Batshuayi set to follow Fabregas to France

Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi looks set to join Ligue 1 side Monaco in the very near future, on what would be a six-month loan deal. Former team mate Cesc Fabregas recently joined Thierry Henry’s men, and Batshuayi looks to replicate this move – joining up with his former Belgian national team mentor.

Batshuayi waves goodbye to Spain

Following a successful 6-month loan spell in Germany with Borussia Dortmund last year, where the Belgian amassed an impressive seven goals and one assist in ten league games, much was expected from his move to Spain with Valencia. However, Batshuayi has disappointed in Spain and has only notched one goal in 15 La Liga appearances for Los Che. Due to this, Chelsea saw it fit to cut his loan spell short and look to continue his development elsewhere.

Interestingly, during his time in Spain, Batshuayi did become the first player to score in the top leagues of England, France, Spain and Germany in the 21st Century. A very impressive accolade without a doubt, yet that goal proved to be his only one for Valencia. The Belgian was heavily linked with a move to Merseyside to link up with Marco Silva at Everton, yet the move never materialised and the ‘Batsman’ now looks set to head to Monaco.

Hammers staying quiet

Whilst the January transfer window has been relatively quiet for all Premier League teams thus far, one man being continually linked with a move away is Marko Arnautovic of West Ham. The Austrian looks all but certain to join Shanghai SIPG of China in a £35million deal. However, this has read some to question why the Hammers are not looking to Batsuahyi has a suitable replacement for the outgoing striker. Yet, a move to east London has failed to even be rumoured, much to some fans’ disdain.

The Hammers do currently have Javier Hernandez and Andy Carroll on their books, but replacing Arnautovic looks to be a daunting task as he has been such a pivotal player for them in the last 18 months.

What the Blues need?

There has been some clamour from within the Chelsea fan base for Batshuayi to instead remain at Chelsea for the remainder of the season. The Blues have been struggling with their forwards this season, with both Alvaro Morata and Oliver Giroud both out of favour under current manager Maurizio Sarri – instead, Eden Hazard has often been deployed as a false-9. However, Batshuayi may be the perfect player to fit in to Sarri’s style, due to his lethal pace and poaching ability within the box. Chelsea fans may need to wait another six months for this to become a reality though.

An interesting move that may have suited all parties, would have been a swap deal between West Ham and Chelsea. Arnautoivc to Stamford Bridge and Batshuayi to the London Stadium may have been the most ideal move for both teams. Arnautovic, who is currently playing the best football of his career, would be given the opportunity to test himself at the highest level, whilst Batshuayi would be given a second opportunity to become a pivotal player in the Premier League.

However, Batshuayi will instead look to reign in France once more, whilst Arnautovic looks set to cash in on a large pay cheque (or take a footballing risk in a developing league, depending on your point of view). And thus, Chelsea’s search for a dominant No. 9 will continue throughout the whole transfer window.