With the Premier League set to kick off again in a little over three week’s time we should start to see some movement in the transfer window, and a former super agent believes that Chelsea, who have been incredibly active already this summer, could still be the team to watch.
Todd Boehly’s reign as owner of the Stamford Bridge outfit has been nothing if not entertaining, though Blues fans would surely prefer the calmer waters of the Roman Abramovich era to return.
If the present upheaval continues unabated, then Mauricio Pochettino will almost certainly have his work cut out in 2023/24.
The Argentinian’s squad doesn’t resemble anything like the one that ended last season under Frank Lampard, but in hindsight that may be for the best.
The west Londoners are probably still one or two players short, and that’s why the pursuit of one English top-flight star in particular has caught the eye of Jon Smith, one of the creators of the Premier League and former super agent.
‘I think the interesting one is going to be Caicedo at Brighton,’ he wrote in his exclusive CaughtOffside column.
‘Can they hold on to him? The Seagulls have turned down an enormous bid from Chelsea and they don’t have to sell him.’
His isn’t the only move that Smith expects could happen over the course of the next few weeks, with a number of clubs still scouring the market to bring in this players who will get them over the line this season.
‘Kalvin Phillips for example. He is at the greatest team on the planet at the moment, but he should move,’ he continued.
‘I think Liverpool absolutely have to sign a couple to get over Henderson possibly leaving and Joshua Kimmich is a deal waiting to happen because Tuchel wants him out.
‘I’m not sure how much of the money that West Ham have sucked in from Arsenal is going to be spent because the Rice deal is being paid over two years. They won’t have it all in one go anyway.
‘Leon Goretzka is out there to be done, somebody will get him and it might well be West Ham.
‘The boy at Southampton, Lavia… he might end up at Arsenal as well but I don’t think there’s any particular ‘new’ news.’
It’s sure to be a fascinating end to the window too as Smith explains.
‘The only potential issue this year is that only 18% of the agents that took the English exam to become agents under the new FIFA regulations passed it, and if they don’t pass on their next chance to do so on September 20, they’re out of the game for a year,’ he added.
‘So there’ll be a lot of agents looking for deals to bank cheques in case they can’t work for a year or so. Expect a flurry of last minute transfers because of that.’