There is a high likelihood that transfer deadline day will be one of the busiest from a Chelsea perspective in many years.
Wesley Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Frenkie De Jong and Anthony Gordon could all end up joining on that day, or their futures dominate the conversation. Potential departures in Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Christian Pulisic still are possible.
The fervent support for more signings is unlikely to relent from fans. After seeing nearly £200m spent already in the Todd Boehly and Clearlake consortium in an eye-catching flurry of business, a grand finale is expected, even if the final few targets split opinion.
READ MORE: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's attitude and Arsenal misconception as Chelsea prepare £22m transfer
But what about the alternative? What if some, if not all the targets fall through? Boehly should already be well aware of how fragile player transactions can be – especially in the summer of hijacks led by lever-pulling Barcelona.
Both Raphinha and Jules Kounde had ticked all the boxes in terms of the reporting checklist fans are used to before a player signs. A fee was agreed, and talks had reached an advanced stage, only on both occasions, the player chose the Camp Nou.
It is why there were jokes around the deal to sign Cucurella, and fears that even if the player was en route to Cobham, the threat of another late twist was always in the air.
Although it is not very trendy to advocate for fewer signings, let's try and theorise a scenario where Chelsea do not sign anyone else. Or at the very least, come up with a Plan B for the key targets.
CB - Leicester refuse to sell Fofana
If we go by the words of Brendan Rodgers, Fofana is not for sale. At the time of writing, Chelsea have not returned with an improved third bid after two were initially turned down by the Foxes.
Although many believe the 21-year-old is worth the vast outlay to improve Thomas Tuchel's defence, there is always a chance a deal at this late stage falls through given Leicester's lack of investment, and lack of time to recruit a replacement should Fofana leave.
The solution is the one that Tuchel benefitted from when the Kounde deal collapsed 12 months ago: Trevoh Chalobah. The 23-year-old was a breakout star last season, proving to be a priceless internal solution that saved the club money, whilst performing impressively in two domestic cup finals against one of the best attacks in Europe.
CM - Frenkie stays put
This feels less of an alternative and more like the most realistic ending to a bizarre saga involving the midfielder. Although Chelsea are interested, unless De Jong wants to move, the Blues will not push seriously ahead with a bid.
Without a new midfield signing, the likelihood of Ethan Ampadu or Billy Gilmour remaining increases. Ampadu is versatile, being able to play in a back-three whilst also at the base of midfield, whilst Gilmour has impressed under Tuchel before.
Both players, like Chalobah, offers interesting solutions given the clear concern over the contract situations of Jorginho and N'Golo Kante. Don't forget Conor Gallagher too, who is likely to gain significant minutes this season.
ST - No Auba reunion
Tuchel's wide grin when being asked about a potential Aubameyang reunion says enough about his liking of the idea, even if he remained coy to probing questions.
Chelsea are very confident Barcelona will accept their £22million offer for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, football.london understands. But should that not materialise, it certainly opens the door for Armando Broja, a.k.a the Albanian Diego Costa to make a full breakthrough into the first team competing alongside Kai Havertz.
There are concerns with Aubameyang's age, price and the very public fallout with Mikel Arteta at Arsenal. Tuchel has stressed his intentions to use a fluid front-line, something that was halted with Romelu Lukaku last year. Not only would Broja have a pathway, but Havertz would finally be given a clear run to prove he is good enough to lead the line at Stamford Bridge.
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