Blues look to strengthen in key areas before the end of the summer.
The return of Jose Mourinho as Chelsea manager has already seen the Blues start the season as favourites for the Premier League title, but the former Real Madrid boss is still keen to make some adjustments to his squad before the end of the transfer window.
The Portuguese coach has made it clear that he is in the market for a new striker, with a public pursuit of unsettled Manchester United star Wayne Rooney, but with United refusing to budge on the England forward, the Blues may have to look elsewhere to improve on their current misfiring duo Fernando Torres and Demba Ba. With possible departures as well, there are other areas of the squad that Mourinho may still look at in the next week.
Eliaquim Mangala (Porto)
Chelsea have made several attempts to sign this promising young defender from Porto this summer, but have so far found the Portuguese club unwilling to lower their sizable asking price. Mourinho remains a fan of the 22-year-old however, and is keen to strengthen his defensive options after remaining unconvinced by the likes of John Terry and David Luiz.
Terry, who will turn 33 in December, has not played as much as usual over the last couple of seasons due to problems with fatigue and fitness, and it looks like his best form may be behind him. The likes of Monaco and Galatasaray were in for him earlier this summer after believing that he may not have a future at Stamford Bridge, though he has ended up sticking around.
Luiz, meanwhile, may have had his head turned by speculation linking him to Barcelona, and Mourinho has reportedly remained unconvinced by the Brazilian’s defensive focus. Although it now seems most likely that the former Benfica man will stay put for at least one more season, Mourinho is planning ahead with his pursuit of Mangala, as the youngster looks a great long-term player for the boss to build his back four around.Daniele De Rossi (Roma)
In a summer that has seen Roma lose key players in Pablo Osvaldo and Marquinhos, with the probability that Erik Lamela and Miralem Pjanic are about to join them as they depart for Tottenham, they also face uncertainty over the future of their long-serving midfielder Daniele De Rossi, who is a target for Chelsea. The 30-year-old has missed several of his club’s friendlies this summer as speculation has grown that he could be set to force a move from the club. With £10million possibly being enough to sign him, the tough-tackling and competitive midfielder could be a great addition to this Chelsea side.
Mourinho has long been a fan of the Italian international, and may need a new midfielder with the possibility that John Obi Mikel will leave the club for Galatasaray or Napoli. Real Madrid’s Sami Khedira has also been linked with the Blues, though it seems now that he is set to stay in Spain.Jackson Martinez (Porto)
This prolific Colombian striker looks to be next on Jose Mourinho’s list if he misses out on his main target Wayne Rooney. Martinez had an excellent first season in Portugal with Porto, scoring 34 goals in 43 appearances for the club, and attracting interest from all around Europe for much of this summer.
Strong, fast, and lethal in front of goal, the 26-year-old looks like the final missing ingredient to cement Chelsea’s status as title favourites, and would arguably be an even better option than Rooney, who failed to find his best fitness and form for Manchester United last season. With a minimum release fee clause of around £35million, he could also be cheaper than Rooney, with United possibly set to hold out for bids of £40million to avoid selling the England star to one of their direct title rivals.
The signings of Mangala, De Rossi and Martinez would likely come to a total of £80million or more spent by Chelsea, but with money also brought in from likely sales of some squad players, it could be excellent business by wealthy Blues owner Roman Abramovich, as Mourinho is more than capable of assembling a world class squad to challenge on all fronts this season.