Gary Neville caused a big stir last summer on social media when he made a rather bold claim about Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly after what was a messy transfer window.
"The American guy Boehly, looks like he wants to play Football Manager," Neville said when on Sky Bet's The Overlap last summer. "He's wandering about a little bit and they're a bit panicky now. They're almost like bouncing around because it feels like he has to do something.
"You're wondering, 'oh they're coming in for [Frenkie] de Jong this morning', because he feels like he has to do something, that pressure is on him. He wouldn't have had that pressure if he'd have kept the people that have been there before and just let them operate for a year or two, but it'll be an interesting season for Chelsea."
READ MORE: Mauricio Pochettino confirmed as Chelsea manager after signing two-year contract
Interesting it was, Gary. Many adjectives can describe the 2022/23 season for Chelsea but perhaps none more fitting that the word 'interesting'. Coming into the season, Chelsea had seven new signings to fit into the first-team squad after an extortionate first window at Stamford Bridge for Boehly.
Now that the season has finally concluded and Mauricio Pochettino has finally been confirmed as the club's new head coach, football.london takes a look at how each of those seven players fared in their debut campaign at Chelsea. Let us know if you agree in the comments section below this article...
Wesley Fofana
Chelsea's most expensive signing of the 2022 summer transfer window. It took a while, but the Blues eventually got their man.
After playing just two games in the Premier League, Fofana unfortunately picked up an injury that would keep him on the sidelines for over five months. However, when he returned the Frenchman didn't take long to get back into the groove of things.
For the most part, the 22-year-old has been Mr Consistent for his new club. He did, however, have a bit of a nightmare at Manchester United in the penultimate game of the season where a five-minute spell saw him make two costly errors that both led to goals for the hosts.
Overall, though, Fofana has been very impressive. If he can continue that sort of form when Pochettino is in charge, then he will be a staple of this Chelsea team for the years to come.
Hit of miss? HIT (just)
Marc Cucurella
Signed for about £60million last August, there were big expectations placed on Cucurella's shoulders after a really impressive season down on the south coast with Brighton. The Spaniard was also wanted by reigning champions Manchester City, so it was quite the coup for Chelsea to go and sign him.
It was unclear whether Cucurella would become the club's first-choice at left-back or whether he was brought in to provide back-up cover to Ben Chilwell. The latter, Chilwell, though, has struggled with injury problems over recent years and that continued in the 2022/23 season.
Cucurella was more or less a mainstay under Graham Potter, who of course coached him at Brighton. However, the 24-year-old did very little to impress – whether that was at left centre-back, left-back or left wing-back. Too many times he got caught out defensively, making him somewhat of a liability in the Chelsea defence and overall painting a pretty bleak picture in his debut season with the club.
Hit of miss? MISS
Raheem Sterling
This is a difficult one to assess. Sterling was world-class at Manchester City for years and years, so his standards were set very high prior to joining Chelsea. When most people remember the England international's first season at Stamford Bridge, it will be viewed as a bit of a disappointment.
That is right, in a way, but in that regard, Sterling is a victim of his own recent success. The 28-year-old still ends his debut season at the Blues with nine goals and four assists, which isn't too bad considering the circumstances.
The whole of Chelsea's attack were largely underwhelming throughout the season. Given that, and a campaign where he picked up a couple of injuries, 13 goal contributions is respectable for Sterling, but we all know he can improve.
Hit of miss? HIT (just)
Kalidou Koulibaly
A somewhat mixed bag for Koulibaly in his first season in the Premier League. Again, he's another one who came to Chelsea with huge expectations. Not only that, but the Senegal international was essentially replacing Antonio Rudiger, who moved to Real Madrid on a free transfer last summer, so they were big shoes to fill.
Koulibaly has shown glimpses of why he's been one of European football's most sought-after defenders over the past five or so years. But unfortunately, there are definitely mistakes in him; whether that's on the ball or out of possession.
There are rumours of the 31-year-old potentially going back to Italy this summer but it remains to be seen whether he is in Pochettino's plans or not. There is definitely scope for improvement and Koulibaly certainly has the potential to do so.
Hit of miss? MISS
Carney Chukwuemeka
A transfer that virtually came out of nowhere. Chukwuemeka was signed last summer from Aston Villa in a deal that came out of the blue for supporters and journalists alike.
The 19-year-old was promised first-team football by Thomas Tuchel when he arrived at Stamford Bridge but when the German was sacked not too long after his arrival, there was an air of uncertainty about his role at the club. Making just 11 appearances in the Premier League under Potter, with only one coming from the start, it's been a disappointing season for Chukwuemeka, who would have loved to have been more involved.
Fortunately for the teenage talent, he has had the opportunity to show what he can do in the final two matches under Frank Lampard. There could be a loan on the cards for the England Under-20 international next season unless Pochettino sees him as someone who can challenge for a place in the first-team.
Hit of miss? MORE TIME NEEDED
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Signed by Tuchel, who wanted to reunite with the striker after their success together at Borussia Dortmund, to try and solve Chelsea's goalscoring issues. But their reunion lasted about a week before Tuchel left Stamford Bridge.
Many were asking questions about Aubameyang and his future when Tuchel left. And they were probably right to do so. Despite a spell under Potter where Aubameyang scored a few goals, the striker has looked nowhere near up to it and that has been reflected by making just 13 appearances in the league.
The former Arsenal captain looks certain to leave the club in the next few months. He rejected a move to America in January but there is supposedly interest from former employers Barcelona now, where he could make a swift return.
Hit of miss? MISS
Denis Zakaria
Zakaria signed on loan on transfer deadline day last summer and at the time it screamed desperation from Chelsea after failing to land other midfield targets. That is what has somewhat proven to be now with his contract set to expire next month and no plans of making a deal permanent, despite an option to.
The Switzerland international made just seven appearances in the Premier League in total. There were a couple of games where he actually looked really sharp and offered Chelsea a lot in midfield but for whatever reason, he quickly fell out of favour again under Potter.
A failed loan move. No doubt about that.
Hit of miss? MISS
What all of this means for Pochettino
Pochettino has many tasks to try and achieve when he officially takes on his new role on July 1. One of them is to try and get some value out of the underperforming players at the club – and in every single one of the listed players, there is plenty of improvement still available.
Apart from Zakaria, who looks dead certain to leave the club when his contract expires on June 30, each one of those players will be looking to drastically improve in time for next season. Getting the best out of the likes of Sterling, Fofana and Koulibaly can really help elevate Chelsea under Pochettino.
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