Thomas Tuchel’s first full season in charge at Chelsea has come to a close and with it comes plenty of time for reflection. The campaign has been one of many hardships along the way, though there are plenty of positives to take from it.
The Blues had set the early pace in the Premier League title race, however that initial momentum had slowed in the new year. While victories in the European Super Cup and Club World Cup saw some silverware make its way back to Stamford Bridge, it could have been more.
Defeats in both domestic cup finals came by the barest of margins, with the west London outfit losing on penalties to Liverpool twice, while their Champions League defence was halted by Real Madrid. It means heading into next year, Tuchel has plenty on his plate to get his side competing again.
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Not least without losing a number of key players, while everyone waits for the takeover from Todd Boehly’s consortium to go through. Discussing those challenges, the manager said: “It will be very difficult to make up for the disadvantage, given the situation of the other two teams: City and Liverpool, who are already improving their squads and set one benchmark after another in all aspects of the game.”
An area that the German coach may look to address is with his strikers, as the Blues have repeatedly struggled to take their chances this season, despite spending a club-record fee on the return of Romelu Lukaku. One option they have been linked with is a starlet for the future, Hugo Ekitike.
The Reims forward has been nicknamed the “next Kylian Mbappe” due to how he burst on the scene. The 19-year-old scored ten and assisted four in 24 Ligue 1 appearances this season.
And, amid those links with Chelsea, it seems as though the youngster could be set to leave the club this summer. According to Fabrizio Romano, the striker is expected to leave Reims, though Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund are said to be in the race too.
It’s unclear whether the Blues would have a chance at landing Ekitike, though he may be one for the future to reinforce the forward line.
