Chelsea finally jump into the January transfer market

Kenedy’s loan deal to Newcastle indicates Chelsea will soon welcome two new arrivals to the club’s Cobham training ground.

Antonio Conte has spent a great deal of breath this season decrying the lack of depth in the Chelsea squad. After a frustrating summer transfer window, signings are needed in the January transfer market. The Italian tactician would never have sanctioned the Kenedy’s loan to Newcastle unless reinforcements were imminent.

Those new faces appear to be Roma duo Emerson Palmieri and Edin Dzeko. The Gialrossi are not a lock for a spot in next season’s Champions League and will need to sell to stay within UEFA’s Financial Fair Play limits. They cannot refuse the £44m Chelsea is willing to splash.

Emerson, in particular, looks a good piece of business for the west Londoners. Chelsea has struggled to fill the left back position since Ashley Cole’s departure in 2014. Filipe Luis and Baba Rahman failed to convince during their time in Blue, but Alonso has performed well. The Spaniard lacks any sort of true competition for his place, however.

The Brazilian born Emerson could provide that and more. He is coming back from an ACL tear last season and is not quite back to his best, but Alonso is in good form. He is unlikely though to displace the Spaniard from the start, but this gives Conte time to ease Emerson into his new surroundings. Meanwhile, he can provide the team with a solid option to rest and rotate Alonso. It is a risk, to be sure, to sign a player after such a serious injury, but Emerson’s potential makes it an acceptable risk.

It is difficult to know what to make of the Dzeko deal though. The prices thrown around seem high for 31-year-old striker on the waning side of his career. The price, however, reflects his fantastic form last season. He was Serie A’s capocannoniere last season and the Europa League’s leading scorer as well. What club would not jump at the chance to add a Ballon d’Or nominated striker to its ranks?

More from Premier League

The Bosnian’s transfer fee is easy to rationalize even if he has not set Serie A alight this season, but his personal terms are complicated. This is surely Dzeko’s last big move and, as such, his last big payday. He will look to extract the absolute maximum from Roman Abramovich’s coffers.

The other difficulty is the length of the contract. Chelsea has had a policy of only one year contracts for players over 30 years of age, but Dzeko appears set for a two and a half year deal. How could Dzeko wring such an extraordinary concession when club legends like John Terry and Frank Lampard could not? The answer lies with personnel changes in Chelsea’s front office. The club’s long serving chief executive and technical director have departed this season and may have taken the one year policy with them.

Dzeko’s arrival surely spells the end for fan favorite Michy Batshuayi. It never clicked for him at Chelsea, and it is a shame because he’s clearly a talented player and a popular figure. Perhaps it is best for all parties though if he moves on to a new challenge. Dortmund, for example, will soon have a Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang shaped hole in its squad. Batshuayi could fit there quite nicely.

Next: Chelsea have their eye on new West Ham target

If Chelsea ends the transfer window having signed Ross Barkley, Palmieri and Dzeko while only losing Kenedy and Batshuayi, it will have been a very good January indeed. Barkley and Palmieri are slight gambles after long injury layoffs. Both, however, can be eased back in to first team action and have much potential. Dzeko can contribute right away and gives Conte new options to freshen up a stale attack.

Home/Premier League