Mauricio Pochettino was loath to heap criticism on the players that featured for Chelsea‘s miserable 1-0 defeat against Middlesbrough in the first-leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, but when reviewing the tie, there was one aspect of their performance where he refused to mince words.
‘If we assess the performance, overall we were the better side, we create more chances, we have clear chances,’ the beleaguered manager said after the final whistle.
‘But we didn’t score and we were not clinical and that has happened a lot this season – so many games we didn’t win because we weren’t clinical enough.’
Profligacy in front of goal has been one of the stories of Chelsea’s incredibly inconsistent campaign, and Cole Palmer‘s three clear-cut chances on Tuesday evening at the Riverside typified the wastefulness the Blues have shown – to the detriment of their league standing.
What Chelsea really need is a confident No 9, but neither Armando Broja returning from injury, or the haphazard Nicolas Jackson – currently away with Senegal at AFCON – have been up to the task, with Palmer sitting at the summit of their top scorers’ table.
Mauricio Pochettino savaged his side’s ability in front of goal after defeat to Middlesbrough
Cole Palmer was particularly wasteful at the Riverside in the Blues’ Carabao Cup semi-final
Armando Broja (left) and Nicolas Jackson (centre left) have not been reliable striking options
Christopher Nkunku has spent most of the season injured, Deivid Washington has made just two appearances off the bench, and recalled forward David Datro Fofana is poised to swap a loan spell at Union Berlin with one at Sevilla.
Needless to say, the answer, despite Chelsea’s seemingly unlimited spending over the last two windows, likely lies in the market.
Here, Mail Sport runs the rule over potential options who could make the move – and transform the west London club’s fortunes for the remainder of the season.
Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)
The powers that be at Stamford Bridge have flirted with the Serbian striker as recently as last summer, when speculation grew over whether Romelu Lukaku would swap Milan for Turin for another season in Serie A.
It seemed like a fitting trade: Chelsea would offload a player more akin to a man held hostage by his own poor decision-making two summers’ earlier, and the Blues would in turn receive a tried-and-tested top-flight…