Chelsea are enduring a poor run of form Chelsea owner Todd Boehly now faces some big transfer decisions when it comes to three first-team players, including Raheem Sterling.
That is the view of former Aston Villa and Liverpool star Stan Collymore, who believes the Blues must overhaul their transfer policy and look to cut loose several big names if they’re to consistently challenge for major silverware again.
Thursday night’s Premier League match against Man City at Stamford Bridge, which ended in a 1-0 win for the away team, saw Chelsea suffer their sixth league defeat of the season, and now sitting down in 10th place, Boehly must not only decide on what to do with manager Graham Potter but also put together a plan ahead of the summer transfer window.
Discussing the Londoners’ playing squad, which sees a mismatched bunch thrown together, Collymore, who spoke exclusively to CaughtOffside, said: “They’ve got two ageing players in Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilecueta and at the other end of the spectrum, they’ve got the likes of Mason Mount and Reece James.
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“They’ve got to build around the next generation and that’ll take time. So I think Todd Boehly should consider giving Graham Potter the summer transfer window and allow him to buy some top-quality 21 to 24-year-old players to supplement the likes of Mount and James.”
Going on to admit it is just as important for the Blues to sell, as it is for them to buy, Collymore highlighted attackers Sterling, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech as three players who are likely to become ‘surplus to requirements’ at the end of the season.
“They also have big decisions to make on some players – Raheem Sterling for example. Do they stick or twist?” the former Liverpool man added.
“I don’t think he’s doing anywhere near enough to warrant having a long-term future at Stamford Bridge. The same with Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech. I think all those names will be surplus to requirements come the end of the season.”