Todd Boehly talks on Chelsea deciding to not go for a striker in January after Victor Osimhen interest.
Chelsea were interested in Victor Osimhen
The Blues co-owner Todd Boehly has backed his club’s decision to not sign a new centre-forward. He has defended their failure to sign a new attacker in last two transfer windows.
The west London side were in the market for a new forward last summer. They were reportedly interested in Napoli’s Victor Osimhen. Although they could not reach an agreement with the Italian side.
The 26-year-old then joined Galatasaray on a one season loan move. It looked like he wasn’t having a good time under Antonio Conte in Naples.
For almost of the first half of the campaign, the Blues were having a great run. The failure to bring in a new attacker turned out to be a good decision. As Nicolas Jackson was in red-hot form. But the Senegal international went straight eight games without scoring a goal. And later he picked up a hamstring injury against West Ham Utd at the start of February.
Marc Guiu was also injured in the same game. While Christopher Nkunku struggling to find his form in the attacking front. That has led Enzo Maresca to use Pedro Neto as stand-in No.9. Neto has started as the main striker in the last two games.
Chelsea failed to get Victor Osimhen, Boehly’s take
Todd Boehly was seen sharing his thoughts on his team’s striker issues. He says that signing a new forward is not a case of picking it up from ‘the grocery store’.
At the Financial Times Business of Football Summit, the co-owner spoke about his club’s attacking crisis. He said: “Strikers are hard to find. You don’t go into the grocery store and say, ‘I am going to get a striker’. It is an amazing skill set and you have to have the right mentality.”
The English team has been investing heavily on young talents. Boehly talked about Chelsea’s overall strategy. He said: “What we were really thinking about is how you put together a team that has the ability to stay together.
When you read about the teams who were the dynasties over the years, they had superstar captains that really led them. What you’re trying to find is that superstar captain.”
Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital bought the Premier League club in May 2022. The London side has spent over £1 billion on new players since the new takeover. But only a small part of the amount has been used to sign new strikers.
The club ownership has suggested that they will be signing a new finisher soon. They have been linked with plenty of big names since the change in ownership.
They bought Chelsea for £4.2 billion in 2022. The Blues are the most expensive football club in the world since. According to some reports, Boehly and Clearlake paid £2.5 billion for shares and £1.75 billion was kept aside for various other investments. Those include investments in Stamford Bridge, the academy, the women’s team, Kingsmeadow and club’s charity program.
The Blues’ attacking options
With the Nigerian attacker off the list in January, the London team looked at other options. Red Bull Leipzigs Benjamin Sesko also grabbed attention from the Premier League outfit.
Liam Delap was also an option. The Ipswich Town forward has admirers at Stamford Bridge. The Kieran Mckenna’s squad is currently fighting relegation.
Bayern Munich‘s Mathys Tel was also being looked at in the winter window. They approached the German giants over a potential move for the 19-year-old player. He was struggling to get minutes under Vincent Kompony. Later, he joined Tottenham Hotspurs on loan in the January window. Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres is also linked to a move to England’s top-flight league.
Author’s Opinion
Chelsea will have look to make the most of the summer transfer window. With their attacking crisis, they’ll have to find a solution for the remaining part of the season.
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