New Blues boss ready to make big changes to his squad.
Jose Mourinho’s return to Chelsea this summer has seen many players being linked to the club, but the Portuguese boss is also expected to be sending a few players on their way. There are some surprise names in there, but Mourinho is not known for shying away from making big decisions.
As he inherits a Chelsea side that struggled to a relatively disappointing third-place finish this year, there is obviously room for improvement among his current crop of players, and there are many that don’t necessarily fit into his preferred style of play. We look at five big names that could be about to be shown the door.
5. David Luiz
One player that Mourinho has quickly identified as a weak link is Brazilian defender David Luiz. The centre-back arrived at Stamford Bridge from Benfica in 2011, and quickly gained something of a reputation for being wreckless in his defensive duties. Despite looking like making a significant improvement this season, Mourinho still doesn’t seem to rate him, and has some new defenders in mind as replacements.
The Portuguese boss is known for his teams being rock solid defensively, and Luiz simply doesn’t fit in with that philosophy, as he too often likes to wander forward and join the attack. He has done this to good effect in more attacking tactics used by the likes of Ancelotti, Di Matteo and Benitez, but it’s not the kind of behaviour that will go down well with Mourinho.
Mourinho’s targets to replace Luiz include Eliaquim Mangala of Porto and Raphael Varane of Real Madrid, with the latter possibly becoming part of a swap deal that would see Luiz move the other way. Supposedly both Real Madrid and Barcelona are keen on signing Luiz this summer and could offer as much as £30million for the 26-year-old, an offer Mourinho would certainly be tempted to take.
4. Demba Ba
Demba Ba earned his big move to Chelsea in January after a couple of impressive seasons with West Ham and Newcastle. The Senegalese striker was in particularly prolific form in his time at St James’ Park, attracting interest from Arsenal, Tottenham and others with his fine finishing.
However, since moving to Chelsea to give them more options in attack other than the off-form Fernando Torres, things haven’t worked out for Ba, as he only managed to score twice in the Premier League since joining the Stamford Bridge outfit.
Mourinho knows this isn’t good enough, and is used to working with some of the world’s absolute best strikers. So far in his career he has managed Didier Drogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Samuel Eto’o and Cristiano Ronaldo, and will find working with a player as limited as Ba something of a culture shock.
Supposedly, the 28-year-old is being targeted for a return to West Ham by current manager Sam Allardyce, who is looking for reinforcements upfront after talks have stalled to bring Liverpool’s Andy Carroll to the club. It would only be a loan move, but it would surely signal the end of Ba’s Chelsea career, as Mourinho will target big names such as Edinson Cavani and Stevan Jovetic as part of his new strike-force.
3. Fernando Torres
One of Mourinho’s first jobs as Chelsea manager will be making a decision on £50million flop Fernando Torres. The Spaniard has failed to find anywhere near his best form since joining Chelsea from Liverpool, and although Roman Abramovich has been keen to spare his own blushes by urging his managers to keep patience with him, his time is surely up now under Mourinho, who won’t settle for a striker who simply doesn’t score enough goals.
Torres only managed 8 in the league this season, despite a decent run of form in the Europa League, which included a crucial goal in the final against Benfica. For Chelsea to be genuine title challengers again, they will need a player who can get them 20-30 goals a season, and Torres and Ba are nowhere near those kind of numbers at the moment.
So far this summer, rumours have suggested that Chelsea will look to offer Torres to Napoli in a swap deal for Edinson Cavani, which would also see the 29-year-old link up again with Rafael Benitez, the manager who got the best out of him in his days at Liverpool. However, the latest and most surprising rumour is that Barcelona could offer Torres an escape route, as they prepare a £17million bid for the Spanish international.
2. Branislav Ivanovic
One of the more surprising players said to be on Mourinho’s list of expendable players is Branislav Ivanovic. The Serbian has been a good servant to Chelsea since joining the club in 2008. His solid defensive displays at both centre-back and right-back have made him a useful member of the team, and he is known for the knack to get forward and score some crucial goals as well, none more so than his stoppage time winner against Benfica in the Europa League final this season.
However, it has emerged that Mourinho would be happy to sell him as well, again to Barcelona, who are looking for a number of defensive reinforcements this summer. The 28-year-old could join Luiz in heading to the Nou Camp for a double deal worth £40million.
1. Juan Mata
Most bizarrely of all, Chelsea could also sell star player Juan Mata this summer. Despite being one of the best attacking midfielders in the world, Mourinho is ready to listen to offers from the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich for the Spaniard.
The former Valencia man was in superb form this season, scoring 20 goals and providing an amazing 35 assists in all competitions. However, it is thought that Mourinho would perhaps prefer to introduce a more direct game to Chelsea again, as in his first spell, despite the club moving away from that in recent times with small, skillful players such as Mata and the likes of Eden Hazard and Oscar.
Still, with winger Andre Schurrle joining from Bayer Leverkusen, and Mourinho likely to sign a big, strong target man like Edin Dzeko or Hulk upfront, there may no longer be a role for Mata, who is best used in a free role and prefers playing short passes along the floor. His sale would no doubt bring in a hefty transfer fee, and the Portuguese coach could feel it is worth it in re-investing in his squad elsewhere.