In February, Chelsea were slapped with a two-window transfer ban. FIFA found the West Londoners guilty of irregularities in terms of how they had signed young players. If the transfer ban stands, the Blues will have to consider integrating players out on loan into the first team.
The Blues could be faced with a problem in terms of their strikers. Gonzalo Higuain is currently at Stamford Bridge on a loan deal from Juventus which will expire at the end of this season. The Argentine has so far not been particularly impressive for the Blues and could leave the club this summer.
Olivier Giroud’s contract with the club also comes to an end this summer. The Frenchman has not been playing regularly and has been linked with a return to his native France. Giroud wants to carry on playing for France and to do so, it may be in his best interests to leave Chelsea this summer.
In light of this, the Blues may have to bring back Alvaro Morata to the club next summer. Morata was shipped out on loan to Atletico Madrid during the January transfer window after having struggled to make an impact for Chelsea after one and a half seasons at the club. During his debut season at Stamford Bridge, Morata went on to score just 15 goals in all competitions from 48 appearances. Such a record is poor for a striker who is playing for a so-called top six club.
Maurizio Sarri gave him more opportunities to impress during the first-half of this season and he once again flopped, going on to score just nine goals from 24 appearances in all competitions. Morata, however, appears to have found form upon his transfer to Atleti and has so far scored four goals in the La Liga from eight appearances.
If Chelsea’s transfer ban stands, they will have to consider recalling Morata from his loan to bolster their options up front. They do have other capable strikers out on loan in Michy Batshuayi and Tammy Abraham. However, it can be argued that Batshuayi is not making much of an impact with Crystal Palace. While Abraham could be a future star in the making, he is still unproven at Premier League level so it could be very dangerous to rely a bit too much on the youngster if he is re-integrated into the Blues first-team next season.
