Chelsea’s back four

Just when Chelsea fans were in 7th Heaven on top of the League, a recent performance against West Brom have left them starting to think of life after John Terry.

With the absence of Terry the Chelsea defence was left to the partnership of fellow Englishman Gary Cahill and Brazilian International David Luiz, a partnership that has never been popular amongst Chelsea fans.

Chelsea’s Back Four

It was a formidable pairing, especially as David Luiz provided Ivanovic the opener and his third goal of the season. Late in the game, however, Luiz was found lacking as the man to mark Anichebe, who found the back of the net with Gary Cahill limping back on and Terry unavailable.

John Terry has been known as the rock of the Chelsea defence for so many years despite his relapse in the previous season, and he’s still showing terrific form for a 33-year-old. But the question is, how many years do we still have in him?

Unlike keepers, whose form reduction can be spotted gradually, defenders’ form can drop at incredible rates, especially due to injury. This can lead to consequences if not backed up. An example of this would be Manchester United CBs Ferdinand and Vidic, and with Terry just recovering from an injury, I can start to imagine how severe they might be later in his career.

But with the acquisition of 20-year-old French defender Kurt Zouma from St. Etiene during the January transfer window, who is known to be quite aggressive (he’s coming back from a 10 match ban) we might actually have found an ideal player, maybe even a replacement for Terry when his retirement beckons.

Knowing Mourinho, he’ll be able to turn that aggression into physicality, which is exactly what a defender needs to excel in the English top flight.

Zouma recently had an outstanding stretch, going 18 matches without being beaten. These matches included Ligue 1 giants PSG and Monaco.

Another deal Chelsea might consider is bringing in Dortmund defender Mats Hummels. It would not be an easy task, but seeing as Dortmund is becoming somewhat of a sinking ship, a little bit of cash might be enough to bring the German to London.

Chelsea might also consider spending to bring another Brazilian to the Bridge, 20-year-old Marinqhous. But PSG, being a big money team, might not be willing to sell such a talented youngster for less than, say, £35 million. This same money could be spent on a striker, which Chelsea need the most.

Another option might be taking the risk of using our young talent and players on loan for the upcoming season. Players such as Ake and Omeruo could be used, but is this risk worth taking since Mourinho has personally said Chelsea will be lethal from day one? It seems big summer moves are looming.

Until then, Chelsea needs to work with what it has, and converting Ivanovic back to his natural position and moving Azpilicueta back to his could solve these problems.

Moving away from the centre, Chelsea have been linked with Southampton teen sensation Luke Shaw, who is a self-confessed Chelsea fan. This could prove to be an excellent signing, especially with Ashley Cole being excluded from the starting eleven for most of the season and complaints of the full backs not delivering good crosses for strikers feed off.

If any one of these suggestions would go through I am sure it would have nothing but a positive impact on the Chelsea defence. Comment below to share your thoughts.