Pochettino wants Chelsea to ditch transfer policy after 'disaster' year
Tom Weber
- 11 Dec 2023 15:08 CST
- 3 min read
Chelsea could already abandon their transfer policy of signing mostly young players after their horrible 2023.
After finishing 12th last season and now once again occupying the same position, doubts are once again being raised over Todd Boehly's ownership of the club. The American businessman and Clearlake Capital bought the club from Roman Abramovich, but despite spending north of €1 billion on new players, things look much worse now than they did under the Russian oligarch.
The Blues shattered the British transfer record not once but twice in 2023, yet they still find themselves getting regularly outplayed by so-called lesser teams and an increasing number of people at the club are beginning to question the current transfer approach.
Under Boehly, Chelsea's focus on the transfer market has shifted from signing established, world-class stars to snapping up up-and-coming youngsters from all over the world. While this policy may yet pay off further down the line, Chelsea's current reality is that of mid-table mediocrity, as bluntly stated by Mauricio Pochettino, and this needs to change.
Pochettino questions transfer policy
According to The Telegraph, "Pochettino may ditch ‘project’ players in favour of big names" in an attempt to at least get Chelsea back into Europe. The report states that there is a recognition within the club that the first full year of Boehly's ownership has been nothing short of an unmitigated disaster.
It is entirely possible that the Blues will revert to their old policy of signing established superstars in 2024. Indeed, Pochettino wants to strengthen the team in three positions in January and Chelsea may just go all out to sign players like Victor Osimhen or Ivan Toney.
However, this would shatter the club's new wage structure, which has undergone a radical shift under Boehly as youngsters typically don't earn as much as big-name stars. This could, in turn, throw up new problems, as Bayern have found out since the signing of Harry Kane, with more and more players demanding a big pay rise.
