Chelsea’s 2023/24 midfield rebuild – who are the potential signings and which of those fit best?

Chelsea are set for another busy summer under the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital led ownership and with that comes tones of speculation over transfer targets.

Sources suggest Chelsea and incoming manager Mauricio Pochettino will look to bring in a defensive midfielder this summer, as the club look at the best options around Europe to partner Enzo Fernandez in midfield.

With the prospect of losing Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, Denis Zakaria (returning to Juventus), Ruben Loftus Cheek and Conor Gallagher, Chelsea will be left with a rather thin midfield and will need to make at least two signings in this area.

In this article, I am going to point out SIX midfield options for Chelsea, how they could be effective and then I will conclude with the two midfielders I would buy for the current Chelsea squad this summer.

Declan Rice

Firstly we will talk about an ongoing link for the past few seasons in Declan Rice. Even though sources have recently suggested a move to Arsenal seems far more likely, we will still cover him as the club have held a long standing interest and as we saw with Mudryk, anything can happen.

Rice is a natural defensive midfielder who would be perfect to play as a partner to Enzo in the number six role for Chelsea. His ability to perform defensive actions all over the pitch is elite level as suggested by his fbref numbers.

Rice makes 2.45 tackles per 90, 1.26 blocks per 90 and wins 1.10 Aerials per 90. As well as that, Rice ranks in the top 87% amongst midfielders for clearances with 1.7 per 90 and also in the top 96% amongst midfielders for interceptions with 1.84 per 90.

These defensive action stats for a midfielder are extremely high tier, as well as offering leadership being the current West Ham captain and a regular for England internationally.

Chelsea currently lack leaders and after losing vice captain Jorginho in January, and with Azpilicueta expected to leave in the summer, Chelsea will need to also think about this leadership issue going forwards.

It is important to note that Rice is not just a defensive action midfielder, he is much more of a box to box midfielder and he himself is keen to prove that going forwards. Rice is producing 2.42 progressive carries per 90 ranking in the top 85% amongst midfielders, as well as producing 6.35 progressive passes per 90 ranking in the top 74% amongst midfielders.

These stats show the ability Rice has to drive the team forwards from midfield and break the lines with his passing and ability to run with the ball.

Many (including myself) regard Mateo Kovacic’s main strength to be his ability to break the midfield lines with his progressive carries through the central areas, and Kovacic averages 1.76 progressive carries per 90 in the past 365 days according to fbref, which shows how strong of an asset this is for Rice.

Moises Caicedo

The next player I am going to discuss is the heavily linked Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo. Linked with an £80 million move to West London, Moises Caicedo has attracted a lot of interest off of his stellar season for Brighton.

They currently sit 6th in the Premier league standings and Moises Caicedo is a huge reason for this. The high octane midfielder has made 39 appearances for Brighton this campaign, scoring once and providing one assist.

Caicedo is extremely hard working and likes to be proactive in midfield, setting pressing traps and winning the ball back in advantageous areas of the pitch. Caicedo averages 1.33 blocks per 90, 0.85 clearances per 90 and 1.12 aerials won per 90.

However, the Ecuadorian midfielders best assets are his tackling and intercepting capabilities shown by his fbref stats. He is averaging 3.06 tackles per 90 which ranks in the top 90% amongst midfielders, as well as averaging 1.48 interceptions per 90 which ranks in the top 82% amongst midfielders.

Caicedo’s ability to win the ball back and play the pass off to the more creative players would be extremely suited to the way Chelsea want to play and the idea of unlocking Enzo Fernandez to his full potential with his creative ability.

Caicedo completes 88.3% of passes per 90 (top 92% amongst midfielders), and completes 6.29 progressive passes per 90 (top 73%).

These stats show Caicedo is very good at playing simple and effective passes to the creative players on the team, as well as playing passes into progressive areas from midfield to help break the defensive lines at times.

Manuel Ugarte

The next player we will look at is the epitome of a classic number 6, defensive midfielder, Manuel Ugarte. The Uruguay midfielder is known for sitting and protecting the defensive line, winning plenty of tackles and duels, and playing simple passes after retrieving possession.

Ugarte produces in the top 99% of midfielders in tackles per 90 (4.54), interceptions per 90 (2.23) and pass completion (91.6%). As well the above, Ugarte is making 1.51 blocks per 90 (top 84%), tackling 2.43 dribblers per 90 and challenging 4.58 dribblers per 90 (both in top 99% amongst midfielders also).

These are elite level defensive stats, and whilst it has to be taken into account he is playing in the Portugal first division, the player profile remains the same, and this is a profile of player Chelsea have been crying out for since Nemanja Matic.

Ugarte would also be available at around £52 million due to his release clause at Sporting Lisbon. The 22 year-old midfielder would be an excellent partner for Enzo Fernandez and both being 22 years of age would allow them to grow as a pair and develop a strong partnership for years to come.

LondonsFirst recently exclusively revealed that Chelsea sent scouts to watch him against Juventus in the Europa League and that following that, this month have contacted Jorge Mendes and his team at Gestifute to register interest.

Romeo Lavia

Romeo Lavia is another name that has been constantly spoken about and linked to Chelsea in recent months. Now that Southampton have been relegated, the fee would also be very affordable for a young player with an extremely high potential.

Lavia is another defensive midfielder who is very good in defensive duels and can play high level/high IQ passes in midfield areas. Lavia excels in blocks per 90 performing 1.73 per game as his best attribute according to fbref. However, this could be due to the defensive capabilities of Southampton this season or lack of, meaning Lavia has had to make more last ditch blocks.

Lavia is another high energy midfielder, who has the quality to go box to box and win the ball back in advantageous areas of the pitch setting off counter attacks. Lavia makes 2.38 tackles per 90 and 1.3 interceptions per 90 which both rank around the top 70% mark amongst midfielders. This shows Lavia has the ability to win defensive duels and protect the defense.

The main positive with Lavia is the high potential he has, as this is his first proper season of senior football at the age of 19, and the raw ability he has could be molded into an elite level midfielder at any top side.

Lavia is a player who passes the eye test when it comes to his ability and talent and I believe he would be an excellent acquisition for Chelsea at a cut price from the relegated Southampton.

Alexis Mac Allister

The penultimate player I am going to discuss is Alexis Mac Allister, another Brighton player. The Argentina international has been pivotal for Brighton and their success this season. He has made 36 appearances for Brighon this season, scoring 12 times and providing 2 assists.

Mac Allister is viewed by Chelsea as a good replacement for Mason Mount if he is to depart in the summer. It is also rumored that Pochettino is a big fan of Mac Allister and is interested in the prospect of bringing him to SW6.

Mac Allister, unlike the previous four players analysed, is more of an attacking eight (similar profile to Mason Mount hence the replacement idea). Mac Allister has averaged 1.31 successful take-ons per 90, 2.02 progressive carries per 90, 3.2 shot creating actions per 90  and 2.59 shots per 90 (which is in the top 99% amongst midfielders). He likes to get into the box and contribute to scoring goals, as well as make defensive splitting runs with and without the ball.

He also ranks in the top 97% for Non- Penalty xG with 0.24 per 90 and the top 93% for npxG + xAG (non-penalty expected goals and assists) with 0.37 per 90. This shows his involvement in attacking areas and importance in that area of the pitch for Brighton this season, an area that Chelsea have struggled in this season.

This is not a number six signing and if we did sign Mac Allister, the fit would be questionable considering Pochettino is known to favour a 4-2-3-1.

Sandro Tonali

The last player we are going to speak about is a slightly different profile and that is Sandro Tonali. The Italian defensive midfielder who currently plays for AC MIlan is a slightly different style of defensive midfielder as his best asset is his ability to make key passes leading to assists/shot creating actions.

Tonali has played 44 times for AC Milan this season, scoring twice and providing nine assists. He ranks in the top 91% for assists per 90 with 0.2, as well as ranking in the top 89% for xAG (expected assists) per 90 with 0.19.

However with his assist numbers being so good for a central midfielder, strangely his passing metrics don’t quite follow, only attempting 47.62 passes per 90 and completing 76.6% of these passes. This could be due to the nature of these passes as he is making key passes into the box, and into dangerous areas looking to get assists and create chances for his team mates.

When you look deeper into the passing stats of Tonali he clearly excels in his long passing, completing 4.75 long passes per 90 and attempting 9.25 long passes per 90 (top 83% amongst midfielders for this metric). Considering Tonali only attempts 47.62 passes per 90 and 9.25 of these passes are long passes on average, this shows the way Tonali wants to affect the game.

I do believe this signing would be unnecessary due to the passing abilities of Enzo Fernadez and the similar types of passes they like to play. If anything this would be an Enzo deputy/rotation option to provide the passing range that Enzo offers to the Chelsea team.

Conclusion :

In Conclusion, my first choice target for Chelsea this summer would be Declan Rice. I believe the profile of player he is, the fact he is Premier league proven and a leader which Chelsea lack are major reasons we should target Rice and prioritise him.

The problem with this would be money permitting as he is likely to be the most expensive on this list, and also the most likely to demand higher wages. I am a big fan of Declan Rice and I would love to see him rejoin the club from his younger days and become a legend here, therefore him being my first choice also has some personal reasons involved, rather than solely being on ability and price.

If Chelsea are going to look to spend big in other areas as well such as a number 9, I would go for my second option which would be a tie between Manuel Ugarte or Romeo Lavia for around the £50 million mark.

Both have their strengths, both are young and both could grow into a role partnering Enzo for years to come. I am a big fan of both of these players and if we cannot get Rice, I would be looking to bring in one of these two.

Another option I would love to see if Rice goes elsewhere such as Arsenal, is using similar money being quoted for Rice around £100-£120 million, to bring in Moises Caiecdo and one of these two (Ugarte or Lavia) for a combined price of around £130 million.

Considering Chelsea need at least two midfielders this summer with players leaving and the possibility of Mount leaving, this is another option which would bring two extremely high class midfielders to join Enzo in the midfield rebuild at Chelsea.