Premier League leaders Chelsea are flying high at the moment. They’ve just recorded their eleventh straight league win.

Newspapers reports suggest that Blues boss Antonio Conte doesn’t want to rest on his laurels and has drawn up a transfer wish-list ahead of the January transfer window.

Supposedly PSG’s midfield maestro Marco Verratti is top of that list and Chelsea are willing to make a £30m bid next month.

Now Verratti is a superb player and would probably enhance any squad if he were to move away from the French capital.

The Italian is a class act in the middle of the park and Conte knows him well from his Azzurri days.

Marco has a fine eye for a great pass that will keep his team moving forward, especially from deep positions  much like Andrea Pirlo (another player Conte has worked with). He’s also not scared to put a foot in and go into challenges with a edgy tenacity, that can often see him get a talking to by the referee and into his book.

The former Pescara playmaker has composure when he gets on the ball and must be a dream to play with, especially if you’re a forward player.

Verratti’s potential is almost limitless and he’s still only twenty-four years old.

But despite all that, I just don’t think Chelsea really need to sign him at this point.

Conte already has N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic as his regular deep-lying midfielders, both of whom have made a strong impact that’s helped get the Blues to the Premier League summit.

Then you have Cesc Fabregas, the Spaniard also has that keen eye for a key pass and he already has developed a great understanding with Chelsea’s main hitman Diego Costa. Cesc has proved this month that he can be vital in his side’s push towards the title.

Chelsea also have strength in depth in that area with John Obi Mikel, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Nathaniel Chalobah all occupying places in Conte’s squad.

Now Verrattti is certainly a better option than those three back-up players but he’d still need to get into the team ahead of Matic, Kante and Fabregas and also need time to settle into the league, do they need to do that in the last six months of the season?

Remember that Chelsea are not in Europe this term, so don’t need a huge squad to fight on all fronts.

PSG will also be reluctant sellers, yes they’ve been disappointing in Ligue 1 so far this term but they are still in the Champions League and the owners won’t want to sell their best player while they’re still in that competition. The midfielder’s deal runs until 2021, so they don’t need to cash in now either.

Under-fire PSG manager Unai Emery has stated this week that Verratti plays a huge part in his PSG team:

‘He is very important. He is a player with many qualities. He brings quality to the team and his team-mates,’

With the Spanish coach struggling in France, would he really sanction selling one of his top stars?

If anything I’d expect Emery to leave Parc des Princes before Verratti.

Plus a transfer fee only grows during the winter window, teams will genuinely pay more in January than they would in a summer window.

Surely it would make more sense to sign him next summer, having him in the squad for a full preseason and get rid of one or two of your other midfielders in your own squad.

A signing in January, even when it’s a special player, can disrupt a dressing room and stop momentum. I just don’t think Chelsea need to risk it, I’d say if they needed to sign anyone then go after another striker or centre-back unless someone else makes a bid for Verratti.

Listen it’s a great position to be in, that you might not need a top quality player like Marco Verratti. It shows you how far this Chelsea squad have come in the last twelve months.

And if they do sign Verratti? Well that certainly won’t be the end of the world 🙂

Posted on December 18th, 2016 by scott
Filed under: Article