In many ways, it was a rather strange summer transfer window for Chelsea who aside from the ready-made signing of Pedro from Barcelona, opted to sign a rather strange mix of transfer targets that were either not encouraging for the fanbase, underwhelming and in some cases, even totally unknown to some.
In addition to Pedro, the six other major incomings at Stamford Bridge this summer were of course Asmir Begovic, Radamel Falcao, Baba Rahman, Kenedy, Papy Djilobodji and Michael Hector who himself returned straight back to Reading to complete the rest of the 2015/16 season on loan.
With Chelsea having been no strangers to having splashed the cash in the past in a way Manchester United have become accustomed to in recent times, their fans were left feeling a little subdued that no marquee name such as Antoine Griezmann arrived to really lay down a marker that last season’s champions wouldn’t waver this term.
While Pedro will of course make a difference, some of our Blues contingent are gutted that Chelsea didn’t pull out all of the stops to land Paul Pogba from Juventus.
Undoubtedly near on impossible to prise away from the Turin giants this summer given his undoubted world class status and importance to the Bianconeri, he is expected to move on at some point and our Chelsea fans can only dream of how he’d fit into their starting eleven.
This feeling of pining for Pogba’s talents in midfield hasn’t been lessened after Cesc Fabregas endured a distinctly poor start to the new campaign with both he and Branislav Ivanovic drawing much criticism from the Blues faithful.
With the summer transfer window now closed for good, we can’t help but still meddle a little while devising what we believe to be Chelsea’s best starting eleven with Pogba metaphorically included.
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Click on the image below to reveal the best Chelsea XI including potential future signing Paul Pogba.
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Thibaut Courtois
Asmir Begovic has of course been brought in as Petr Cech’s replacement and somebody to challenge Thibaut Courtois for the number one jersey but nobody is expecting him to get ahead of the Belgian in the pecking order this term despite impressing when called upon so far.
Courtois is right up there as one of the best goalkeepers in world football alongside Manuel Neuer and David De Gea and the best thing about him is that he boasts the kind of arrogant swagger that he won’t be beaten.
A man mountain standing at 6 ft 7 in, Chelsea’s defence is in good hands when the former Atletico Madrid loanee is between the sticks.
Branislav Ivanovic
Our Chelsea contingent in the Football Transfer Tavern are wondering exactly what has happened to Branislav Ivanovic after a terrible start to the 2015/16 campaign on the Serbian’s part.
Caught lazily allowing wingers to side step him, not bombing on with the same pace and strength as we’ve seen in the past and looking a yard off the pace in general, Ivanovic’s name probably should be adorning a best Chelsea eleven right now.
Now in his elder years as a footballer of course, Chelsea don’t have many options at right back with one of the few being that Cesar Azpilicueta could revert there with new signing Baba Rahman stepping up to the first team at left back.
Jose Mourinho is yet to drop Ivanovic from his starting eleven but the aforementioned tweek could take place after the international break but everybody knows that there is a class player inside Ivanovic somewhere.
He just needs to find his best self sooner rather than later to avoid any further criticism that he’s now done at the very highest level.
Gary Cahill
With Chelsea eventually failing in their bid to prise John Stones away from Everton this summer, Gary Cahill is now fully expected to be a mainstay in the Blues’ backline if he stays fit for the duration of the campaign.
While many claimed that Stones was being looked at as John Terry’s successor, we believe that with Terry still fully trusted at Stamford Bridge despite his difficult start to the season, Stones could’ve been Terry’s first choice partner with Cahill himself being left as the man to deputise.
Cahill is an underrated pro at Chelsea and usually a consistent performer, the England international chips in with goals as well as rugged, strong play at centre back.
With Kurt Zouma and Papy Djilobodji now representing the competition, we don’t think Cahill has much to worry about at the moment.
John Terry
They call him their captain, leader and legend at Stamford Bridge and while that of course still stands in the eyes of Blues fans everywhere, there is no getting away from the fact that John Terry has endured a poor start to the season by his usually high standards.
Sent off against West Bromwich Albion with Chelsea narrowly holding on to secure a 3-2 victory of late, Terry was also substituted for the first time in an eternity away at Manchester City in a 3-0 humbling and these kind of displays dimply didn’t occur for Terry only last season.
With the likes of him, Cesc Fabregas and Branislav Ivanovic having been criticised for taking their eye of the ball, this current international break will give the likes of Terry time to reflect while putting the hard work in on the training pitch to find their best self again.
Knowing the type of fierce competitor John Terry is, we expect him to rediscover his best performances sooner rather than later.
Cesar Azpilicueta
Like many of Chelsea’s first team squad so far this season, Cesar Azpilicueta’s performances have looked jaded compared to the incredibly consistent ones he produced last season.
Looking out of sorts ever since going up against Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the FA Community Shield defeat to Arsenal prior to the season kicking off, the Spanish international hasn’t looked the indestructible force he usually appears to be.
A mainstay in Jose Mourinho’s squads due to the attacking and defensive prowess he provides in equal measure, Azpilicueta among many others will have to improve after the international break.
Nemanja Matic
Referred to not as the ‘Makelele role’ but rather the ‘Matic role’ nowadays, that fact alone shows how successful Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic has been in the defensive midfield position.
Leaving to Benfica a boy and returning a man, Matic is a domineering presence in midfield, breaking up opposition attacks while feeding the attacking players ahead of him.
A perfect midfield anchor for Chelsea that isn’t frightened to maraud through the field using his running ability to boot, Matic has been one of the few Blues stars whose performances haven’t dropped off so dramatically so far this season.
Paul Pogba
The man who many Chelsea fans believe will make their starting eleven complete, Paul Pogba ended up staying at Juventus this summer despite many publications linking the Blues with reported bids of up to and exceeding £80 million this past transfer window.
With the Bianconeri letting Arturo Vidal go to Bayern Munich instead of parting with Pogba this summer, it is clear that the Turin giants are building their team around the French international and many in the tavern believe that over the next couple of years, Pogba’s next transfer fee could even eclipse the current world record holder Gareth Bale.
Tall, athletic, capable of scoring wonder goals and capable of marauding slide tackles, Pogba is in the Patrick Vieira mould as the complete centre midfielder and lets be honest, who wouldn’t want a player such as this in their first eleven?
What’s more, if Cesc Fabregas continues to look jaded throughout the course of this campaign, this will only further alert Chelsea fans to the fact that a move for Pogba must be earmarked as something of a priority next summer.
Pedro
Chelsea’s only marquee signing of the summer, Pedro wowed everybody on his competitive debut against West Bromwich Albion, grabbing not only an assist but a goal as well in his very first Blues appearance.
Given the standards that are set over in Barcelona, this type of performance from Pedro didn’t come as a surprise to viewers of the Premier League and our resident Blues fanss are hoping his desire to succeed in England will help kick-start his team-mates into action once more.
Almost a morale boosting signing given the difficult early weeks Chelsea have endured this season, Pedro will only get better and Blues fans will hope he has an impact as big as Alexis Sanchez enjoyed at Arsenal last campaign.
Willian
With Pedro now signed and 100 per cent expected to make the right wing slot his own in his time spent at Stamford Bridge this season, Willian is likely to be moved into the number 10 role, that is for as a long as Oscar maintains his average form compared to his fast start in England.
An incredibly speedy customer, Willian does provide tracking back abilities when deployed on the flank but that said, the number 10 role is one he performed during his time at Shakhtar Donetsk and also, given the Chelsea forwards’ interchanging abilities, they often swap positions mid-match anyway depending on the opposition.
Drawing criticism from Chelsea fans this season for subdued performances like many others in the Blues’ squad, Willian’s final ball does need some work and this is something Blues supporters would like to see improve over time.
Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard is the go-to guy in sparking Chelsea attacks which the Blues rely on week to week in the Premier League.
Taking his form to a new level altogether last term, the Belgian international ended up winning the PFA Player of the Year prize but in truth, his start to 2015/16 hasn’t been nearly as scintillating.
Trolled by rival fans for being missing in action so far, Hazard will be using his downtime in the international break to have a think about where he is going wrong and lets be honest, his poor form won’t be lasting for too much longer given the sheer ability he possesses.
When running at full pelt, Hazard is a difficult player to stop, so much so that it appears like he has the ball on a piece of string with defenders often struggling to prise it away from his dancing feet.
Diego Costa
Having really annoyed Chelsea supporters after the Blues’ thumping 3-0 loss away at Manchester City earlier this season, Diego Costa has been forced to calm down a little in the games thereafter.
Looking like a man possessed on that forgettable away day at the Etihad Stadium, the Spanish international appeared far more intent on getting himself into every scuffle before looking like he’d get sent off rather than focusing on sticking the ball past Joe Hart and into the City net.
Don’t get us wrong, Chelsea fans love their cult hero Costa given the fact that he plays the game on the edge but on the rare occasions in which things are going wrong for the Blues, Costa’s tantrums can prove hard to tolerate.
Alongside the likes of Ivanovic, Fabregas and Willian, Costa will need to get his head down while rediscovering the Midas touch in the weeks to come in order to haul the Blues back up the Premier League table from an unfamiliar 13th place at present.
