Apologies in advance for the length of this post. I hope the club approaches the window with buckets of options for each need so we can quickly pivot as needed and get our business done early. Right now, I would have those buckets as the following (prioritized):
CF: Isak / Sesko / Ekitike
- I don't think Isak is realistic. We should be spending very little time pursuing him unless they don't make Champs League and he makes noise internally that he wants to leave. Sesko has always been my choice due to his ceiling as a clinical ball striker with size, speed and surprising technique. However, Ekitike is rapidly moving up my list - he looks a little like Isak at Sociedad with his combination of size, dribbling, playmaking and finishing.
Winger: Barcola / Semenyo / Gittens / Williams
- If Barcola is available, we should be all over it- he's a game changer. Semenyo is already PL proven and also looks like he could still level up in our system - two-footed, works hard, very physical while also being skilled technically, good ball striker. Gittens would be more of a roll of the dice but I think his ceiling is up there with Barcola. I haven't seen any links with him though. We know about Williams at this point and he would still need to lower his wage demands but the talent is still there.
Midfielder: Zubimendi
- The Madrid links are worrying since I don't know if we have another option here that would tick the boxes Zubi does in terms of being essentially a more physically talented Jorginho - the perfect partner for Rice. He's not really a Partey replacement but will platform Rice even better and I personally think MLS will be the eventual Partey replacement if we want one.
Backup GK: Garcia
- This one looks inevitable. I hope we don't let it take funds away from our bigger targets though since I think we could get away with bringing Hein back as the #2 while our younger keepers continue to develop.
Auxiliary Attacker (dependent on Trossard leaving): Cunha / Mbeumo
- If we move away from Trossard this summer (and then Jesus the following summer most likely), we should probably bring in another versatile attacker that can play in multiple positions across the front line. This wouldn't be a huge priority for me but moreso a one out, one in scenario. I'd also be interested in seeing if there are some younger prospects to target here like a Nusa.
Left Back (if we sell Zinchenko, Tierney and potentially Kiwior/Tomiyasu): Hato / Ishe Samuels-Smith
- Personally, I think we should move a few of our defenders this summer. Clearly, Tierney will be leaving and it looks like Zinchenko as well. I would be okay with moving Kiwior if we could get a decent fee and regrettably, Tomiyasu, since he just cannot stay healthy despite being a rock when he is. We have decent RB depth with Timber and White, with both of them also being able to provide cover at RCB. We also have Calafiori and MLS at LB, with Cala able to provide cover at LCB. I think MLS should eventually move to CM so we need to make plans to enable that long term. I'd go for Hato, who could also cover a bit at LCB. Samuels-Smith, a Chelsea youth prospect, also looks incredible and we might be able to steal him for a relatively small fee. These should be back end of the window moves though- we need to prioritize our first three signings first and foremost.
