Even with the process of Chelsea finding new owners ongoing and sanctions preventing the Blues being able to agree new contracts or complete any form of transfer, with eight matches left of the season it's impossible to not start thinking about the transfer window.
The Blues brought in three players last summer in Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Bettinelli and Saul Niguez. A quieter window than many expected, but the £97.5million move for the Belgian definitely showed significant outlay.
Obviously, the move has not panned out as the club would have hoped. Lukaku has netted 12 goals over the course of the season, one every 199 minutes. That's bettered only by Timo Werner in the Chelsea squad, but has seen Lukaku drop out of the starting XI by the way of some ineffective performances, particularly in the Premier League.
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While Inter Milan were undergoing some financial stress, it was a shock that they were willing to allow Lukaku to return to Stamford Bridge. Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin was surprised to see the transfer.
He told Lord Ping: “I have to be honest, I was mildly surprised when Chelsea bought Lukaku. It's not that he's a bad player, that would be nonsense, but if you look at what Chelsea had been trying to do before Romelu came in, it wasn’t a perfect fit.
"Look at the energy levels of Timo Werner, he is just a bunny. He doesn't stop going, he just runs and runs, chases and chases. Mason Mount; absolutely 100mph, chases, energy, everything. That's what you want to do, that's the way you want to play, Pulisic is very much the same. High energy, high intensity. That's not Romelu Lukaku. With the best will in the world, Romelu would probably tell you that himself, that's not the player he was at Everton.
"But, if you've got a guy like that who can come off the bench and do something, it's not bad. It's not bad to have him anyway, and no one is complaining about that."
There was still plenty of excitement surrounding Lukaku's move to west London with the 28-year-old enhancing his reputation in Serie A. His style clearly added to Nevins's surprise but the transfer was more surprising for many because the Blues were exploring the possibility of making a move for Borussia Dortmund's Erling Haaland.
It was a deal that would prove expensive for Marina Granovskaia and co with the Norwegian forward's release clause not coming into play until this summer. That would have met long and laboured discussions with the German side, who preferred not to sell. With the increased competition that would bring, it seems the Blues were unable to wait for the clause to come into play, and saw better value in bringing Lukaku to the club in 2021.
Manchester City now appear set to land the 21-year-old this summer with a £500,000-per-week deal touted in addition to significant payments to Mina Raiola and Alf-Inge Haaland for their representation in the deal. It's a transfer that Nevin believes could make Pep Guardiola's side 'unstoppable', and could have had a similar impact on Chelsea.
The 58-year-old said: “Trust me, they would have [signed Haaland] if they could've, there's no doubt about that. That's not an anti-Lukaku statement, that's not 'they have made a mistake' - tell me a team on the planet that wouldn't have taken Erling Haaland last season? Because I don't know who they are. Everybody would have taken him, and everyone would take him today.
"The likelihood is that it’s going to be Manchester City that Haaland goes to. But yes, I know for a fact Chelsea tried to get him. As did everyone else. He has controlled his career, along with his father who's his manager, phenomenally well. Manchester City, if they do get him, would be unstoppable.
"But, the thought of Kai Havertz, in that team, with Haaland in front of him, oh my goodness, that could have been a team! They could have pushed Liverpool and Man City off the top, he is that good, he is that strong, he has that many strings to his bow as well. But it wasn't for lack of trying, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Chelsea tried to get him, he just wasn't available for Chelsea."
City went without a forward last summer as they matched Chelsea's struggle to sign Haaland in their quest to land Harry Kane. Guardiola's side were priced out of a move for the England forward with the Premier League champions more content to settle with the squad they had built, and are now in the position to add to it.
For Thomas Tuchel, now the situation arises where it is uncertain if Chelsea will need a striker this summer once again. Lukaku's future is said to be up for discussion, and the Belgian forward will no doubt have one eye on the World Cup in November. His departure would leave the Blues in a difficult situation once again, with an obviously small pool of elite strikers on the market.
Tuchel has not given up on Lukaku thriving at Chelsea, but Havertz has been relied upon for much of 2022 to provide goals for the Blues, and has been successful in doing so. Given the club allowed Olivier Giroud and Tammy Abraham to depart when Lukaku arrived in 2021, it would not seem sensible to not bring a replacement if the former Manchester United ace swiftly leaves the club.
If the decision is made to part ways with Lukaku, finding a replacement of a similar calibre will be difficult enough, particularly with Man City in the advanced stages of a move for Haaland. However, the fee and salary paid for Kepa Arrizabalaga and the difficulty of finding a suitor for the Spaniard could already be an ominous warning for any future separation with Lukaku.
