Player Focus: Why Draxler and Schürrle Aren't Chelsea's Priority

Jose Mourinho’s long awaited return to Chelsea is complete and with it hoards of swooning fans in West London are satisfied that the glory days in the Premier League are set to return.

The club can now start to play their hand with regards to transfer dealings this summer, but the reports to date have been somewhat confusing.

The Blues’ strong suit last season was their midfield, and in particular an attacking trident behind either Fernando Torres or Demba Ba. Why, then, the club are being linked to a number of options in similar positions is baffling to many.

Apparent interest in players that would disrupt Chelsea's attacking midfield trio of Oscar, Mata and Hazard just don't seem to make much sense.

While a long-standing interest in Andre Schürrle looks as though it may be thwarted by Mourinho this summer, the club have since been touted with a move for Schalke's teenage sensation Julian Draxler. The youngster ,however, is perhaps even more similar to the players already at the club than the Leverkusen man.

Draxler has moved inside from a similar position on the left following the sale of Lewis Holtby to Tottenham, and is enjoying a more traditional number 10 role.

It's a position that is currently occupied by fans favourite - and for good reason - Juan Mata, while Oscar's preference is undoubtedly to play in a central role and Hazard also expressed a desire to move infield upon his arrival last summer. Meanwhile, the returning Kevin De Bruyne is also best in the middle of the park, and the attacking side of his game is unquestionably superior to his defensive capabilities.

It's a wonder, then, why the current rumours regard an alleged need to bolster the attacking options in midfield, with Victor Moses and Marko Marin set to be out on the periphery.

So how do the mooted newcomers compare to Chelsea’s favoured trio?

Julian Draxler netted 10 league goals last season, having started only 24 matches, while ever-present Schürrle scored 11 for Leverkusen. In terms of shots per game, the former matched Juan Mata's average of 2, while the latter mustered a huge 3.6 per game and more in total (122) than any other player in the Bundesliga.

The pair, however, do differ to Chelsea's current crop in that both look to run with the ball more often than ticking play over with a simple pass. Indeed, Draxler averaged 2.6 successful dribbles per game last season, while Schürrle was up at 3.2. Both of those figures are a significant mark up on the highest average for Chelsea (Eden Hazard - 1.9), while Mata completed just 0.6 per game in comparison.

The Spaniard dictated play for the Blues, however, pulling the strings in advanced areas with 52.5 passes per game and an 85.2% accuracy. The German duo's figures are meagre in comparison, with Draxler completing just 28.2 passes per game and Schürrle just 27.1.

It's clear that while signing one of the two could add a different option to those already in place at the Bridge, pursuing both would be unnecessary and the decision to cool links with Schürrle may well be a sensible one. Indeed, a look at the player heat maps of the two suggest that they roam around the pitch in very similar ways, coming off of the left flank to occupy central positions as often as possible.

However, if the club have withdrawn their interest in Schürrle due to the fact that he is too similar to what they already have, Draxler surely follows suit in that respect. Some will point to it as an investment for the future, and why not have one of Europe's top prospects on your books, but the priority certainly lies elsewhere.

Chelsea's main issue, instead, revolves around a lack of goals up front, with Torres and Ba netting just 10 league goals between them in 39 starts. Indeed, only 9 of their Premier League goals (12%) came from the starting centre forward this season, with only Norwich (8) seeing fewer from their selected striker. In comparison, champions United saw their starting centre forwards net 28 times, which could be construed as the difference between the two sides.

In contrast, Chelsea's starting outfielders when excluding centre forwards netted 57 goals (76% of their overall tally), which was a full 9 more than any other side in the league. It's clear that the Blues don't lack goals from other areas of the pitch but need to resolve their striking issue if they are to challenge for the title under 'The Happy One'.

Where, then, the likes of Draxler or Schürrle would fit in remains a mystery, and while both are exceptional talents, the need for more firepower in behind the striker certainly isn't the necessity. Instead, it will likely come down to the Londoners hot pursuit of a world class number nine - step forward Edinson Cavani - that will decide where the Premier League crown lies this time next year.