Chelsea s forward blood exchange plan: Garnacho s transfer with Simmons depends on the departure of the three

Although Chelsea defeated West Ham United 5-1 in the first round of the Premier League season, showing the firepower diversity of five-man scoring on the offensive end, Stamford Bridge's signing department has not stopped operating. According to the latest report from Sky Sports, the Blues' pursuit of Manchester United winger Garnacho and Leipzig core Simmons still has variables - the advancement of this potential deal is strictly determined by the departure of Nicholas Jackson, Christopher Nkunku and youth training teenager Tyrik George. Although coach Enzo Maresca's tactical board emphasizes offensive liquidity, the club's management is clearly following the "first out and then in" fiscal balance strategy. It is worth noting that even if only one striker leaves the team, Chelsea may still try to sign one of the two targets. This flexible negotiation strategy shows the transfer team's precise control over market dynamics.

Analysis from the perspective of tactical adaptability, although Garnacho and Simmons are both left-wing attackers, their technical characteristics are completely different. Manchester United's 20-year-old young man is better at using speed to hit the space behind the defense line. His 3.7 touches in the penalty area every 90 minutes (Opta data) reflect his tendency to end. Simmons has the attribute of the No. 10 position, creating 1.2 absolute chances in the Bundesliga last season, with a pass success rate of up to 85%. This difference just corresponds to Chelsea's tactical needs: if center Joao Pedro continues to retreat and support, Garnacho's off-ball interlude can effectively make use of the gap he created; while Simmons' organizational ability can form a rotational competition with Cole Palmer. However, there are already seven attackers including Sterling and Muderick in the existing lineup, and the introduction of top new players may trigger a subtle game of locker room resource allocation.

It is worth pondering whether there is a strategic shift in Chelsea's focus of signings. When the team stocked up on excess resources for the front line, the central defender had obvious shortcomings due to the serious injury to the cruciate ligament of Colewell. Although Chaloba completed 15 clearances against West Ham, the success rate of both of them was less than 80%, which was difficult to meet the system requirements of Maresca's organization of offense from the backcourt. Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez's save success rate of only 61.7% last season was third from the bottom in the Premier League. Perhaps as the local London media "Football Insider" questioned: "Does the luxury attack group created by oil capital need to be at the cost of defensive stability?" This Stamford Bridge, once famous for its iron-blooded defense, is experiencing the pain of reconstruction of offensive and defensive philosophy.