Thomas Tuchel is not prepared to be lenient when it comes to his strikers this season as he expects returns that rival Mohammed Salah at Liverpool.
His Chelsea side scored 23 less than champions Manchester City last term and 18 fewer than Liverpool, struggling to get past low-block defences at home in-particular.
Todd Boehly has already added Raheem Sterling to his failing attack, with Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech both likely to depart Stamford Bridge before the transfer window is over, but that still leaves the German with plenty of goals to source from his remaining attackers.
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Of the squad from last season, only Mason Mount has ever hit double figures in a single Premier League campaign. Armando Broja looks like a talented addition to the team, but his six goals at Southampton aren't reason enough to believe Chelsea can rival two of the freest scoring sides in league history.
This has led to Chelsea looking at a former winner of the Golden Boot, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Even though the former Arsenal forward, and ex-captain, left the Gunners in January, the financial turmoil at Barcelona has seen him become a temporary option for Tuchel this summer.
The pair are well acquainted after spending two years together at Borussia Dortmund, a spell that Tuchel remembers fondly and the manager is clearly still a big fan of the now 33-year-old. He scored 31 times in one season and managed 79 goals in 89 matches for the German.
When asked about the links to Aubameyang in his press conference, Tuchel jokingly admitted that these were numbers he couldn't turn down, saying: "I would be interested in 79 goals actually."
Although it was a typical tongue-in-cheek comment for Tuchel, it does show what they have missed. Last season they only managed 22 goals between Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic, Werner and Ziyech. Liverpool managed 39 goals from just Salah and Sadio Mane, whilst Diogo Jota added 15 and Luis Diaz got four - equal to Werner and Ziyech's totals - despite only joining in January.
Between Liverpool's attackers they scored 69 goals, just 10 short of Tuchel's desired 79 Aubameyang mark.
If Chelsea can get anywhere near the 69, let alone Aubameyang's totals, then the Blues will need to have a markedly better attacking season than last year. It might be unrealistic but the standards have been set.
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