Chins were wagging even more than usual here in the Football Transfer Tavern this morning after our Chelsea contingent read the exclusive in the Daily Star that claimed Roman Abramovich hasn’t given up on persuading Pep Guardiola to join as boss for next season.
With Manchester City the favourites to name him as Manuel Pellegrini’s successor for the 2016/17 campaign, Guardiola’s eventual whereabouts is still unknown but it came from the horses mouth this week that he wants to manage in England next season.
At present, Guus Hiddink looks like he’s steadied the Blues ship with several of Chelsea’s players playing to the level that is expected of them in the club’s 0-3 demolition of Crystal Palace on Sunday.
It’s a double-edged sword for Blues fans who after so much time are relieved that their team is finally playing to its potential but at the same time, it’s incredibly frustrating that several players clearly weren’t trying in the latter days of the Jose Mourinho regime.
But Chelsea fans know all they can do is look to the future now and say Pep Guardiola were to join as Blues boss for next season; just who would he target in the transfer market?
Here’s five players he may make a move for first.
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Click on the image below to reveal the five players who could follow Pep Guardiola to Chelsea if he joins.
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Kingsley Coman
One young player currently blossoming under the tutorlage of Pep Guardiola in his final season at Bayern Munich is Juventus loanee Kingsley Coman.
Still just 19-years-of-age, for the first time in his career, the French teenager has really made inroads into the first team reckoning at Bayern having been on the fringes at Paris Saint-Germain and then Juventus.
Quite some CV already for somebody who is so young, Coman has also achieved senior international recognition with France this season and currently stands at two caps with Didier Deschamps’ Les Bleus.
While Bayern themselves will be looking to do a deal at the end of the season, not to mention Juventus perhaps having their own designs on weaving him into their team as their player, perhaps a Guardiola move to Chelsea could put the Blues in the frame given that ultimately, the Spanish boss has given Coman his big chance this term.
John Stones
Who isn’t aware of Chelsea’s interest in outstanding Everton centre back John Stones?
Since signing from Barnsley back in 2013, the England international has been a revelation for the Toffees and although most young English talents are subject to being over-hyped, the hype is real when it comes to Stones.
We’re also aware that nowadays, Everton drive an incredibly hard bargain in transfer windows, often resisting the overtures of bigger fish in this country and abroad but if Guardiola were to arrive tomorrow, perhaps the player would force a move more?
Back in the summer, we read that Stones has submitted a transfer request to the Toffees’ board and if Guardiola were to join with a new sense of direction, who wouldn’t want to jump on that bandwagon as a young English player?
Thiago Alcantara
It mustn’t be forgotten that when Pep Guardiola arrived at Bayern Munich, a close disciple of his was this man Thiago Alcantara who followed him to Bavaria from Barcelona.
Guardiola’s first signing at the Allianz Arena, Thiago is now considered one of the best box-to-box midfielders in world football and that is a testament to Pep’s coaching with the Spanish international having always been on the fringes considering Xavi and Andres Iniesta were irreplaceable in Barca’s side.
Simply given the successful bond between the pair, Thiago would have to be a player on Chelsea’s radar if Guardiola were to be appointed?
With Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic poor so far this season (but surely going to get better now!), many Chelsea fans have been asking for a new midfielder and perhaps Thiago could be that man!
Sebastian Jung
Currently in his third season in charge at Bayern Munich, Pep Guardiola will be well accustomed now to who exactly are the best talents in the Bundesliga and defenders wise, few are more consistent than Wolfsburg’s Sebastian Jung.
Previously a transfer target of Arsenal, the 25-year-old has only been capped once by Germany back in 2012 but that could be changing soon with the former Eintracht Frankfurt man’s reputation improving season-upon-season.
A right back by trade, Chelsea would need one of these also with the ageing Branislav Ivanovic interesting Serie A giants Inter Milan over in the old people’s home that is Serie A, not to mention the fact he’s been extremely poor so far this season.
Toni Kroos
As the story goes, Pep Guardiola thought he was in for a long and fruitful partnership with Toni Kroos when arriving at the Allianz Arena but only a year after his arrival, the club sanctioned the German international’s departure to Real Madrid to his dismay.
One of Los Blancos’ highest profile stars at the Bernabeu but anything but untouchable, we all know by now that few players are indispensable at Real Madrid with the likes of Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria having been deemed surplus to requirements in recent seasons.
With Real continuously keen on reinventing themselves, we think that Guardiola could aggressively pursue a reunion with Toni Kroos should he become Chelsea manager next season.
