January is just around the corner and teams start to wonder about how they could improve their current title chances while making a move or two during this upcoming transfer window, so it’s time to discuss a couple of rumours that are getting more strength during this last couple of weeks.
A team’s that’s very eager to reinforce its squad during this winter period is Antonio Conte’s Chelsea, as the Italian boss has completely revolutionised the team, the starting squad and their game style, becoming the leading team of the Premier League so far.
Conte and Abramovich are determined to win the Premier League title after a completely mediocre season under Jose Mourinho, and considering that they’re currently only playing that competition, all their energy is focused on becoming champions one more time, and they definitely have a big shot at doing so.
So, the Blues are keen to continue improving their team, but that doesn’t seem like an easy task at all, as their current roster is pretty balanced and it’s very hard to think about what positions could use a boost at Conte’s team.
One guy that’s been linked with Chelsea over the past few weeks is Fiorentina’s midfielder Milan Badelj, as there have been some indications that the talented Croatian has big intentions to make a more lucrative move to a more important side during this upcoming transfer period, and Conte’s keen to bring talent he knows from his Juventus tenure to the Stamford Bridge. But, would this be a good move for the blues? Let’s take a look at some facts.
Milan Badelj is a pretty talented player, especially on the defensive end of the ball, and he’s proven that at an international level as well with the Croatian national team, playing alongside Real Madrid’s star Luka Modric.
The 27-year-old has a great feel for the game, intercepting opposing passes with great ease and owning a great timing to do tackles without fouling while being a more than decent passer and a nice finisher, scoring 1 goal and recording 2 assists so far despite playing far from the opposing team’s box.
However, it’s pretty hard to figure out if he’s a need at Conte’s team right now, as that position is more than well represented with newcomer N’ Golo Kante, who’s younger and more talented than Badelj on both ends of the pitch.
Besides, next to Kante you’ve got Nemanja Matic, and the Serbian player is having yet another excellent season for the blues, so Badelj wouldn’t find it easy to send him to the bench either, so making a move to Chelsea wouldn’t be a smart one for him right now.
Chelsea could actually pursue him and he could provide big help off the bench during this second half of the season when things get even rougher for every team, but bringing the Croatian to west London doesn’t seem like an actual need for Roman Abramovich’s team at the moment, and he too should consider other options.