Graham Potter's immediate Chelsea squad may well look very different in 12-months time. Although the foundations for a revamp have already been done in the summer window just passed there are still significant changes that still need to be made.
Not all of this is necessarily going to involve spending hundreds of millions of pounds, though given the desire to sign at least one new midfielder and the attack needing serious surgery that may still happen. Just like Conor Gallagher coming back into the squad this season from his loan at Crystal Palace, returning players may well be just as important as new signings.
Callum Hudson-Odoi has already been linked with a move back to England after a promising start to his season-long loan at Bayer Leverkusen in Germany, but that could disrupt and harm his progress, a decision Potter will have to make closer to the time after fully judging his squad.
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Outside of Hudson-Odoi, Levi Colwill will also be seen again by Potter. Perhaps the most interesting returnee will be Romelu Lukaku, though. The Belgian fell out with Thomas Tuchel quickly after his mid-season interview with Sky Sports Italia was aired without the club's knowledge that it had happened.
After that interview, in which Lukaku criticised Tuchel's tactical use of him and declared his loving feelings for Inter Milan, the Belgian was out of favour and never regained his early season form. For £97m, Lukaku is possibly the worst transfer ever made by the club.
With 47 goals in his two years at Milan before the loan and 53 in his three years at Manchester United before that, Lukaku is a goalscorer. He may also fit Potter's system better than Tuchel's desired flexible front-line. Danny Welbeck has done well for Brighton under Potter despite speed and technical deficiencies himself.
Lukaku's future is currently unknown. There are suggestions that there is an option to trigger a second-year onto his loan deal, but Inter Milan chief Giuseppe Marotta remained coy on the subject when asked about it just days after Potter's announcement. “It’s fresh news," he told Sky Sports Italia.
"I don’t know what the effects of the change of coach will be [for Lukaku’s future]. We want to get the best performance out of Lukaku, and then at the end of the season we will sit down and talk about him with Chelsea. I don’t know if a change of coach means that his return is automatic, it’s difficult to predict today.”
Lukaku has only played three matches in Italy this season, scoring once and assisting once as well. With a winter World Cup and plenty of changing factors between now and next summer there will be lots of decisions to make and dealing with Lukaku is one that Potter will have to sort out at some point.
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