Why was Chelsea’s January transfer window symptomatic of a bigger problem?

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For Chelsea, this was one of the most sombre transfer windows in recent memory that will do little to galvanise the fans into to believing anything reminiscent of success will be heading to Stamford Bridge this season. This is a club that throws caution to the wind on a regular basis, and has not shied away from spending hundreds of millions of pounds since Roman Abramovich took over all the way back in 2003. However, on this occasion, caution was the byword for the Blues.

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This can be pinpointed to the uncertainty in the dugout; Jose Mourinho was axed in December and Guus Hiddink is only in charge on an interim basis, but could Chelsea have done more ahead of what could be a busy summer?

There were just two new arrivals in another low-key transfer window for Chelsea. Alexandre Pato arrived on loan from Corinthians in a win-win situation considering he is a proven talent when injury-free but is also on a relatively low wage of £30,000 a week. Therefore, in the event he fails to rediscover form reminiscent of his time AC Milan then he can be sent back to Brazil. The second signing was in the form of highly-rated American defender Matt Miazga for £3.5m from the New York Red Bulls.

Miazga; 20, is one for the future and is not expected to make much; if any, impact this season. Chelsea plan to have him training with the first-team to see how he adjusts to England, playing with and against better players than he is used to and the big step up he has made by moving from the MLS. Chelsea aren’t putting any pressure on him to make a big impact before the end of the campaign, although with the horrific injury suffered by Kurt Zouma meaning he will spend the next six months on the side-lines, Miazga may have a chance to feature more regularly given the lack of options in front of him. Saying that, the last two matches have not backed up that theory considering when captain John terry was withdrawn from the match against Newcastle, Baba Rahman was introduced in front of Miazga. Then on Tuesday against PSG, Rahman was once again used in place of the American.

They will hope for more from Brazilian Pato, especially with their lack of back-up to Diego Costa and the fact that Pato has previous experience in an elite side. He hasn’t played since November though so how quickly he can help Chelsea will depend on how quickly he gets up to speed, especially given the rough nature of the Premier League.

Interim boss Guus Hiddink wasn’t afraid to air his views about the January transfer window. He warned Chelsea not to do anything “stupid” during the month and claimed only “desperate” sides do business midway through the season. The Dutchman also confirmed any major transfer plans would be on hold because of the doubts about the managerial position long term so a quiet month was little surprise.

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Shaktar Donetsk forward Alex Teixeira could have been pursued harder, after talks about a deal last year, and if Chelsea had a permanent manager in place he may have been in SW6 by now. Instead, he chose to join a growing number of players China, not that he can be blamed considering the astronomical wages on offer. The pursuit of their major striker targets – the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Gonzalo Higuaín – all proved fruitless, especially as all of their respective clubs are enjoying better seasons than the Blues.

One of the biggest disappointments will be the failure to offload flop striker Radamel Falcao. He’s had a nightmare at Chelsea with only one goal in all competitions and has been out injured since October. The club would have moved him on if they could find a taker, although the transfer window is still open in China so there is still hope.

The summer window will be a big one for Chelsea as they have now not done any major strengthening for two consecutive windows. They missed a trick when they failed to strengthen from a position of winners to all out dominators of the league in the summer after winning the title, which has been one of the main reasons why the team are in their current predicament.

Their lack of business was one of the sources of tension that contributed to their woes this season. Chelsea not being busy in January was less of a surprise but things should be very different in the summer. This season has shown they need significant investment in their squad, in numerous positions. However, given the restrictions that FFP rules now place on teams a serious overhaul of the squad will be difficult and only be able to happen if players such as Oscar are allowed to leave to leave for big bucks.

Chelsea’s January window reflected the uncertainty surrounding the managerial situation and how their season stands. It would have been difficult to bring in certain big-money signings, knowing their new long-term manager may not want them in six months’ time. Chelsea also didn’t need to sign a player or players to give them a boost in the league. The title has gone, surely Champions League football too, and even just making the top six is an uphill task.

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That situation reduced Chelsea’s need for reinforcements. Meanwhile, they still have enough experience and quality to claw their way back up the table into a more respectable position than their current one, still lying a couple of places below midway. They may have struggled for consistency in the league but those players are still good enough to produce the one-off results needed to make progress in the cup competitions.

Chelsea’s two additions wouldn’t have left fans licking their lips with excitement but only making minor changes is understandable given their predicament on and off the pitch, and there is still hope that these two players can be successful and tools for the future considering their both still young.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Levi Bianco