It's
just over a week until the transfer window shuts, so what do Chelsea need to
do before the deadline?
What are the areas in need of improvement? Who are the targets? And will
Antonio Conte get the reinforcements he wants?
We look at what they've done so far, and what could happen before the
11.30pm deadline on August 31.
Ins
Michy Batshuayi (Marseille, £33m), N'Golo Kante (Leicester, £32m)
Major outs
Stipe Perica (Udinese, £3.2m), Charly Musonda (Real Betis, loan), Nathan
(Vitesse Arnhem, loan), Lewis Baker (Vitesse Arnhem, loan), Nathan Ake
(Bournemouth, loan), Mohamed Salah (Roma, £12m), Papy Djilobodji
(Sunderland, £8m), Baba Rahman (Schalke, loan), Bertrand Traore (Ajax,
loan), Michael Hector (E Frankfurt, loan), Izzy Brown (Rotherham, loan).
What do Chelsea need?
Chelsea are dangerously light on numbers in defence, with teenager Ola Aini
their only available back-up to first-choice back four Cesar Azpilicueta,
John Terry, Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic.
Kurt Zouma is a long-term injury absentee and the Blues have also allowed
full-back Baba Rahman to join Schalke on loan, so reinforcements are
urgently required if they are to successfully build on their winning start
to the Premier League campaign.
The Blues look well-stocked in midfield having added N'Golo Kante to their
ranks, but Conte is eager to bolster his striking options despite the £33m
signing of Michy Batshuayi from Marseille.
Who are the targets?
Chelsea could attempt to resurrect a deal for Napoli centre-back Kalidou
Kouliably, having had a £38m offer rejected in July, but he is not the only
defender on their shortlist. Wolfsburg's Ricardo Rodriguez and Juventus'
Giorgio Chiellini are among the names to have been linked, and they have
also had a £30m bid for AC Milan's Alessio Romagnoli turned down.
Newspaper reports have also linked Chelsea with a £25m swoop for Chiellini's
Juventus team-mate Mario Mandzukic having been priced out of a move to bring
Everton's Romelu Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge. At the other end of the
pitch, they are set to sign experienced Portuguese goalkeeper Eduardo to
provide competition for Thibaut Courtois and Asmir Begovic.
What has Conte said?
"If you look now at our squad, we have only five defenders - four that
started today and an academy player Ola Aina. If one defender is injured or
banned, then we are in trouble, but the club and me know this and we are
talking every day to improve the squad.
"We know that this market is very difficult. It's crazy. I don't want to buy
only to buy. I want to buy the right profile for Chelsea, the right
investment for the solution and for the future."
What's the pundit view?
Matt Le Tissier: "I see they've had another bid turned down for Alessio
Romagnoli so Antonio Conte clearly thinks they're light in defence. They
don't have much else beyond their first-choice centre-backs. Matt Miazga
isn't someone they can probably rely on if Gary Cahill or John Terry get
injured, so they look light on experienced options until Kurt Zouma comes
back.
"They also look a little short in the full-back positions. There are young
lads coming through but I'm not sure how comfortable Conte would by throwing
them in so they may need two defenders."
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