Chelsea are currently under a FIFA imposed transfer ban which lasts until next summer. However, there has been some latest news that the Blues could get that imposed band turned over earlier than expected as it’s been speculated they have appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Whether or not the appeal is successful remains a question, but if the court does allow the ban to be lifted early, it means that Chelsea football club will be allowed to sign players in the January transfer market.
FIFA’s transfer ban prevented Chelsea from signing players in the summer, even if they brought in Christian Pulisic and made Mateo Kovacic’s move permanent.
Most Chelsea fans will agree that the club needs to make more signings to compete with the ‘big six’, but would signings in the January transfer window be a good thing?
With the talented young players that Frank Lampard has opted for so far in the opening games, possible signings may halt their progress at Chelsea football club.
The market is totally different in January and clubs are reluctant to let their players leave halfway through the season. Having said that, if the ban were lifted, who should Chelsea realistically sign in January?
Ben Chilwell
It seems Chelsea and Lampard’s interest in the Leicester City defender is high and Lampard himself has earmarked the left-back as a key area for improvement.
From what it seems is that Chilwell is the current first-choice England left-back having started eight of the last ten internationals for Gareth Southgate. Chilwell will bring a lot of quality and would give competition to Emerson, who has become Chelsea’s first-choice left-back dismantling Marcos Alonso.
Alonso doesn’t seem to fit the structure under new boss Frank Lampard and may seek a move away from Stamford Bridge in January. That would free up space for Chelsea to bid for Chilwell, but it seems £70m is the minimum requirement for the England international. It would be best to see how he does during the season and Chelsea would get a better price if they were to sign Chilwell in the summer.
Ruben Dias
Recent reports in Portugal suggest that the Blues have been scouting the Benfica player in recent months as the defender has caught the eye so far this season.
Chelsea are vulnerable in defence, especially in the centre-half position and Dias could be the arrival in that backline that can help Chelsea concede fewer goals. So far this season, his side has conceded 11 goals in just five games this season.
But as always, Chelsea faces competition from both Manchester clubs for the 22-year-old’s signature.
The Blues may have to look elsewhere if they are in to be in the market for a centre-half.
Wilfried Zaha
Arsenal and Everton failed with summer bids for the Crystal Palace winger but it could have been a different story had Chelsea been in the market.
The Blues have young upcoming wingers in Callum Hudson-Odoi and Christian Pulisic, so adding Zaha would provide strong competition. Chelsea would be in the market for a rapid attacker to replace the ageing stars Pedro and Willian.
The Ivory Coast international was denied a move even though he handed in a transfer request in the last window. He wants to leave Crystal Palace, Chelsea could use Michy Batshuayi as part of the deal having already played for Palace in the second half of last season.
Kristof Piatek
So far this season Tammy Abraham has been finding his feet after being awarded the number 9 shirt this season. But, there are questions about the backup strikers at the club on whether or not they can provide competition to Abraham during a full season.
One player in particular, who only moved to AC Milan in January, is Kristof Piatek.
Notching 11 goals since signing from Genoa in January, the Polish striker may seek a move away if the Rossoneri don’t begin the season well.
Other Possibilities?
Every transfer window there are always players being linked with Chelsea, even if they are still under a transfer ban. The players I have mentioned are the ones who could join the club if the ban was uplifted and if other essentials were done.
As a Chelsea fan, you want to be linked with the big names in world football, but the players that we currently have at the club are still learning the ways that Lampard wants them to play. So any extra additions that would improve the squad, whether that be in January or not, would be ideal for Chelsea football club.
But, only a few games into the season, Lampard might not even be interested in signing players in January because of the young players coming through, along with the crop of players returning from injury.
