The striking position has being a huge talking point for Chelsea whether positively or negatively. Ever since Drigba retired as a Chelsea player, it has surely not been positive taking point as far as Chelsea number 9 position is concerned. They’ve had a couple of top names try to take over the mantle but have failed to live up to the expectation and the weight of wearing the Chelsea number 9 jersey. Last season was a tricky one for Chelsea as they didn’t make any signing due to the transfer ban they received… However, it didn’t really affect them much as they had a ton of players in the loan army to rely on.
Tammy Abraham was one of the academy graduates that was part of the loan army and the transfer ban and the appointment of Frank Lampard meant that Chelsea had to rely on Abraham to lead the line for the team. Abraham made it clear that he wanted to take over the mantle to be the Chelsea number 9, not minding the pressure on his shoulders to wear the number 9. I will have to say, he Tammy Abraham did a good job last season, helping Chelsea finish in the top 4 which was their main target for last season and was probably Chelsea’s highest goal scorer.
This season, things have changed as Lampard and Chelsea have decided to go all in to reinforce the squad for the season, last season was a successful one, but Chelsea would finished a lot higher up the table if they were able to convert most of the chances they created last season. It is true that one of their biggest and clear problems last season was their defense, however, they also had problems converting chances. Lampard already identified these problems and requested for reinforcements in all the areas that needed reinforcement. Hence why they went on a shopping spree to buy most of their top targets.
Even though Tammy Abraham and Giroud scored enough goals to get Chelsea over the line as far as finishing in the top 4 is concerned, Frank Lampard didn’t feel it was enough for what he wants to build and achieve at Chelsea. Timo Werner was seen as the striker to help execute his plans especially after seeing what he did for RB Leipzig. With Timo Werner already showing that he is a top class striker, he isn’t really a true number 9 as he likes to drift a lot and move around a lot, utilizing his pace to find spaces and run in behind defenders. At the moment, the only true number 9 at Chelsea are Tammy Abraham and Giroud with Giroud more of a proper target man. This has raised a lot of talking points concerning Chelsea and what they will do if Giroud leaves Chelsea (which is expected to happen soon), they will be left with only Tammy Abraham (the only number 9) and Timo Werner... In order not to make this post too long and boring, I have decided to split the post into two parts. Would continue and finish it up in the next post..
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