THE RUMOUR MILL

Michael Nardi

In this weeks article I will be looking at three big time players looking to have new homes when the season rolls around in a few months

Ousmane Dembele: Rumoured to Chelsea

Dembele to Chelsea is the type of signing the Blues need to fix the key issue in their team, creativity. Dembele registered 13 assists for Barcelona operating as a right-winger in Xavi’s 4-3-3. He starts wide on the touchline to receive the ball looking to beat his man to cross or drive inside and combine with his fullback. He also is great at playing in the half-spaces to turn and run at his man which is what he is incredibly effective at.

What makes Dembele so special is his ability to run with the ball at pace and the fact he is two-footed, making him impossible to defend on his day. This is exactly what Chelsea needs; they lacked so much end product for their strikers this season, squandering many opportunities to score leaving them with a very toothless attack.

Finally, with a consistent right-winger like Dembele and Reece James’ goal-scoring ability from right wingback, Thomas Tuchel’s side would be lethal down the right channel.

Paulo Dybala: Rumoured to Inter Milan

This is one of the shock rumours of the transfer window due to Dybala’s long career with Italian giants Juventus. La Joya, as he is known in Italy, is heavily linked to Inter with his contract running out and his decision to not extend with Juventus near the end of the season.

Beppe Marotta, Inter’s sporting director, is known for these savvy free-agent deals in his time, picking up the likes of Andrea Pirlo and Paul Pogba on free transfers, so this wouldn’t be a surprise from him. For Dybala, this move will tarnish any status he had with Juventus as he would join their direct rivals, however, the move makes sense for him.

Inter plays an attractive brand of football and could use a creative player upfront, especially with how inconsistent Hakan Çalhanoğlu can be from Inzaghi’s creative midfield role.

This move for Dybala can turn to the way Simone Inzaghi used Luis Alberto at Lazio in the 2017/2018 season. Dybala can be the creative player able to get in between the lines playing the killer pass for his strike partner. The move makes sense for both parties but to me, it comes down to how much value Dybala has towards the years he spent and his reputation amongst the Juventus faithful.

Frankie De Jong: Rumoured to Manchester United

With the appointment of Erik Ten Hag, De Jong’s name has been in the headlines to join the Red Devils this summer and for good reason. De Jong, 25 years old, found his stride when Xavi was appointed by Barcelona and transformed him into classic number 8, allowing him to be everywhere on the pitch.

De Jong scored more and seemed to be more involved for Barca, closer to his Ajax self which people were waiting for. For United this is a dream signing for them, with the lack of options in the midfield, De Jong would be a welcome signing for the club to mark the beginning of the Ten Hag era. De Jong is very technical, terrific at keeping the ball, and being able to control the rhythm of play, something United lacked under former manager Ralf Ragnick.

However, he needs another midfielder beside him to do some of the defensive work which he lacks, like the role Lasse Schone had at Ajax. This would allow De Jong to show his offensive capabilities and give Ten Hag great balance in the team needed to play his modern style.