Ashley Cole has warned Chelsea fans they must be patient to see the best from their big-money summer signings.
Frank Lampard has spent heavily this summer in a bid to try and close the gap on the Premier League’s top two, Liverpool and Manchester City.
Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner, Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz, Thiago Silva and Malang Sarr have arrived – and the business won’t end there.
Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy is expected to complete a £20million transfer, while West Ham United’s Declan Rice has been linked with a mega-money move.
Werner has looked lively in Chelsea’s opening two games – a win at Brighton & Hove Albion and defeat to Liverpool – but is yet to score.
Thiago Silva, Chilwell and Ziyech are yet to get to full fitness, while Havertz has so far struggled and was taken off at half-time against the Reds.
And Cole believes patience is the key.
“How much quality they have there is frightening and exciting at the same time,” Cole told Sky Sports. “Yes, we’ve added loads of quality into the team.
“With Thiago Silva, we’ve added experience as well.
“We’re going to have to be patient at times to wait for them to gel. It’s definitely looking way more exciting than it was towards the late stage of last season.”
Despite struggling to impact either game since his big-money move from Bayer Leverkusen, big things are expected from Havertz.
“He’s a very, very high quality player,” Cole said.
“It was his first game against Brighton where he had just two days of training with the team, so it’s tough.
“He’s just finding his feet, getting into the team, understanding the way Frank wants to play, but we’re definitely going to see great things from this guy because he’s such a great talent.”
