Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has hinted at a major overhaul of his forward line this summer.
Mourinho ruled his side out of this season’s Premier League title race after the 1-0 defeat by Crystal Palace on Saturday despite them only losing top spot to Liverpool 24 hours later.
The reverse at Selhurst Park again brought his side’s relative struggle in front of goal into focus, with the majority of their league goals having come from attacking midfielders Eden Hazard, Oscar and Andre Schurrle.
Samuel Eto’o has scored only eight times, Fernando Torres just four and Demba Ba has been on target three times in limited Premier League appearances.
Mourinho could look to give Romelu Lukaku – he has scored 12 times for Everton on loan this season – a chance to shine and he is continually linked with a move for prolific Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa as well as a host of other strikers.
“I don’t think it’s the moment to speak about next season and the market but it’s clear to everybody that Chelsea next year wants to bring a striker,” said Mourinho.
“What’s the future for the other strikers? The ones who are staying are competing with the striker we are bringing [in]. And normally, at the end of the season, players that are not playing a lot or players who are not happy may prefer a change.
“That is also part of the market. We want to improve the team and the players and make some surgical movements in the transfer window.
“It’s also clear that we want to improve our players. I can’t and I don’t need to improve (Branislav) Ivanovic, (Gary) Cahill, John Terry.
“There are other guys I need to improve. I think we are doing that step by step, but it’s not enough to be champions.”
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