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As had been expected back in March, Bayern Munich are back in for Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi this summer transfer window. Having failed to land him in previous transfer window(s), the Bavarian giants are returning with a larger bid.
According to the Sunday Mail, they will put forth a new bid worth approximately €50 million, a 25% increase over the €40m they offered for the rights to the 18-year-old on January transfer window deadline day.
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Can Christian Pulisic develop into the kind of player that could replace Eden Hazard at Chelsea? Well, one Borussia Dortmund club legend who we had an exclusive conversation with earlier this summer believes it’s possible, and the beginning of the journey to the answer of this question begins this week.
As we reported last week, Pulisic will take a very very short break after the conclusion of his international duty with the United States, and join up with the rest of the Chelsea side in Japan on their preseason exhibition tour. The 20-year-old American winger will fly out tomorrow and join up with the rest of his new mates on Tuesday, recently minted manager Frank Lampard confirmed.
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Frank Lampard, 41, featured 429 times in a Chelsea FC shirt and scored 147 goals for the west London side. However, he didn’t lead them to a victory as manager at the club until today. Sure, it was a friendly, but a win is a win, especially given how the last time out the Englishman saw a stalemate snatched away from the jaws of victory on Wednesday versus Bohemians.
On the heels of a 1-1 draw in midweek, a match which saw the equalizer scored against his side in the 89,’ Frank Lampard and his Blues cruised to a 4-0 win over St. Patrick’s in Dublin.
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As we reported a week ago, new Chelsea star man Christian Pulisic will join up with the squad for their friendlies in Japan. Last Saturday, we spoke with Pulisic in the USMNT player mixed zone ahead of the Gold Cup Final loss to Mexico at Solider Field in Chicago.
We asked him about his summer vacation (or lack thereof), and if he plans to take some time off in between international duty with the USA and preseason activities with Chelsea. “Not very much at all, but I’m excited to get start up,” Pulisic responded before telling another reporter in the mixed zone, “a few days, maybe” in response to a very similar query.
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The preseason exhibition slate has now started for Chelsea FC meaning the Frank Lampard era has officially begun. Yes, it won’t be long until the season begins for real, on August 11 at Old Trafford against Manchester United. On Wednesday night though, the result was a 1-1 draw versus Bohemian FC in Dublin, a match that saw a stalemate snatched from the jaws of victory.
“It was a tough game for us,” Lampard said of his first game in charge of the club where he is the all time leading scorer. “We haven’t been back for long and this was our first game after just a few days so there was a bit of pressure on the lads to work today.”
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The start of the new 2019/20 Premier League season is less than a month away and clubs are starting to do big business in preparation. The transfer window is a crucial time for all clubs. They need to get their transfers right otherwise the season ahead will most likely be a disappointment. And nobody wants that, least of all the fans!
So which footballers are on the move and who has commanded the biggest transfer fees so far in the transfer window?
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The preseason is here as Chelsea have two friendlies this week in Dublin- Wednesday against Bohemians and then Saturday afternoon versus St. Patrick’s. Let’s check in on what news items are currently circulating in the Chelsea FC cyberspace, Twitterverse, message boards and other online communities.
We start first with “Wonder Boy” Christian Pulisic, who claimed the Young Player of the 2019 Gold Cup tournament award. He was also named into the tourney’s Best XI, as he scored three times, and assisted on three more goals for the United States over the course of this past month.
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Expectations for new Chelsea arrival Christian Pulisic will be astronomical this season, as the club looks to adjust to life after Eden Hazard. Pulisic plays the same position, and he arrives at Stamford Bridge at a very critical, interesting time.
He was formally acquired in the winter from Borussia Dortmund, on a deal that shattered the record for an American player transfer fee, but he’ll make his debut in a Chelsea shirt this summer preseason. With Chelsea being hit by FIFA with a two window transfer ban, Pulisic is the de facto only summer addition for the west London side.
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There won’t be much, if any, summer holiday for Chelsea and United States winger Christian Pulisic. The man who generated the biggest transfer fee for an American player ever is going to hit the ground running this preseason for the Blues.
Once his international duty with the USMNT is complete this summer, culminating with the Gold Cup Final tonight versus Mexico at Soldier Field in Chicago, the 20-year-old will meet up with the rest of his new teammates in Europe. According to what Pulisic said himself in the mixed zone yesterday, he’ll have “a few days, maybe” off in between.
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When Alvaro Morata moved to Chelsea from Real Madrid in 2017, the move was met with much fanfare. Stamford Bridge had wanted Everton’s Romelu Lukaku instead, and Morata was thought to be headed to Manchester United.
It was basically a second choice for many involved, and starting out on the wrong foot wasn’t good for anybody really. Morata flopped at Chelsea (although to be fair Lukaku is definitely not living up to expectations at United either), and he moved back to Madrid, this time with Atletico, on loan in January.
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Thursday saw Chelsea FC unveiling what will be their only major acquisition this summer transfer window (well, second if you count the transaction making the Mateo Kovacic loan into a permanent acquisition). On July 4th Chelsea made it official: their all-time leading scorer, Frank Lampard, will be their new manager.
Lampard will be the third Blues boss in the past four seasons, as predecessor Maurizio Sarri left after one for Juventus, and the man who had the post before him, Antonio Conte (now leading Inter Milan) was sacked after just two years. Given the transfer ban placed on the club by FIFA, they won’t be able to sign any new players.
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By Rafael
The biggest question surrounding Chelsea ahead of this season is; how will they perform? A fair question to ask of any team, in any preseason, however in the case of Chelsea, there are three major factors that will or at least are expected to have an effect on their performance this upcoming term.
The first factor is their transfer ban, after some questionable business practices ultimately got them punished by FIFA. The ban will result in Chelsea not being able to sign any players during the next two transfer windows, which means Chelsea can not be buyers again until January 2020. While this alone might not seem like a big deal nowadays, being excluded from participating in transfers is a huge blow to any team.
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