Signing a quality centre-back has to be near the top of Chelsea’s wishlist this summer, if not at the very top. Levi Colwill’s injury in pre-season has had a significant impact on this team, as most would have predicted. Enzo Maresca had called for a replacement to be signed, but that was not done. In hindsight, that was a major misstep on the part of the club.
In the winter, it had looked like Chelsea were eager to rectify that mistake. They did not. After weeks of rumours about a move for Jeremy Jacquet, and even talks of personal terms being agreed, the Blues failed to get a deal over the line as Liverpool swooped in to sign him.
Chelsea would end up bringing back Mamadou Sarr after cutting short his loan spell. And while he might have done well at the AFCON, the defender has not exactly shone since returning to Stamford Bridge and is clearly not the answer to the Blues’ problems.
Now, it looks like Chelsea have their eyes set on a German defender. But it is not a move that will impress a majority of the support.
Chelsea said to have held talks to sign German centre-back
Chelsea fans have been calling for the club to target some experienced names for some while now. The club have made one project signing after another during the BlueCo era, with a small percentage of them succeeding. But despite that, it looks like the ownership will double down on their strategy.
According to BILD (via Metro), Karim Coulibaly’s impending departure is ‘practically a done deal’. Chelsea and Newcastle United are said to have held ‘serious talks’ regarding a possible agreement for the German centre-back.
Is Coulibaly the centre-back that Chelsea need right now?
Signing Coulibaly would be Chelsea repeating a strategy that has already failed them on numerous occasions. The Blues have signed plenty of wonderkids in recent times, but very few of them have even come close to meeting their potential.
Let’s not forget that they already have the likes of Sarr, Jorrel Hato, Josh Acheampong and Aaron Anselmino. What would it mean for their development if Chelsea went out and signed another 18-year-old centre-back?
At times, it feels like Chelsea go about signing youngsters without a long-term plan for them. At the end of the day, that neither helps the player nor the team. What the club need right now is to invest in a ready-made world-class centre-back, who will help take this team to the next level.
