Chelsea’s hunt for a striker this January saw them get linked with AS Roma forward Edin Dzeko. The winter window has allowed Chelsea to redeem their mistakes from the summer when they failed to add adequate numbers to their squad to challenge for all trophies in Europe. The result was there for everyone to see with Conte’s men falling far behind in the English league and finishing second in the group stage of the Champions League, a result which will see them face Barcelona in the round of 16 next month.
With the Blues desperate to add another striker, reports have seen them get linked with some truly bizarre rumours. West Ham United’s Andy Carroll, Stoke City’s Peter Crouch and Burnley’s Ashley Barnes have all been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge. The biggest news on frontman frontier to join the rumour mill was the report of Edin Dzeko. It was reported that the Blues were seeking to negotiate a transfer deal for the 31-year old.
Dzeko was said to be one aspect of a huge deal between AS Roma and Chelsea that would have seen the Blues splash out cash and Belgian forward Michy Batshuayi in exchange for Dzeko and Emerson Palmieri.
The former Manchester City forward has a good memory of playing in England where he won two league titles, one FA Cup and a league cup. However, with his game time suffering, he opted to move to the Italian capital where he has been instrumental for them for the last two and a half years. Chelsea’s lack of options up front coupled with Conte’s lack of willingness to bank on Batshuyai for the big matches clearly shows their dependency on Morata making Conte desperate for the Bosnian hitman.
However, Roma sporting director Monchi has now retracted those claims, saying “All the clubs in the world listen to the offers that come, we are ready to listen and then decide. Now Edin is here and we are happy. This means that what arrived [bids] was not good. At this moment I don’t like the offers that we have received, so we do not take them into consideration.
With the Dzeko deal now up in smokes and Roma having played their cards, it is up to Chelsea to make their move. They can either choose to return with an improved bid for the hitman or choose to look elsewhere for some other striking option. However, given the other names in the rumour mill, Chelsea will know that none of them is likely to provide even half the quality that Dzeko would should they chase the Roma man.
