With the January transfer window open and the transfer ban lifted, Chelsea look poised to add talent and quality this month, possibly in defence. Left-back Marcos Alonso may be on the move and the centre-back pairing looks up for grabs. Some added quality at the back could steady the shaky defence.
Defenders Chelsea Should Look to Sign in January
Ben Chilwell (23), Left-Back – Leicester City
Ben Chilwell is just as good going forward as current options Marcos Alonso and Emerson, but better defensively. Plus, the Englishman can play left-back in a back four. Alonso has proven on several occasions he’s a capable left wing-back when the Blues play with a back three or five, but give him defensive responsibilities and he struggles. It’s the same with Emerson, although he’s marginally better defensively than Alonso. With Chilwell, Chelsea wouldn’t have to worry about that at all.
This year under Brendan Rodgers at Leicester City, the England left-back has linked well with James Maddison and Harvey Barnes on the left side when in attack, something Chelsea would love to see happen with their left side with any combination of Christian Pulisic, Mason Mount, Willian and Callum Hudson-Odoi.
Chilwell is without a doubt an upgrade for Chelsea, but it’s nearly impossible to imagine Leicester selling him right now. They have a legitimate shot at the top four and there’s no way they will jeopardize that potential Champions League revenue by trying to make a quick buck.
Will Chilwell leave Leicester? Eventually. His career trajectory looks likely to resemble Harry Maguire, who left for Manchester United six months ago, rather than Jamie Vardy, who didn’t leave for Arsenal back in 2016 after winning the Premier League and instead stayed at the King Power.
Will Chilwell leave this month? With the Euros on the horizon, probably not. After a fantastic domestic season and if he has a great summer, he’ll be worth twice or three times as much. Leicester and Chilwell will wait it out and look to strike a deal in six months’ time if Chelsea remain interested.
Alex Telles (27), Left-Back – Porto
Telles to Chelsea started making the rounds in recent days, probably due to the unlikelihood of buying Chilwell to improve the backline. Porto, right now, are in a dead heat with Benfica for the Portuguese league title, which is the only guaranteed Champions League spot up for grabs in Portugal. Without much cover at either full-back position, Porto would rue letting him go.
Telles fits what Chelsea need in a lot of ways, both defensively and in attack at left-back. And at his age, he has the experience to be a leader in the dressing room filled with youngsters. However, Chelsea seem keen on bringing in Chilwell, most likely in the summer, which would make a January Telles move redundant. Yes, you want to have options, but desperation is never a good reason to buy a player.
While Telles would certainly be a welcome addition to Stamford Bridge, his transfer doesn’t look likely to happen with Chelsea eyeing and leading the charge for other defenders.
Kalidou Koulibaly (28), Centre-Back – Napoli
The Senegalese defender is regarded as one of the best in the world at his position and worthy of a massive transfer fee anywhere he goes. Fast, strong, good in the air, good with the ball at his feet, Koulibaly is the complete package. But at $100 million, he might have priced himself a bit out of Chelsea’s range. Would he be worth it, though?
Chelsea’s centre-backs, Fikayo Tomori and Kurt Zouma, started off the year as a better than expected partnership but were extremely error-prone. When Antonio Rudiger returned from injury, he surprisingly didn’t steady the defence when partnered with either Tomori or Zouma, nor did they all work perfectly in sync as a back three either.
If Tomori or Zouma are half the future of central defence at Chelsea, Koulibaly would be a great partner. The calm, incredibly skilled man would be the ying to the yang that is the wild, young, and raw central defenders currently available. Even a partnership of Rudiger and Koulibaly could very well blossom into a world-class centre-back pairing.
Koulibaly to Chelsea is a slam dunk on the pitch. It’s only a matter of getting it done off the pitch to bring him in which presents a huge challenge monetarily.
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