Chelsea still confident of signing two defenders and maybe a midfielder, too — report

Chelsea apparently remain confident that in the one short week left in the summer transfer window, we can bring in the right players (as head coach Antonio Conte likes to call them) for the right positions at the right price. This is according to the usually well-sourced Matt Law of the Telegraph, who adds that Chelsea could still look to add a new midfielder as well. Tellingly, there’s no word on adding any strikers, so hopefully we can be done with all the nonsense about Lukaku or Mandzukic or whoever.

As far as specific names are concerned, the primary target at centre back is now AC Milan's Alessio Romagnoli, with Koulibaly reluctantly placed into to the discard pile. Nikola Maksimovic is the secondary option, though he’s also a target for Napoli; Torino are reportedly demanding a not insignificant sum of at least £25m to let go of his services.

Chelsea are also looking to bring a new fullback into the fold with Wolfsburg left back and FM legend Ricardo Rodríguez, rated at £17 million, or Juventus veteran right back Stephan Lichtsteiner, who’s well familiar with Conte, at the top of the wishlist.

Finally, for the midfield, Chelsea could attempt a new bid for Roma midfielder Radja Nainggolan following his club's heavy defeat at the hands of Porto that kept them out of the Champions League group stage. Another potential move in the future would be for Thiago Maia; the Brazilian youngster from Santos who has reportedly been a Chelsea target this summer.

Chelsea have done a great job in securing the signatures of N'Golo Kanté and Michy Batshuayi this summer, and yet, we still need reinforcements before the window closes, especially for the back line. Time’s running out and the Chelsea Board will have to work swift and hard and smart to prove themselves better than the general sentiment and narrative against them.

Though, for the return of Nainggolan rumours, there's only one logical response: