Chelsea: Why doesn’t Antonio Conte give Michy Batshuayi a chance?
Why won’t Chelsea manager Antonio Conte give striker Michy Batshuayi a proper chance to prove he could be the answer to Chelsea’s striker problems
With the countdown to the end of January’s transfer window ticking in earnest, Chelsea still insist they need another striker or two to support Alvaro Morata. But the question is why doesn’t Antonio Conte give the other striker he has, Michy Batshuayi, a real opportunity?
It’s always seemed a bit odd to me that Conte is so unwilling to give Batshuayi a reasonable run in the side. Whenever he plays he seems to rise to the occasion and produce for the team. Again just recently he got a rare chance to play against Newcastle United in the FA Cup and scored twice as Chelsea progressed.
Despite only making fleeting appearances in the team, Batshuayi has scored 10 goals for Chelsea this season. That’s a better return than many other forwards in the premier league. And his goal to minutes’ ratio is also very good.
Batshuayi seems to have all the potential tools to be a successful striker at the top-level. He’s powerful, has pace, seems able to find space in the box and finish confidently. He’s also a genuine threat in the air. Last season he even scored the goal that sealed Chelsea’s title win.
Of course he’s still developing as a player, but there seems more than enough there for him to become a very good striker. Despite all this, the Chelsea manager continues to be reluctant to trust him with a regular starting role.
It strikes me that this is a very similar situation to what happened to Batshuayi’s Belgian international teammate, Romelu Lukaku at the Stamford Bridge club.
Here was another talented, raw, young striker who joined Chelsea and then got lost in the club’s reserves. Until Lukaku got the chance to go on loan first to West Bromwich Albion and then Everton, he was rarely seen in a Chelsea shirt.
This seems to be a recurrent theme with the west London club and one that does not bode well for Batshuayi. When you think of all the players Chelsea have let go it reads like a luminous list of quality footballers. Players like Daniel Sturridge, Kevin de Bruyne and Lukaku himself have all gone on to success elsewhere.
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The moral of this story is that perhaps to progress Batshuayi also needs to move on from Chelsea as soon as possible. Ironically I think he would have been a good option for Everton to look at as a replacement for Lukaku.
The fact he is a similar type of forward and has premier league experience would have made him perhaps a better bet than Cenk Tosun, who Allardyce has bought. Tosun many turn out to be a very good buy (as an Everton supporter I hope so!) but it’s likely that he will need some time to get used to the unique demands of English football.
Batshuayi could, I believe, step into a team now and start contributing immediately, something that in the demanding world of the Premier League might be priceless for a team struggling for goals. There are rumours he’s going to be a make-weight in the complex transfer of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyabg from Borussia Dortmund to Arsenal.
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If Batshuayi stays in England as I hope he does, other sides battling relegation such as Newcastle United, West Ham United, Stoke City or even Swansea might be a good fit for him. I think they could do worse than try to sign the Belgian.