In the aftermath of their poor defeat away to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Christmas Eve, Chelsea have been on quite a brilliant run, winning five out of six games and booking their place in the League Cup final in the process.
Mauricio Pochettino might have made a poor start to life as the Blues boss, but the Pensioners look back on track as things stand.
However, if the Argentine wants to push on in the Premier League and make the most of their positions in the domestic cups, he'll need a new striker, as Nicolas Jackson's seven league goals from an expected goals figure of 11.18 is undeniably poor and Armando Broja looks set to be sold this month.
One of the names that has been consistently touted for a move to Stamford Bridge is Napoli ace Victor Osimhen. Still, he has all but crushed any hope of him arriving this month by telling CBS Sports that he will remain in Italy until the summer.
However, the Nigerian superstar hasn't been the only elite frontman linked with the two-time European Champions this month, so let's take a look at three others who could come in and mark the end of Broja's time in blue.
1 Santiago Gimenez – Feyenoord
A player who has been heavily touted for a move to the Premier League this season, particularly in the case of Chelsea, has been Feyenoord's awe-inspiring number nine, Santiago Gimenez.
According to a mid-December report from Football Insider, the Blues are among several English clubs, like Tottenham Hotspur, Fulham and Arsenal, with interest in the "Mexican Machine", as talent scout Jacek Kulig dubbed him, and when you look at his goal record, it's not hard to see why.
In his first season in the Netherlands last year, he scored an impressive 15 goals and provided two assists in 21 league starts as the side lifted the Eredivisie title. This season, he has kicked on magnificently, scoring 21 goals in 22 league and Champions League starts while providing five assists to boot.
Not only is he a reliable scorer of goals in European football, but he might also be a bargain buy, as another report from Football Insider this month claimed that he could be available for as little as £30m to £40m and while that is still a considerable amount of money, it seems like an awfully good deal for a player with that many goals and assists to his name.
Moreover, his underlying numbers are just as impressive as you would hope for a player as clinical as he is, and when compared to the underlying numbers of Broja, there is only one winner.
The Mexican "goal machine", as U23 scout Antonio Mango described him, produces a higher non-penalty expected goal and assists figure per 90, scores and assists significantly more, produces more progressive passes, and wins twice as many aerial duels per 90 when compared to the Albanian number nine.
Stats per 90
Gimenez
Broja
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
1.06
0.50
Goals
1.17
0.20
Assists
0.25
0.00
Progressive Passes
1.47
1.20
Progressive Carries
1.90
2.20
Shots on Target
2.09
0.40
Aerial Duels Won
1.60
0.80
Shot-Creating Actions
2.51
1.59
Goal-Creating Actions
0.49
0.20
All Stats via FBref for the 2023/24 Domestic Season
2 Karim Benzema – Al-Ittihad
One of the latest names to be linked to the club, and potentially one of the more realistic transfers, is Real Madrid icon and one of the all-time modern greats of the game, Karim Benzema.
Earlier this week, the Guardian's Ed Aarons revealed that while Lyon were working towards a deal to sign the French superstar from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, Chelsea were "starting to show an interest" in the 2022 Ballon d'Or winner themselves.
The 36-year-old "genius", as he was described by Kulig, transferred to the Middle Eastern state in the summer as one of the first big names to make the move – behind Cristiano Ronaldo – but according to reports, he has become unhappy with life in the country and is looking for a way out.
While there is always a risk with signing a player of his age, he has still been effective this season, scoring nine goals from an expected goals figure of 9.83, and it was only last season that he was ripping it up for Real in La Liga and in the Champions League.
A potential fee has not been reliably reported yet, but Football Transfers Expected Value Model have priced the "complete forward", as dubbed by Kulig, at around £24m, which, given his age, doesn't seem too far-fetched.
It might only be a stopgap for this season, but if Pochettino can eke out just some of the performances Benzema used to put in for Real, then Chelsea could well fly up the table.
Appearances
648
Goals
354
Assists
165
La Liga Titles
4
Champions League Titles
5
Copa del Ray Titles
3
Champions League Top Goal Scorer
1 – 15 Goals (2021/22)
La Liga Top Goal Scorer
1 – 27 Goals (2021/22)
3 Ivan Toney – Brentford
The final name on this list seems destined to move at some point this year and has spent much of this month linked with a move to Stamford Bridge: Brentford's Ivan Toney.
According to a report from the Independent last month, the Blues were only behind Arsenal in the queue to sign the Bees star. Still, with the Gunners' FFP constraints, they could leapfrog their cross-city rivals – despite Thomas Frank's insistence that the 27-year-old will stay put this month.
The former Newcastle United striker missed the first half of the season due to an eight-month football ban for betting offences but returned with a bang at the weekend – scoring a controversial free-kick against Nottingham Forest.
The fact that he has returned to his regular scheduled goalscoring with no problems after his ban is another argument for why the Blues should go all in this month.
That said, the 20 goals and four assists Toney produced in 33 starts last season was already likely enough.
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If Todd Boehly and Co can't get their hands on the "unplayable" number nine, as he was described by Alan Shearer, this month, then you can be sure that they'll be right in the mix for his signature in the summer.
Ivan Toney's Premier League Record
Appearances
69
Goals
33
Assists
9
Wins
24
Losses
25
Goals per Match
0.48
A player who has already proved his credentials in the Premier League – unlike the other two men on this list – Toney would certainly be a worthy addition for the Blues in 2024.
