Chelsea icon Joe Cole has labelled Blues target Raheem Sterling 'important' and believes the Three Lions international has the winning 'mentality' which could suit new owner Todd Boehly and manager Thomas Tuchel amid the club's Ousmane Dembele dilemma.
With only a few days to go until the transfer window officially opens for business, multiple clubs are currently busy putting plans into place regarding how they intend to conduct themselves in the upcoming market. The Blues are expected to be one of the busiest of the Premier League clubs in terms of working on incomings and outgoings in a period that could see the current World Champions spend a total of £200million.
A figure which has been validated by Chief Chelsea Correspondent Adam Newson in his latest football.london Q&A segment: "From what I understand, that £200million would also factor in money from players sales. But to be honest, there's always an element of manoeuvrability in terms of the 'war chest'. There are a few centre-backs the club have shortlisted as the look to replace Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen – which includes Jose Gimenez, Pau Torres and Presnel Kimpembe – while Borna Sosa is a potential option at left wing-back if Marcos Alonso and Emerson move on.
READ MORE: Chelsea's £120m transfer choice to close Man City and Liverpool gap amid Raheem Sterling offer
"Everyone at this point knows the club like Declan Rice, although that is looking incredibly difficult to do this summer, and in terms of attackers, Raphinha was being looked at and had Leeds gone down, an approach would almost certainly have been made, but he will now cost a significant price.
"I think the key to potential arrivals in the final third – barring Dembele because of his contract situation – will depend on who from the current attack moves on: the futures of Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic, Timo Werner and Romelu Lukaku are all up in the air at the moment."
One of the names mentioned is Dembele, who reportedly has his heart set on a West London reunion with the boss who got the best out of him during their Borussia Dortmund days together. But should the Blues just settle on the free signing or should they be a little more ambitious, just like Liverpool are planning to be with a potential Darwin Nunez capture and splash some significant funds on attacking reinforcements with most of the focus expected to be on the defensive rebuild?
Well, former Blues midfielder Joe Cole has inadvertently recommended Chelsea linked Raheem Sterling, who is currently valued at £77million, to Boehly with his 'important' admission made before the Nations League clash between bitter rivals Germany and England.
"He is massively important and he has developed into a leader and we saw that at the Euros," Cole said pre-match on Channel 4.
"He had a difficult season leading up to it but at the tournament he just came alive. In big moments, big players take the game by the scruff of the neck and make things happen.
"He has become a goalscorer, he is not a natural finisher but he gets himself in the right positions and always gets the job done. When he was coming through at Liverpool as this emerging talent when I was there, the one thing that struck me was his mentality, he worked so hard and people don’t see that."
The 27-year-old played the full 90 minutes in Munich on Tuesday evening as Gareth Southgate's side rescued a valuable point courtesy of Harry Kane's brilliance from the penalty spot once again.
Chelsea fans - Would you want to see Todd Boehly and the new board splash significant funds this summer on a player like Raheem Sterling? Leave your thoughts down below in the comments section!
