Gary Neville believes Chelsea remain three signings away from competing for the Premier League title, despite their heavy investment in recent transfer windows. Speaking after Chelsea’s 2-1 win over West Ham, Neville pointed to their struggles in goal, attack, and central defense as areas that still need improvement.
While Enzo Maresca’s side showed early promise this season, their form dipped dramatically after mid-December, derailing any hopes of a title challenge. Before the West Ham victory, they had won just once in their previous seven league matches.
Neville singled out the goalkeeper position as a major issue, with Filip Jorgensen recently replacing Robert Sanchez, who has made more errors leading to goals than any other keeper in the league. However, the former United captain believes a new striker and potentially a center-back are also essential to Chelsea’s ambitions.
“They need improvements in two or three positions, and they will know that as well,” Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast. “It’s not just a case of these players developing and winning the league. They will need to add to the squad. In goalkeeper, center-forward, maybe a center-back, they’re going to need to improve.”
Chelsea’s attacking struggles have been particularly evident, with Nicolas Jackson failing to find the net in his last eight appearances. Maresca substituted the Senegalese striker shortly after halftime against West Ham, highlighting his ongoing issues in front of goal.
Despite calls for reinforcements, Chelsea had a quiet January transfer window, focusing on trimming their squad rather than making big-money additions. Maresca, however, remains optimistic about his squad’s progress, saying after the West Ham game:
“When West Ham sit back with 10 players behind the ball, it’s not easy, so you have to be mentally strong and patient. We had more than 10 shots in the first half, clear chances, but we missed the target. We completely deserved to win the game.”
On his decision to replace Sanchez with Jorgensen, Maresca added: “Right now, Robert needs rest, and Filip was very good.”
With a young squad still developing under Maresca, Chelsea’s long-term prospects look promising. However, as Neville suggests, without key signings in the summer, they may struggle to mount a serious title challenge next season.