Chelsea: Pochettino could banish Broja by signing Ollie Watkins

Chelsea have approached the summer transfer window with a completely different strategy compared to the one they utilised during the January window.

Mauricio Pochettino has so far moved on 13 players permanently, with David Datro Fofana departing on loan, yet the Argentinian has signed just four players.

The main reason for this is to balance their spending so they don’t fall foul of the financial fair play rules, yet Pochettino knows that keeping a squad littered with unhappy players is a recipe for disaster.

Who will Chelsea sign next?

The Blues have recently made an offer for Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise, while Mohammed Kudus has also been linked with a move to the Premier League side.

With Kai Havertz and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang departing, the club are short on strikers and Pochettino could alleviate that by making a move for Aston Villa frontman Ollie Watkins.

According to Journalist Simon Phillips, via his Substack, the Englishman has become a player who is wanted by Pochettino this summer in an effort to bolster his attacking options.

The £75k-per-week hitman still has two years left on his contract and this means Chelsea will need to stump up a big fee in order to lure him to London.

Will Armando Broja leave Chelsea?

Phillips also states via his Substack that Armando Broja could leave the Blues on loan this summer amid interest from West Ham United.

Following a successful spell at Southampton in 2021/22, where he scored nine goals, Broja returned to his parent club that summer, aiming to become a first team regular under Thomas Tuchel.

The youngster ended up playing just 17 matches due to suffering a serious knee injury in December, scoring only one goal and it’s clear that Watkins could be a major upgrade on the Albanian international.

Despite struggling under Steven Gerrard during the embryonic stages of last season, netting only once in the league, Watkins hit his stride under Unai Emery.

A stunning spell between January and April saw him score 11 goals in just 12 matches, and he finished with 16 goals and six assists across all competitions.

Not only did the former Brentford striker register more shots per 90 (2.34 to 1.75) than Broja, but also more shot-creating actions (2.27 to 1.22) and a higher percentage of aerial duels (41.2% to 30%), indicating that he posed more of a threat in front of goal than the Chelsea gem, whilst also offering a better physical presence in the air.

The Stamford Bridge side scored just 38 league goals last season and this will need to be vastly improved if they are to challenge for honours. Replacing Broja with Watkins – who was dubbed “lethal” by Trevor Sinclair – would give Chelsea a significant boost in their hunt for more Premier League goals.

The seven-cap machine has scored 40 goals in the top flight from 109 appearances and playing in a side containing players such as Christopher Nkunku, Raheem Sterling and Enzo Fernandez suggests there will be plenty of chances that he could get on the end of.

It may cost Pochettino a big transfer fee, yet Watkins would be more than worth it, especially after his exploits last term.