da luck： Chelsea transfer chiefs are said to be big fans of a young "superstar" abroad, and they think he'll suit Mauricio Pochettino's vision "perfectly".
Chelsea form under Pochettino
da bwin： Pochettino's side were on a slightly upward trajectory from the end of September; winning three out of a possible three against Brighton, Fulham and Burnley across all competitions. However, their last two games have seen Chelsea take a backward step. They squandered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Arsenal the weekend before last, and Brentford inflicted a fourth defeat of the season for Pochettino on Saturday.
This comes after the Todd Boehly-lead club spent nearly £400 million on new recruits in the summer transfer window, with Pochettino frankly admitting Chelsea are "far away" from where he wants them to be.
"Far away, to measure, metres, centimetres or kilometres," said Pochettino on Chelsea's 2-0 loss to Brentford.
"We talk about result, we talk about performance, we need to improve, we're still improving. We need to recover our players, the circumstances from the beginning didn't help at the moment to improve in different areas in the way that we want.
"We are at the beginning of a very strong team, the mentality is there, much better than we started. We are happy with how we have evolved from day one but still far away from what we expect from our team and us. We are Chelsea and we know our responsibility is massive and about winning."
There is still plenty of time for the Premier League giants to recover, but Pochettino couldn't have asked for a tougher top-flight test next. Chelsea take on high-flying Tottenham away next Monday, a game which arguably stands out as their most challenging to date.
Chelsea chiefs want to sign Florian Wirtz
There are clearly still holes in this Chelsea team, which may well be resolved by more forrays in the transfer market. Pochettino is keen to sign Ivan Toney from Brentford as he seeks a new striker, for instance, while Chelsea could be tempted by signing Gavi from Barcelona as well.
Now, according to a report by Dean Jones for TEAMtalk, Chelsea are targeting Florian Wirtz too. The German "superstar", as they call him, is lighting up the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen this season. Wirtz has scored two goals and assisted four others in just nine league outings so far this season, and it is believed Blues chiefs are huge admirers.
Those at Chelsea believe the 20-year-old fits "perfectly" into Pochettino's vision and think he could be a major asset for the west Londoners. However, they're not alone in their admiration of Wirtz, as Premier League champions Man City, Arsenal and Tottenham have checked in on the player too.
Dribbling
Key passes
Passing
Through balls
Holding on to the ball
To further back his quality, Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso has likened Wirtz to Lionel Messi.
“There are good players and there are players who look good on the pitch. The player who looks good does things that are nice, but not necessarily efficient," said Alonso.
“Why is Messi so good? Because he knows how and when to play simple passes. Messi says: ‘You’re in a better position? Here, there you have the ball!’ It’s not always about making the most brilliant move, but the best and smartest. Florian can do that. That’s why he’s so good.”