Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante has been able to build his reputation as one of the best defensive midfielders in world football. He was a relatively unknown quantity at Leicester City before his massive contribution to the miracle of the 2015/16 Premier League campaign.

Kante was a major act alongside Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez as Leicester City overcame title-winning odds of 5000/1 to pull off a league title win. The Frenchman formed a potent midfield partnership with Danny Drinkwater who’s also a Chelsea player though he is presently at fellow Premier League side Aston Villa whom he joined on loan in January.

Apart from his quality, N’Golo Kante has also been very consistent until this season. He has rarely been injured, whether it was at Leicester City or at Chelsea who signed him shortly after his Leicester City heroics in 2016. The 2019/20 season has been a disappointing one for Kante in comparison to the four seasons before it.

Kante won the title in his first season at Leicester City during the 2015/16 season before repeating the feat during the feat upon his Chelsea transfer. He went on to win the 2018 FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia with the French national team as well as the 2019 Europa League title.

His injury problems have impacted on his once admired consistency in recent months dating back to the Watford game on May 5, 2019. The genesis of his many injuries started with a hamstring problem during that game before a subsequently picked up knee issue almost derailed his appearance in the Europa League final match with Arsenal last year.

The 2019/20 season was been injury filled for Kante and Chelsea until the Coronavirus pandemic halted football in March. The player is now expected to miss the rest of the season as from next month when Premier League football will finally resume as a result of Coronavirus and this decision has been backed by both the club and his teammates.

Kante has not tested positive for the virus but the Frenchman had respiratory issues during the lockdown and he’s almost scared to play football again professionally with the threat of Coronavirus still lurking around. He has a history with respiratory and heart-related issues especially after he fainted in front of his Blues teammates some years ago before he was cleared of any heart problem.

He is a major player for Chelsea who are in the hunt for top four and Champions League football for next season but his teammates have decided that the best thing is to prioritise him and his health over football as pointed out by Chelsea goalkeeper Willy Caballero earlier this week.

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard deserves some accolades for the way that he has been able to introduce a lot of the young players into regular first team football at the club. Several football stakeholders had their reservations about Lampard and how he will thrive in his first big job as a professional football manager but he has been able to prove the doubters wrong in his first season as the Blues boss.

Lampard is very popular amongst the Chelsea supporters having enjoyed a hugely successful playing career with the club. He holds the record for the most goals in a Chelsea shirt even as a midfielder.

The ex-England international was very impressive in his first managerial job at Derby County last season and that prompted his elevation from the English Championship to the Premier League after just one season with the Rams. His appointment coincided with a transfer ban imposed on the Blues for breaching rules on the transfer of young players and this left Frank Lampard with just old players plus young players to work with for the current season. Lampard has been able to get the best out of these young players from leading goalscorer Tammy Abraham to teen midfielder Billy Gilmour to teen right-back Recce James and many more.

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Some of these young players have been lined up for new squad numbers as from next season which will kick off in few months time. Here are the top three players earmarked for new squad numbers:

1. Reece James – The England junior international has made the right-back spot his own at Chelsea. He currently wears the jersey number 24 at the club.

2. Fikayo Tomori – The Chelsea no. 29 has been able to establish himself as one of the four centre backs at the club upon his return from a successful loan spell at Derby County last season.

3. Billy Gilmour – The young midfielder wears jersey number 47 and he’s the youngest player on the Chelsea first team.

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has targeted the forward positions ahead of the transfer market this summer. Lampard and Chelsea have been overreliant on first choice striker Tammy Abraham since the start of the current campaign and the Blues boss is keen to rectify this situation ahead of the new season expected to start later this year.

Tammy Abraham has been the regular source of goals at Chelsea this season, while other forwards have failed in this regard. The Blues suffered a major dip in form when their only consistent goalscorer Tammy Abraham struggled with injury around the winter time.

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Lampard and Chelsea have already made a move to add more goals to their attack in the form of Hakim Ziyech who would join the club from Dutch champions Ajax Amsterdam and the Blues boss is still looking to bolster that department of his team. Here are the top three forward targets for Lampard and Chelsea:

1. Moussa Dembele – The former Fulham and Celtic player has been a consistent goal getter for Lyon in the French Ligue 1 this season. He scored 16 goals in the league before the present league season was ended in France due to the dreaded Coronavirus. Moussa Dembele was a major transfer target for Chelsea during the January transfer window and the club still retains an interest in him. Lyon might sell some of their stars this summer as they try to recover from the lack of European football for the first time in over two decades.

2. Dries Mertens – The Napoli attacker will be a free agent this summer and Chelsea are one of the clubs in the mix to sign him on a free transfer. The Belgian international came close to joining Chelsea in January but they were not able to pull off a deal for him.

3. Timo Werner – Liverpool are the favourites to sign the RB Leipzig attacker this summer but Chelsea and Bayern Munich are not far behind.

The Premier League has witnessed a lot of footballers under the age of 20 this season and they have produced impressive performances for their respective clubs. Teenage footballers like Mason Greenwood  (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Billy Gilmour and Reece James (Chelsea) and many more have shone for their clubs this season.

Premier League managers are beginning to put a lot of faith in youth despite their inexperience and these young footballers have rewarded their managers with their performances on the pitch.

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Let’s examine the best three performers amongst the teenage footballers this season:

• Bukayo Saka

The Nigerian-born England junior international winger has been one of the best players at Arsenal. He was good at the start of the season before his performances became even better with the appointment of Mikel Arteta as the Gunners boss in December 2019. He has contributed four goals and eight assists in all competitions this season. Bukayo Saka has also been a versatile player as he has played as a winger and as a fullback.

• Mason Greenwood

The young Manchester United came through the ranks at Old Trafford before making his debut last season. The English attacker has benefited from the exit of Romelu Lukaku who signed for Inter Milan last summer for a fee said to be around £74m. Mason Greenwood is one of two Premier League teenagers to score at least 10 goals in all competitions this season.

• Gabriel Martinelli

Few would have expected Gabriel Martinelli to hit the ground running for Arsenal following his £6m move from Brazilian club Ituano at the start of this season. He shone in the cup competitions at the start of the season before being handed the chance to impress in the Premier League around the wintertime and the Brazilian youngster didn’t pass up the opportunity. He produced his best moment of the season when he scored one of the best Premier League goals of the season during the 2-2 draw at Chelsea in January.

Five-time European champions Barcelona are expected to get rid of deadwoods or the non-performing players in their squad and Philippe Coutinho is expected to be on that list.

Few would have predicted this in January 2018 when Brazilian international Coutinho became the third most expensive player in the world after compatriot Neymar and his PSG colleague Kylian Mbappe. Philippe Coutinho was a key player for Liverpool at that time and was having the best moment of his career before he forced a move to the Nou Camp.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp reluctantly sanctioned the £142m transfer to Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho and that decision to leave Anfield for Spain has been the biggest stumbling block in his career. Coutinho has not been able to recover his sparkling Liverpool form since he left.

The former Inter Milan playmaker was a shadow of himself during his 18 months at Barcelona before the club decided that it was time to send him on loan. He was loaned out to German champions Bayern Munich for this season but has failed to find that form though it must be pointed out that his performances in Germany has improved in comparison to the ones at the Nou Camp.

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Despite his improved form, Bayern Munich won’t take up the option of signing him meaning that Barcelona will have to cut their losses and sell him permanently this summer. Barcelona will have a hard time offloading the player since there are only a handful of clubs capable of paying his transfer fee plus huge weekly wages.

Let’s take a look at the top three clubs for him ahead of next season:

1. Chelsea – The West London giants could be a perfect place for Coutinho to rekindle his form. Chelsea have been linked with the player and he could be the man to replace Eden Hazard.

2. PSG – Coutinho has a very good relationship/understanding with Brazilian national team colleague Neymar and they could re-enact the same for French giants Paris Saint Germain (PSG) who are keen to sign star player Neymar to a new deal.

3. Liverpool – A return to former hunting ground Anfield would appeal to a lot of football romantics. Coutinho has been constantly linked with a return to Liverpool since failing to find top form at Barcelona.

Jurgen Klopp and his Liverpool players showed ruthless form this season especially in the Premier League where they won all but two league games before the Coronavirus forced the suspension of matches at the end of week 29. Liverpool have not won the league for three decades until this season and it looks like that drought will end in this campaign as long as the league resumes.

Liverpool need just two wins from the last nine games to wrap up the title. Despite their dominance, the club still wants to strengthen their squad with the Klopp project interesting players both in and out of the Premier League.

The Reds have been eyeing some players ahead of the 2020/21 season and we will take a look at the top five targets from the list of players under their radar.

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1. Timo Werner – Left for German international Timo Werner, he would be a Liverpool player by now as the RB Leipzig forward has been impressed with the Jurgen Klopp project at the club as per the various media outlets in the United Kingdom. Timo Werner is a key player for his German Bundesliga outfit but it would be difficult for the club to hang on to his services after this campaign.

2. Jadon Sancho – The Borussia Dortmund player is a wanted man amongst the big Premier League teams. Apart from Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea are also on his trail though the Red Devils are ahead of the other two teams as per media reports.

3. Jamaal Lewis – The Norwich City left-back has been one of the bright spots for the Canaries who are at the bottom of the Premier League table and are facing relegation at the end of this season. He is a target for Liverpool who need a deputy for first choice left-back Andy Robertson.

4. Kai Havertz – The Bayer Leverkusen playmaker is a target for Liverpool this summer though his price tag believed to be around €100m could be a big issue.

5. Declan Rice – The West Ham United is a long-term target for the Reds. He has also been linked with rivals Manchester United.

The future of Kepa Arrizabalaga as the number one goalkeeper at Chelsea is still far from certain and that has led to various transfer rumours involving the West London club and several shot stoppers. The likes of Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope and Ajax Amsterdam goalie Andre Onana have been linked with a summer transfer to Chelsea.

Spanish international Kepa lost his place in the Chelsea starting team at the beginning of the year as he was dropped to the bench. Veteran Argentine goalkeeper Willy Caballero came into the starting XI during this period before the Spaniard was able to reclaim his place back in Frank Lampard’s team.

Kepa seems to have lost the trust of Frank Lampard mainly because of his shaky performances this season and that could play a big part in his future at the club. The world’s most expensive goalkeeper is in his second season at Stamford Bridge after £71m was paid for his move from La Liga side Athletic Bilbao.

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Latest media reports claimed that previously mentioned Ajax Amsterdam shot stopper Andre Onana is the favourites to replace Kepa Arrizabalaga at Chelsea if the club is able to secure his transfer away from home. Andre Onana has come a long way from his time as a teenager at Spanish champions Barcelona.

Chelsea will have to contend with Barcelona who want Cameroonian international Onana back at the club. Andre Onana has become one of the best goalkeepers in European football especially after his heroics for Ajax Amsterdam last season when the Dutch champions surprised a lot of football fans by reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League at the expense of teams like Real Madrid and Juventus.

Chelsea will have to get rid of both Kepa and Barcelona to get to their transfer target Andre Onana.

Transfer Ratings for Andre Onana to Chelsea: 3/10.

One of the most surprising pre-summer transfer news for this year is the reported interest of Arsenal in Chelsea winger Willian on a free transfer. The Brazilian player will be a free agent in the coming weeks and several clubs are on his trail despite the fact that the possibility of him staying at Chelsea has not been completely ruled out.

London clubs Arsenal and Chelsea enjoy a fierce rivalry spanning decades but the two clubs rarely conducted transfer businesses together until the tension generated from the Ashley Cole-William Gallas swap during the start of the Wenger vs Mourinho rivalry. The swap deal heightened the animosity between Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho as the former was reluctant to let Ashley Cole leave for Stamford Bridge.

The tension between Wenger and Mourinho eased during the second coming of the latter as the Blues boss in 2014 though that didn’t stop roles from being reversed on the transfer front as the Portuguese tactician was not willing to sell Petr Cech to Arsenal and Arsene Wenger in the summer of 2015. His Chelsea bosses gave the go ahead for the transfer of the now retired goalkeeper.

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Since the Cech transfer, Arsenal have sold French striker Olivier Giroud to Chelsea to further suggest that the two teams no longer have issues doing transfer business with each other. Despite the ease of transfer between Arsenal and Chelsea, the aforementioned Willian transfer links to the Gunners is still surprising.

Arsenal are not the only club keen to take Willian on a free transfer this summer with other Premier League rivals like Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur also interested in him. Latest media reports say that Arsenal are the favourites to sign Willian and here is why:

1. Brazilian contingent – Willian is good friends with David Luiz who left Chelsea for Arsenal last summer. David Luiz is said to be the underground agent pitching the idea of an Arsenal transfer to Willian. Young attacker Gabriel Martinelli is another Brazilian at the Emirates Stadium.

2. Contract Length – Brazilian international Willian wants at least a three-year deal this summer and Chelsea are not ready to offer him that. Willian could get that at Arsenal who have offered him a two-year contract according to widespread reports.