Chelsea have already earmarked positions which they will look to strengthen in the upcoming transfer windows as they look to back Graham Potter to build his side, according to reports.
Following the summer transfer spend in excess of £250 million which led to nine new arrivals at Stamford Bridge, but the closing of the window marked the end of Thomas Tuchel’s time at the club.
Chelsea’s new owners - Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali - opted to replace him with Graham Potter after believing he aligned with the club’s vision for the future rather than Tuchel.
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Boehly explained the decision made by Chelsea at the SALT New York Conference, admitting: “When you take over any business, you have to make sure you’re aligned with the people who are operating the business.
"Tuchel is obviously extremely talented and someone who had great success at Chelsea.
"Our vision for the club was finding a manager who really wanted to collaborate with us, a coach who really wanted to collaborate. There are a lot of walls to break down at Chelsea.
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"Before, the first team and academy didn’t really share data, didn’t share information about where the top players were coming from.
"Our goal is to bring a team together, all of that needs to be a well-oiled machine.
“The reality of our decision was that we weren’t sure that Thomas saw it the same way we saw it.
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"No one is right or wrong, we just didn’t have a shared vision for the future. It wasn’t about Zagreb, it was about the shared vision for what we wanted Chelsea to look like.
"It wasn’t a decision that was made because of a single win or loss. It was a decision that we thought was the right vision for the club.”
Potter has been told he will be supported with signings and a new sporting director which appeared to be Christoph Freund of RB Salzburg, however an appointment isn’t as close as originally thought with the Austrian side keen to keep hold of the 45-year-old.
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Now, as reported by Adam Newson, ‘early discussions have already been held over potential midfield targets for next summer’.
Discussions have also already taken place over the long-term goalkeeper situation.
Plans are in place to make an effort to offload players on a permanent basis too, rather than sending individuals on loan deals.
It’s set to be a busy period for Chelsea, but Potter and Co need to worry about picking up wins on the pitch first between now and November to ensure they keep themselves in a good position in the top four race in the Premier League.
Topics: Chelsea, Todd Boehly, Graham Potter, Football
Matthew Debono