players signed went on to quickly become automatic first choices in the first team in their first season which is virtually unheard of when it comes to players joining a Premier League team. All three had excellent seasons without injury. Kante repeated as the player of the year, Luiz was a rock in defense while Alonso did not put a foot wrong at the back and added key goals going forward.
Of course the one outfield player who did not become an automatic first choice was Batshuayi. The Belgian striker has looked pretty good when he had the chances but unfortunately for him Diego Costa played so well he made himself virtually “undroppable”. Antonio Conte was only able to find a starting spot for the Belgian hotshot on a limited number of occasions which was a shame as his form was worthy of more chances but it is hard to argue with Conte’s results. There are always players who want more playing time and somebody has to miss out and due to his position, age and experience frustratingly Batshuayi suffered.
As Sky Sports are reporting the future for the young striker hangs in the balance as he has been lnked with a move away from Stamford Bridge in search of more playing time. Batshuayi had this to say on the matter:
“I’m not the master of my destiny. Chelsea bought me, they can do what they want with me,” he told French outlet RMC Sport.
“I’m going to finish with the national team and then I expect I’ll have a few phone calls. I’ll see with my agent and the club.”
So it remains to be seen what happens but many would bet that the young player will be on the move from Chelsea with many teams linked. A move is being widely reported however the Blues may only do a loan deal which might be wise given the obvious talent involved with the fine young striker.
No matter what deals Chelsea do complete you would have to expect that on recent transfer form the Blues will put together an excellent squad for next year with the retention of some of their key players perhaps even more important than new signings.
Chelsea are looking pretty good to repeat the title win next year and If you are going to bet on the Blues for next season then you can find a bookie using a quality review site such as www.horseracingbetting.co.uk and take advantage of some of the summer odds like the 7-2 odds currently on offer for the Blues to repeat as Champions.