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What started out as a quiet summer for Chelsea ended up being another year of spending. Chelsea have added plenty of quality to the squad this year due to a few good signings and retaining of loan players. The Blues have invested mostly in young players whose best years are still ahead of them. That being said, let’s take a quick look at the type of business Chelsea have done this year.
1) Andre Schurrle
Transfer fee: £18M
Position: Forward
Chelsea had been actively pursuing the German forward for a long time before they finally signed him this year. He is comfortable playing on the wings (preferably the left) and can also operate as a second striker and even as an out-and-out striker. He is lightning quick, can dribble around defenders well and also has the ability to shoot from distance. His versatility and natural talent will no doubt be useful for Chelsea.
Verdict: 7/10
2) Marco van Ginkel
Transfer fee: £8M
Position: Central midfielder
The young Dutch midfielder is seen as a natural successor to Frank Lampard. He’s primarily a box-to-box midfielder who can make strong runs from midfield and get into goal-scoring positions, although he has played as a defensive midfielder on occasion. He also possesses a decent passing range and is able to bully players in midfield. The youngster is certainly one to watch for the future.
Verdict: 7.5/10
3) Mark Schwarzer
Transfer fee: Free
Position: Goalkeeper
With Chelsea releasing Ross Turnbull during the summer and choosing to loan Thibaut Courtois to Atletico again, the signing of a temporary quality back-up seemed inevitable. Schwarzer made perfect sense because by the time he’s released or retires, Courtois will be ready to take the next step at Chelsea. The Australian goalkeeper will be a more than able back-up to Petr Cech.
Verdict: 7/10
4) Willian
Transfer fee: £30M
Position: Winger/attacking midfielder
The Brazilian winger was put up for sale by Anzhi Makachkala and was about to be signed by Tottenham before Chelsea swooped. He’s pacy, likes to dribble and knows how to get into goal-scoring positions. He can operate either as a winger or an attacking midfielder. Given the number of attacking players present in Chelsea’s squad, he will no doubt have to fight for a place in the starting XI, but he’s a quality player.
Verdict: 7/10
5) Samuel Eto’o
Transfer fee: Undisclosed
Position: Striker
The 32-year old Cameroonian was signed on the cheap from Anzhi. While he may not be the player he once was, he can still score a few goals and given his age, he’ll be an ideal stop-gap expedient until Romelu Lukaku is ready to lead Chelsea’s line-up on a regular basis.
Verdict: 6.5/10
It’s also worth noting that Jose Mourinho decided to retain three of Chelsea’s loanees from last season; Romelu Lukaku (striker), Kevin De Bruyne (attacking midfielder) and Tomas Kalas (centre back).
The Blues have added quite a few players to a squad that looked paper-thin last season and have also let go of certain players who were no longer needed. Mourinho has an excellent squad to choose from this season. It is now up to him to deliver success.
