It doesn’t feel like it, but Chelsea have actually been one of the most active teams in this transfer window so far.
Our signing of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, concluded last week, is one of the highest value transfers so far, and today on the Premier League site, analyst Adrian Clarke took a look at what it could mean for us.
Clarke picked out one interesting aspect of KHD’s game which may explain why Chelsea were so keen to sign him to add to their midfield – his left footed-ness:
“Nine of Dewsbury-Hall’s 12 league goals last season came from his tremendous left foot,” Clarke noted.
“Aside from Cole Palmer, Chelsea did not have a regular left-footed contributor for goals and assists, so the midfielder’s arrival will balance out the team. Many of his 14 assists owed much to his quality with that preferred foot too, which is sure to be a useful weapon for Chelsea in 2024/25.
“It will be far more difficult for Dewsbury-Hall to make as big an impression as he did in the Championship, but his creative data was seriously impressive last season for player who also offers plenty of industry without the ball.”
A tricky balance to find
As we wrote yesterday, the arrival of Dewsbury-Hall is a slightly surprising one given how many midfielders were already on the books. In fact, it’s even stranger than that, as he’s really similar in profile to so many of the midfielders on the books.
One potential solution is moving Cole Palmer back to the right wing, where he had decent success last season. That reduces the need to sign a new player in that position, as well as reducing the crowd in the middle.
We can already see how KDH’s style can help the team – now we need to figure out shaping the rest of the squad to accommodate his arrival.
