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Chelsea backed to ‘drastically improve’ next season after Graham Potter’s £300m+ January transfer spend

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(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

Chelsea are hoping to improve on their poor first half of the season as they embark on the second part of the 2022/23 campaign.

Graham Potter’s side are currently ninth in the Premier League and chances of a successful season for Chelsea are looking extremely slim unless they manage to go on an incredible run of form.

They are ten points off the Premier League top four and have a last-16 Champions League tie next week when they face Borussia Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park for the first leg.

Chelsea spent in excess of £300 million during the January transfer window to bolster their squad for the present and future.

David Datro Fofana, Benoit Badiashile, Andrey Santos, Joao Felix (loan), Mykhailo Mudryk, Noni Madueke, Malo Gusto (loaned back to Lyon) and Enzo Fernandez were all acquired, which has seen the Blues come under pressure and scrutiny for their lavish spending since the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership took over in May 2022.

“It’s not just Enzo, it’s the whole team,” responded Potter, when quizzed on the new signings being taunted for their price-tags. “It’s normal because we have spent the money we have spent and you guys aren’t going to let that go under the radar, so all of football will be singing that (what a waste of money) song.”

When Chelsea will get up to speed and in full flow with their new squad remains unclear. Potter delivered his verdict, admitting: “I don’t think anyone could give you a timescale. If I could get a month for every time I was asked that question I would be here for five years.”

Chelsea will be hoping they will make an instant difference to propel them up the table to push for a European qualification spot come the end of the season.

Meanwhile, former Chelsea defender Glen Johnson believes the club will see the new signings make more of an impact from next season, rather that immediate different between now and the end of the season.

He told Betfred: “I don’t know if anything is going to happen too quickly if I’m being honest. When clubs sign two or three players, there’s always one player that doesn’t hit the ground running and requires time to bed in.

“None of them have been bought to walk straight into the side because a number of them will be fighting it out for the same positions, and fighting over positions can sometimes cause unrest in squads. I think it’s going to take the new signings a while to bed into the Premier League and discover what their manager wants from them.

“I don’t believe the new signings are going to change anything for Chelsea overnight, but once Graham Potter has been with them for the course of this season and once they’ve all had a full pre-season, then I expect them to drastically improve in the next campaign.”

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