Here are your Chelsea morning headlines for Thursday, October 1.
Chelsea want Rudiger contract extension before defender leaves
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has been told he will not be leaving the club on loan unless he signs a contract extension, according to The Mirror.
The Germany international has been linked with a move to Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United after being told he is surplus to requirements by Blues boss Frank Lampard.
West Ham want Rudiger on a season-long loan, while Spurs will look to sign the 27-year-old should their pursuit of Inter defender Milan Skriniar fall cold.
But Rudiger will not be allowed to leave before penning a 12-month extension to protect his transfer value.
Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain have also been linked with Rudiger, who joined Chelsea from Roma in 2017.
Lampard’s set-piece failings
Lampard must improve Chelsea’s inability to defend set-pieces or risk wasting one of the biggest transfer splurges in history, writes football.london’s Alan Smith.
Chelsea’s vulnerability at set-pieces was once again brutally exposed during last week’s 3-3 draw away to West Bromwich Albion.
For Kyle Bartley’s goal, the Baggies’ third, Darnell Furlong was given far too much space on the edge of the box prior to finding Bartley, who had managed to elude the Chelsea defence.
While Lampard later lamented “individual errors”, it is perhaps time he sought the help of a set-piece specialist as he looks to cement Chelsea’s place as Premier League title contenders.
Chilwell spend justified
Recent poor performances from Marcos Alonso and Emerson Palmieri have vindicated Chelsea’s purchase of Ben Chilwell, believes football.london Chelsea correspondent Oliver Harbord.
Eyebrows were raised when the Blues shelled out £50million for the Leicester City left-back.
However, this past week has reinforced the idea that Lampard needed to strengthen his options in that area.
Alonso was hooked at half-time during the West Brom game following an error-strewn display while Emerson was culpable for Tottenham’s equaliser in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup clash.
