While the season may have only just ended, many Chelsea fans will already be looking ahead to the new campaign as they begin a new chapter in their history.
Thursday’s announcement of next season’s fixtures signalled the beginning of a new year in the Premier League, with the Blues set to kick off the season away at Everton.
Such a fixture will be Todd Boehly’s first as the club’s new owner, with the American businessman recently completing the £4.25 billion takeover of the west London side alongside Clearlake Capital.
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In order for them to try and compete for the Premier League title, something they haven’t won since 2017, they will need to spend in the market to boost their chances of glory in the league and cup competitions.
However Blues fans will need to be patient throughout the course of the summer, with smart transfer business set to take place in the coming weeks.
Over the past five seasons, Chelsea have spent the most money on transfers than anyone else in the English top flight.
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Their spending is more than the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool, the two sides who have won the title during that time.
They have also broken their transfer record three times since their last Premier League honour, spending big on the likes of Kepa Arrizabalaga, Kai Havertz and Romelu Lukaku.
While the first two have now spent a fair amount of time at the club and been successful, the latter could be on his way out after just one season, with Lukaku looking likely to re-join Inter Milan after a poor season back at Chelsea.
With the Belgian international failing to deliver with a heavy price tag, it could signal the start of the Blues’ plans to spend more wisely in the market.
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Boehly recently revealed that he and the club will not commit to any overspending in order to comply with the Financial Fair Play rules imposed by UEFA.
When he spoke at the SuperReturn international conference in Berlin, he said: "Financial Fair Play is starting to get some teeth and that will limit ability to acquire players at any price. UEFA takes it seriously and will continue to take it seriously.
"(More teeth) means financial penalties and disqualification from sporting competitions."
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These comments suggest that Chelsea's transfer activity will be strict in future seasons in order to not break any rules, which could therefore mean that regular big money signings may be a thing of the past going forward.
Spending levels can be levelled out through player sales, but Boehly may look to conduct smarter business in the market.
He has been complimentary of the model used at Liverpool, who won the title in the 2019/20 campaign and finished just one point behind Champions City last season.
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"If you look at the models that are very successful, Liverpool is a great model," said Boehly.
"Liverpool generates a couple of hundred million more revenue than Chelsea and they generate earnings, so I think there is an opportunity to compete."
If Chelsea are to adopt the style used by the Reds in the market, then patience will be needed from the fans going forward as business under Boehly could look different to that under Roman Abramovich.
One particular example of this could be the Blues' interest in Ousmane Dembele, with the Frenchman set to leave Barcelona in the summer.
His contract at the Catalan side is due to expire in the coming weeks, meaning Chelsea will have the opportunity to sign him on a free transfer this window.
Such business would be smart to do from a blue point of view as the Frenchman would arrive as a big name signing without affecting the club's transfer budget.
At this moment in time, the gap in quality between last season's title contenders and Chelsea is huge, although fresh ownership and summer transfer activity could change that.
With various players being linked with moves to the World Champions, it is key that fans remain patient while the club carry out their necessary business ahead of the new campaign.
Things at the club will change in the foreseeable future, but there is still a very good chance that Chelsea will be able to maintain the levels of success shown in recent seasons.
Topics: Chelsea, Chelsea Transfer News & Rumours, Football, Transfers
Robert Calcutt