Chelsea’s potential swoop for an £87m ace could greatly enhance Palmer’s performance Much like the 2022/23 Premier League season, 2023/24 has been one Chelsea fans have had to endure rather than enjoy. The Blues went into the campaign hopeful that new boss Mauricio Pochettino could lead their young group of inexperienced players to glory, but after 17 games, they are closer to 20th than 1st. However, there have been the odd bright spots here and there, perhaps the brightest being the arrival of Cole Palmer from Manchester City, who has taken like a duck to water in west London and often looks like one of the club’s best players when he steps on the pitch. He could look even better in the new year as the latest player linked with the club could form a deadly partnership with the youngster and supercharge his creative numbers, Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyökeres. Chelsea transfer news – Viktor Gyökeres According to the Evening Standard, Chelsea are incredibly interested in the Portuguese side’s prolific striker, Viktor Gyökeres, and have even inquired about a deal.
The Swedish international joined Sporting in the summer for a fee believed to be in the region of £20m, and as such, they are not keen to sell him this January, but Chelsea can bring him to west London if they are willing to pay his €100m – £87m – release clause. While the price is undoubtedly a significant obstacle to Todd Boehly and Co. completing this deal, the other and perhaps more significant one is the interest of city rivals Arsenal. That said, with ten goals and five assists in just 13 league appearances this year, Gyökeres is a player worth getting into a bidding war for. Viktor Gyökeres could supercharge Cole Palmer Now, one of the biggest problems at Chelsea this season has been the inability of forwards to finish their chances. The team are currently in fourth place in the expected goals table but fall all the way down to ninth in goals scored.
Palmer is a perfect example of a player this has impacted, as according to FBref, his expected assist figure in the league this season has stood at a genuinely impressive 0.47 per 90. In contrast, his actual assist figure is 0.28, just over half. This would suggest that the former City man is crafting quality chances for his teammates, and they simply are not scoring as often as they should based on the xG value of the opportunities. So, if Pochettino was able to add in the “one of a kind” Gyökeres, as described by his former manager Mark Robins, who has been able to score eight non-penalty goals from a non-penalty expected goals figure of just 4.2, Palmer should see his actual assist numbers start to reach and maybe even exceed his expected assists figure. Moreover, the rest of Gyökeres’ underlying numbers paint the picture of a Premier League-ready forward who could come in and fire the Blues back up the table.
He completes 3.88 progressive carries, 2.02 progressive passes, and 2.56 take-ons per 90, highlighting that he can be more than just a fox in the box for the Pensioners, although that would be his most significant selling point to this current Chelsea side.
Viktor Gyökeres Underlying Numbers.
(per 90) Non-Penalty Expected Goals 0.33 Non-Penalty Goals 0.78 Progressive Carries 3.88 Progressive Passes 2.02 Shots on Target 1.16 Shot-Creating Actions 3.86 Goal-Creating Actions 0.62 Successful Take-Ons 2.56 All Stats via FBref for the 2023/24 Domestic Season Ultimately, the “unplayable” number nine, as described by his former teammate Maxime Biamou, would be an incredibly useful player for a team as lacking in quality finishers as the Blues, and as such, the board should be doing all they can to get this deal over the line. Pochettino could supercharge Palmer’s assist numbers by bringing in a quality centre-forward sensation who has proven himself to be a terrific finisher this season.