Chelsea Transfer News: Latest on Marco Reus and Jose Mourinho's Chief Targets
It’s a case of 11 matches down, 27 to go for Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in this season’s Premier League, with unbeaten immortality potentially awaiting them at the end of the campaign.
That much shows the importance of smart investing in the transfer window, as a few dips into Roman Abramovich’s billions in the summer transformed the Blues into an outfit worthy of domestic and European glory.
With that in mind, January’s window could prove pivotal. But don’t fret, Chelsea fans, it seems that Mourinho has a few tricks up his sleeve.
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Marco Reus
The future of Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marco Reus has been up in the air for what seems like an eternity now, but January could see him finally move away from the Bundesliga.
The German international’s release clause of just £20 million becomes active next summer—according to Eduardo Fernandez-Abascal of International Business Times—which means that Dortmund could be keen to offload their star man so not to miss out on taking in a mini fortune.
Well, Chelsea have reportedly considered that, too, as they’re ready to launch a bid for Reus when 2015 rolls around—per Anthony Chapman of the Daily Express.
Chapman writes that the Blues are lining up a deal of £25 million plus Andre Schurrle to force Reus to swap yellow for blue, and that’ll no doubt tempt Dortmund, especially since manager Jurgen Klopp has more or less accepted the fact that the mercurial 25-year-old will soon be plying his trade elsewhere—via Chapman:
"We will see [about Reus]. The most important thing is the story of this club will go on. We'll have to do it with other players.”
However, it’s safe to say that there are few players quite like Reus; even a talented star like Schurrle doesn’t hold a candle to him.
The Dortmund man can simply do everything. He’s as versatile as they come in midfield, whether it be sitting back or pushing forward to create chances and score goals, which makes him very similar to current club sensation Cesc Fabregas.
That stats support as much, too, as OptaFranz revealed that Reus has created more chances in the German top flight than any other player since his inception back in 2009:
It’s safe to say that he’d be a perfect fit for the Blues’ three-man attacking midfield set-up, but it’s not going to be easy to lock him down.
While the offer that Mourinho will be reportedly putting on the table is a tempting one, Reus has so many other suitors across Europe that it could easily be bettered.
The Blues, then, will just have to hope that the lure of playing Premier League football for the champions elect is enough.
Tyrone Mings
Although John Terry appears to be getting better with age, retirement is very much on the horizon, and it wouldn’t be the craziest thing to see him bow out at the top should Chelsea go on to win the title this season.
There’s been much talk of the former England captain’s successor in the transfer rumour mills, but the latest link isn’t quite a household name.
Ipswich Town’s Tyrone Mings has enjoyed a breakthrough season at Portman Road since Aaron Cresswell departed for West Ham, making Premier League clubs come calling—including Chelsea.
John Cross of the Daily Mirror writes that Mourinho is eyeing the lofty defender as a replacement for Terry, despite the fact that he’s deployed as a left-back by Ipswich manager Mick McCarthy.
However, it’s clear where Mourinho is coming from, as Mings’ dominance in the air, turn of pace and ability to read the game make him the ideal candidate to switch inside—as WhoScored.com’s statistics support:
However, it’s prising the 21-year-old away from Suffolk that could prove the trickiest task for the Blues.
As Sky Sports revealed, the Tractor Boys turned down Crystal Palace’s reported £3.5 million approach in the summer, and they’ll be no less stubborn come January.
That’s according to manager McCarthy, who said that clubs will only take Mings off his hands for a staggering fee and wage bill—per Stuart Watson of the East Anglian Daily Times:
"He’s on a four-year deal, (until 2017) or something like that isn’t he? So good luck to them. He’s great, but if one of them came in and offered a bonkers amount of money it’s going to turn his head. It does to everybody. There we are, ‘Mick McCarthy said Ty will have his head turned’. You can put whatever you want on it. I’m not saying that. If somebody comes in with an unbelievable amount of money—if it’s Chelsea, Man United, any of them... phew, my head would turned by that. And I’m a damn sight older and wiser.
"
Chelsea do indeed have the necessary financial backing to put such money on the table, but it would be a lot to part with for a star that’s unproven at the highest level and has only enjoyed a couple of months of success.
There’s no doubting Mings’ potential, but there are several sloppy areas to his game that desperately need improving.
For example, his distribution; while the youngster can pump the ball up to Ipswich’s big strikers all day long, his vision is a little questionable—which certainly doesn’t fit into Mourinho’s philosophy of having ball-playing centre-backs.
However, under the right guidance, sloppy areas can be tweaked, and there’s no better staff for the job than Chelsea’s.
These are two very different signings in terms of stature in the world game, but they both show the Blues’ raw ambition to prolong success.
It’s a very exciting time to be a Chelsea fan, and with more intelligent spending in January will come yet more expectation and optimism.
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