Chelsea’s transfer rumours are beginning to heat up.
Recents links have included Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho, Lyon striker Moussa Dembele and West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice.
The club are also reportedly keen on Leicester City’s Ben Chilwell, who has over the last couple of years emerged as one of the Premier League’s most promising full-backs.
Another player tipped to be part of Frank Lampard’s Stamford Bridge revolution is Miralem Pjanic.
According to Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport , Juventus are considering offloading the Bosnian to make room for one of their midfield targets, with Chelsea’s Jorginho thought to be chief among them.
Should Jorginho opt for a reunion with Maurizio Sarri, under whom he played at Napoli and Chelsea, the prospect of the Blues acquiring Pjanic’s services is an intriguing one.
While the former Roma favourite has just turned 30 and has experienced a dip in form this season, embarking on a new adventure as part of an interesting project in Lampard’s Chelsea could give him fresh impetus.
It could also benefit Chelsea, at both ends of the pitch.
While Pjanic has primarily operated in a deeper berth during his four years at Juventus, he deservedly gained a reputation as one of Serie A’s most creative midfielders while at Roma.
Indeed, during the 2015/16 season – his last at the Stadio Olimpico – he was directly involved in 22 goals with 10 goals and 12 assists.
The subsequent declining numbers don’t necessarily reflect a diminished output, rather a tactical shift – first under Massimiliano Allegri then under Maurizio Sarri – which has seen him operate as the deepest in a midfield three.
Pjanic has the technical skills and positional sense to expertly perform this prospective role at Chelsea, which would allow Mason Mount and Mateo Kovacic to drive forward and create chances further up the pitch.
Lampard would also have N’Golo Kante, Ross Barkley and emerging teenage Billy Gilmour at his disposal, affording the Blues boss depth and variety with regards to his midfield options.
Lampard is not trying to construct a ‘Sarri-ball’ sequel at Stamford Bridge – in fact, his switch to a more intense, high-pressing model has been embraced by those who grew tired of Sarri’s death-by-passing approach.
However, a complete midfielder who can act as a deep-lying playmaker and a defensive shield is an attractive proposition, hence the reported interest in Pjanic.
The Bosnian has the spatial awareness to receive the ball from centre-backs and progress up the pitch, but can also be effective without the ball, having averaged an interception every 64 minutes during the 2019/20 Serie A campaign.
In the 2017/18 season, when Pjanic was arguably at his peak, he directly contributed to 13 goals, created 68 chances and made 64 interceptions, ranking him 13th and ninth in the last two categories respectively.
Pjanic isn’t the showiest midfielder; he will not, for example, tear an opponent apart with pace and skill, nor will he score handfuls of spectacular goals from open-play. However, he relishes the more under-the-radar tasks in a midfielder’s make-up; the progressive passes, the shielding of the back four, controlling the tempo and the ability to remain unflappable up against a high press.
Chelsea have been thrilling and self-destructive in equal measure this season. While they have scored 51 goals, they have conceded 39, with Tottenham and Burnley (both 40) the only top-10 sides to have shipped more.
Addressing that issue will require improvement throughout the team, of course, but Pjanic can offer Lampard a sense of balance and control, two priceless commodities in any system.
