According to a recent twitter post by renowned football journalist Nicolo Schira, as has been quoted by The Sun, Serie A giants Juventus and Napoli are both said to be interested in signing Chelsea’s Italian international full-back Emerson Palmieri in the summer. The report suggests that the Blues could choose to offload the former Roma man during the upcoming window if they receive the expected €25m-€30m for his services.
The tweet claims that the Italian sides are already in contact with the player’s agent regarding a move, while the Blues are said to have begun looking for replacements as well. It is further suggested in the tweet that the London club are eyeing up moves for one of either Leicester City man Ben Chilwell or Porto full-back Alex Telles.
The Italian international defender is claimed to be one of Maurizio Sarri’s favourite players at Chelsea, and that he’s even been a long-term admirer of the defender’s qualities.
What Is The Blues’ Current Left-Back Situation?
Emerson Palmieri and Marcos Alonso form the Blues’ two left-back options at this point. Although both of them have varied skill-sets with their fair share of strengths and weaknesses, neither of them has managed to convince Frank Lampard that they deserve a place in the starting lineup. Both of them were given opportunities in the opening weeks of the season before Lampard seemed to realise that it just wasn’t working out in that position.
The gaffer reacted by bringing Reece James into the right-back role and then swapping skipper Cesar Azpilicueta over to the left-hand side. The fact that a natural right-back was doing a more assured job on the left-sided slot than Emerson and Alonso did seem to make up Lampard’s mind. Even with this system in place, a late-season injury to Reece James forced Lampard to bring one left-back into the side, and he chose to give Alonso a chance.
The former Fiorentina man showed the fans that he still has what it takes to challenge for the position in the few fixtures he started. A little bit of work in a defensive sense could help Alonso become a top player, but the same cannot be said about Emerson. The Italian seems to have a ‘Jack of all trades’ skill-set, which certainly hasn’t helped his cause in what is undoubtedly the most demanding league in the world.
Should Lampard Sanction Emerson’s Move Back To Serie A?
The former Roma man’s defensive work has been sub-standard, to say the least, while he offers next to nothing in an attacking perspective. The Italian international has played in 14 league fixtures this season and is yet to provide a meaningful contribution. Moreover, his two years at Chelsea have yielded just a single goal, while five assists in 52 fixtures is an underwhelming number, even for a full-back. For a team with aspirations as big as Chelsea, Emerson just doesn’t fit the bill, meaning that they’re best off cashing in on him in the summer, and instead move for a more attack-minded and dynamic left-back option.
