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If a report by Fox Sports Australia is to be believed, Chelsea are looking seriously at bringing both Jamie Vardy and Danny Drinkwater to Stamford Bridge. Antonio Conte’s interest in the former Manchester United midfielder has already been reported here, but the inclusion of the former Fleetwood Town hitman is a new and unwelcome rumour.
Striker Michy Batshuayi has failed to impress for the north London side, and the rift between the Blues’ boss and Diego Costa has received no small amount of press. It makes sense that the defending champions would be looking to bolster their strike force.
The report suggests that Chelsea are casting an almost comically wide net, with no less than twelve players on their want-list. They simply can’t all be moving to Chelsea during this window. Just to demonstrate how many players are supposedly headed to Stamford Bridge, I’ve put together this helpful graphic:
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Chelsea currently has 62 (!) players in their current squad, out on loan, or in limbo between the two. They are not bringing in twelve more, or even six. The majority of the players on this interest won’t be wearing a Chelsea badge any time soon.
Is the former Stockbridge Park Steels striker even a good fit for this kind of move? The other three strikers on the list excel at heading the ball and hold up play. The From Nowhere, My Story author has a completely different skill set, but it isn’t one that Conte has shown much interest in up until now. Many supporters are equally skeptical (and have ideas about cooking I’d just as soon not imagine):
Why is Vardy still a Leicester player? Would love him at Chelsea. Imagine the piss he would boil
— Matt (@Mattalans) August 11, 2017
The point is that, while the Drinkwater rumours seem to have some validity, don’t expect Vardy to make his way south down the M1 this month.