Our senior football reporter, Nizaar Kinsella, has been following Chelsea in the US on their pre-season tour and has been answering more questions about the Blues.
Here’s the final part:
Scott asked: I think I speak for a lot of Chelsea fans when I ask where are the experienced/brand signings? We signed half a dozen ‘prospectuses’ – again. What the hell is the club doing?
Nizaar replied: Chelsea is doubling down on its youth policy. They have accepted the criticism but ultimately feel this approach will put them ahead of their rivals.
There are young players in this squad with another year or two of experience. More experience of playing in England and, I hope, they have improved in quality.
These new signings continue to be for the future, to ensure that the talent pool is high at Chelsea. But this can Brightonsimilar approach to winning trophies? That remains to be seen, given a disappointing few years.
Nick asked: Do you think the constant change of manager has had a negative impact on Chelsea’s business in the transfer market? It seems like players were bought to fit a manager’s style, only for the manager to be fired, leaving these players trying to fit into a new system.
Nizaar replied: This is a long-standing problem at Chelsea.
The same happened with Roman Abramovich and now appears to be a problem for the new regime. The change in goalkeepers potentially highlights this issue.
There is an attempt to reduce these problems with the presence of powerful sporting directors at the club, but they will need to try and stop the constant hiring and firing of coaches to really build for the long term.
Mubarak asked: Do you see us signing an experienced striker?
Nizaar replied: Simply put, no. I would never rule out the possibility, but all the names discussed were under 25, with Jonathan David, 24, of Lille, being the oldest name discussed.
Chelsea remain committed to a youth-first approach, no matter what anyone says.
