After guiding Italy to an unexpected quarter-final appearance at this summer’s European Championships, Chelsea fans will be extremely excited to see how incoming manager Antonio Conte adapts to life in the Premier League. The 3-5-2 tactics he used to such great effect during his triple-title winning spell at Juventus worked well at International level too. However, it’s a system seldom used by teams in the Premier League throughout the years.
It was very easy for his Italian side to adapt to these tactics, as the bedrock of the side, the goalkeeper and back three, were so used to playing this system with Juventus. Any three out of John Terry, Kurt Zouma, Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic would make a strong Premier League back three, but considering they have never played in that system before, it would be a huge risk.
One thing you can say for sure, whether Conte decides to utilise his favoured 3-5-2 or not, is that the Italian will want a strong, three-man central midfield. But, looking at the current squad, this position looks to be one of the weakest areas of the team.
Cesc Fabregas still has a part to play at Stamford Bridge, but it seems that Nemanja Matic and John Obi Mikel could be surplus to requirement. You can understand Mikel moving on, as he has been a fringe player at best during his time at Chelsea and doesn’t bring any real quality to the team, but I think letting Matic go would be an unwise decision. The Serbian was an integral player in Jose Mourinho’s 2014 title winning side. He looked poor and uninterested last season, but so did most of his teammates, so he may find form once again under Conte’s leadership.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek looks ready for more first team action and he has enough quality, stamina and physicality to make a big impact in Premier League football. Hopefully Conte will give him a shot in the team, but even if he does, I expect at least one top quality midfielder to be brought into the club.
Radja Naingollan turned down a move to Chelsea in favour of staying in Rome and a move for Paul Pogba looks unlikely. Zenit’s Axel Witsel impressed during the Euro’s and Claudio Marchisio may be tempted to leave Juventus by the chance to play under Conte once again. But I think the most likely midfielder to join Chelsea’s ranks during this transfer window could be Leicester midfielder N’Golo Kante.
Kante had an incredible first season in England, leading Leicester to a historic Premier League title, consistently turning in match-winning displays full of drive, pace and energy, three qualities severely lacking in this current Chelsea midfield. It’s rumoured that a £35 million fee might be enough to secure his services and I think Conte will have his eyes firmly set on a move for the French midfielder, as he looks to build a solid platform from which to mount a serious title challenge, when he arrives at Stamford Bridge.
