New owners, new coach and £800 million spent in 12 months. Chelsea should be fighting at the top of the table but things are going far from well. A new team packed with youngsters who were mesmerised by West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta with his tricks and skills and Chelsea’s latest signing Moises Caicedo could not get anywhere near him. The problem for Mauricio Pochettino is similar to what happened to Fulham and Nottingham Forest in recent seasons. A club spends and spends, brings in a whole host of new players but they are not a unit, no cohesion and playing more as individuals. I am sure Pochettino, given his experience, will sort this out but Mudryk missed clear chances and Caicedo looked horribly exposed. The one bright light for Chelsea is the current performance of Raheem Sterling. Pochettino was quick to praise his winger in the press conference and he explained how Raheem had spent a lot of time in his office and they were working very well together. He was their best player and is performing on the level that used to terrorise defences.
Two more players coming in are goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic from New England Revolution for £12.5 million and he is currently taking a medical. Forward Deivid Washington has already taken a medical and will be announced this week.
Callum Hudson-Odoi and Romelu Lukaku are expected to leave the club whereas Conor Gallagher and Trevor Chalobah’s futures are still undecided.
A ghastly knee injury sustained against West Ham by star forward Carney Chukwuemeka needed surgery and he will be out for six weeks minimum which brings Chelsea’s injury list up to eight players. Chelsea have contacted Arsenal regarding Folarin Balogun and the idea is for Pochettino to boost his attack before the transfer window closes. Chelsea failed to create any good chances against West Ham and the Arsenal man was on loan to French club Reims last season and scored 21 league goals in 37 matches. The Gunners want £50 million but face competition from Fulham who lost their main striker Aleksandar Mitrovic to Saudi club Al-Hilal. Chelsea are also considering Notts Forest forward Brennan Johnson, Ajax midfielder Mohammed Kudus and Lyon winger Bradley Barcola.
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Pochettino has had to adjust his plans radically with Christopher Nkunku out for six weeks with a knee injury. He insists he still has faith in his two strikers Nicolas Jackson and Armando Broja who is nearing a return after knee surgery in December.
Two headaches for Erik Ten Hag
Manchester United’s Erik Ten Hag is another manager who desperately needs another top striker. He is hopeful Kobbie Mainoo will be fit in September to ease Manchester United’s midfield problems but a new striker is his main concern. How Ten Hag wishes he could have achieved his first choice Karry Kane. Two games into the season and United could only manage 37 shots against Wolves who had lost 4-1 the previous week. Anthony Martial was only fit enough to complete 7 minutes and he continues to be a problem. ETH pointed out that the ingredients for a successful title challenge are more or less complete but he still needs a striker and midfielder but despite the team showing better shape and a more pressing approach to last season they are far from a finished product.
United were overrun despite the 1-0 win over Wolves and were exposed in the 2-0 loss to
Mr Cool brings entertainment back to Tottenham
Ange Postecoglou is quickly becoming known as Mr Cool in the Premier League. He walked calmly out into the centre of the pitch after his team had beaten Manchester United. He applauded, very quietly, the assembled Tottenham fans. They roared their approval. Suddenly he changed, as if transforming into another person, leapt into the air and ran over to a section of the crowd where he had spotted his family. This was his proudest moment. Ange had won his first Premier League match in front of his closest family and he punched the air for joy.
The fans also loved him because for the first time in a very long time a Tottenham team had played inspired football, entertaining and thrilling to cheer on.
Captain Son Heung-Min revealed the way Postecoglou has been training his squad. “It’s very early, but we want to possess the ball, create chances, play attacking football, if we lose the ball we’re going to be counter pressing, it’s really, really fun even to play in but I think watching this game is more enjoyable for the Spurs fans,” Son explained. “100% it’s enjoyable for the players, for the attacking players, I don’t know about the defenders, but for me, it’s playing high, pressing high, it’s an easier job than running 70 metres backwards!”
Lightning fast Doku joins City
Despite being located in Barcelona where he underwent back surgery this week Pep Guardiola is delighted that Manchester City captured the signature of French club Rennes’ lightning fast winger Jeremy Doku. His blistering pace and ball control makes him the perfect replacement for Riyad Mahrez. His medical this week seemed to go well but Doku has suffered several hamstring problems in the past. Both Belgium coach Roberto Martinez and Arsenal legend and Belgium’s assistant coach Thierry Henri described Doku as an exceptional talent.
Relegation could threaten Everton survival
When I attended a match between Fulham and Everton a few years ago I was astounded at the noise the visiting Toffees supporters made. They completely drowned out the home side supporters. These days Everton fans have little to cheer about. A mis-managed club who have at last appointed a strong coach in Sean Dyche. The problem is that he is trying to shuffle almost the same pack who have fought off relegation for the past two seasons and he is desperately short of new talent. I have learned that if Everton are relegated to the Championship at the end of the season their financial accounts reveal that the club’s future could be in serious jeopardy. Bookmakers have only Luton Town and Sheffield United as more likely to be relegated than Everton and it is something those supporters do not deserve.
Laporte heads for rich pastures
Manchester City fans have been preparing for the inevitable. Aymeric Laporte is finally set to sign a three year contract with Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr. The 29 year-old has been released for £25 million and joins Cristiano Ronaldo. Aymeric’s salary will be £20 million a year. After playing in only 12 games last season he was left on the bench for the Champions League final and decided it was time to move on.
Gilmour steps up to replace Caicedo
Brighton are a remarkable club and their recruitment team is superb. Most teams would struggle if they lost £170 million worth of players including Moises Caicedo to Chelsea, Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool and Robert Sanchez also to Chelsea. Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi was quick to point out that without Caicedo he had to reorganise his playing strategy and relied heavily on Pascal Gross and Billy Gilmour. De Zerbi said, “Gilmour is a clever player, a smart player. He plays like an older man but is still very young”. So just for the record, Brighton sell £170 million worth of players and this week enjoyed top of the league status!
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