Chelsea fans here in the Football Transfer Tavern are rarely underwhelmed, such is the talent and performances they’ve come to expect from their impeccable squad under Jose Mourinho in recent times.
However, an underwhelming feeling was suffered as recently as a few weeks back when it was reported that the Blues have all but signed Monaco’s Radamel Falcao on a season-long loan deal after reaching an agreement with the Colombian international.
How times change because if you had claimed to Chelsea fans a few seasons ago that they’d be landing Falcao and the blue bunting would’ve been out, a few Colombian dance moves would’ve worked their way into the bar and Falcao replica shirts would’ve been flying off the shelves.
The truth of the matter is that Falcao looks like a player on the steady decline which is ultimately a shame for the striker who looked oh so clinical in his time spent at Porto and Atletico Madrid.
Jose Mourinho has come out and claimed that he wants to help Falcao revisit the standards he set during his time spent on the Iberian peninsula but the sceptics are claiming that like Fernando Torres before him, Falcao looks beyond assistance.
The good news however is that Chelsea are reportedly still in the market for one more attacking signing this summer and this has got us wondering whether it could be any of these five in our gallery below.
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Click on the image below to reveal the 5 strikers Chelsea should sign this summer.
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Antoine Griezmann
Earlier in the summer, Jose Mourinho publicly denied that Chelsea were interested in signing Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann this transfer window but all the reports seem to claim the Blues are still fighting it out for his signature.
The latest from talkSPORT is that an exceptional offer will force Atleti to sell their prized asset this summer and lets face it, Diego Simeone’s team have grown used to becoming a selling club.
Upon closer inspection, Atletico have already landed Villarreal’s promising striker Luciano Vietto this summer, not to mention agreeing a deal to land Porto’s Jackson Martinez so you can read into this that they may be preparing for life without their French international Griezmann.
Previously a winger in his time at Real Sociedad, Griezmann was used as more of a centre forward in his debut season at the Vicente Calderon last season and after a slow start on the goalscoring front, he simply went on to score, score some more and then some more after that, eventually bagging 22 in a total of 37 league appearances.
Not bad at all!
Christian Benteke
We have seen in his first season with Chelsea that Diego Costa is more than susceptible to the red mist on several occasions and when the Blues are without their Spanish international striker through injury or suspension, they are weaker because of it.
Loic Remy is a good striker but not in the same mould as Costa and with Didier Drogba now having departed, surely it would make sense for Chelsea to add another brute of a forward to emulate Costa’s success?
Christian Benteke could be just the man Chelsea are looking for and its rather strange that the papers haven’t really linked him so frequently with the Blues as yet.
The latest from the Liverpool Echo is that it is actually Liverpool who are closing in on the signing of Belgian international Benteke but we think Chelsea would’ve missed a trick here.
While Radamel Falcao is arriving of course, Benteke is seen as someone far more used to English football and ultimately far more used to goalscoring in recent times.
Charlie Austin
Something that has added another dimension to this summer’s transfer window is the fact that there is an onus on the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea to add home grown talent to their ranks.
In an attempt from the governing bodies to get England’s elite sides to more readily produce British talent in their playing squads, Jose Mourinho will need to scour the market carefully this summer to potentially add home grown pros.
Linked with the likes of QPR’s Robert Green, we think Chelsea could do a lot worse than swooping for Charlie Austin as a third / fourth choice striker.
Home grown of course, Newcastle United have been linked with the R’s striker but given his impressive goal haul of 18 strikes for a struggling outfit last term, surely he should be moving to a bigger club like in the case of Danny Ings moving to Liverpool?
If he did end up signing for Chelsea, he wouldn’t have too far to move to boot!
Alexandre Lacazette
It comes as absolutely no surprise that some of Europe’s biggest clubs have been interested in acquiring Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette this summer after the French international won the Golden Boot in Ligue 1 last season.
Bagging an incredible 27 goals in 33 appearances, albeit in an inferior division, this hasn’t stopped the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain from being linked with the latest hot property to come out of France.
Chelsea have less frequently been linked with a swoop for Lacazette but if Loic Remy only sticks around for as long as Samuel Eto’o did and departs this summer, perhaps a move for this Frenchman could come to avail.
It is unlikely that Chelsea will be able to keep four first team strikers happy like Manchester City did when they boasted Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko, Alvaro Negredo and Stevan Jovetic so perhaps if Remy is sold, a striking armoury of Diego Costa, Radamel Falcao and Alexandre Lacazette is something that could come to pass?
Saido Berahino
Another player to potentially solve Chelsea’s home grown quandaries could be West Bromwich Albion’s England Under-21 international striker Saido Berahino.
Bagging a brace against the Blues in the penultimate game of the season last term, Berahino proved that he can mix it with the very best defences.
Still just 21-years-old to boot, Berahino is more a natural third / fourth choice striker who can learn and develop behind the likes of Radamel Falcao and Diego Costa but it remains to be seen what Patrick Bamford would think of a swoop.
The current Blues youngster was of course named Championship Player of the Year in his time spent at Middlesbrough last season yet there are still no assurances that this will be enough to secure him a place in Jose Mourinho’s first team plans next season.
Watch this space.
