Former Blue Tony Cascarino believes Chelsea have now realised that they need to replace summer signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang next season.
So far, Aubameyang has scored three goals in all competitions, one in the Premier League and two in the Champions League, for the Blues.
This is obviously underwhelming for a striker who scored 11 goals in the second half of last season for Barcelona.
To be fair, the 33-year-old had a late start to the season due to a jaw injury and only had featured three times as a starter in the league so far.
However, Cascarino is still convinced that Chelsea will be in the market for a replacement next summer.
“I’m not even sure Aubameyang is a player Chelsea will be looking at into next season,” the former Ireland international told talkSPORT.
“I think what will happen is what happened to him at Barcelona.
“They brought him to the club, got a big signing, then realised quite quickly they need to move away to a better striker.
“I think Chelsea will have to do that as a football club.
“They’ll come away from Aubameyang by the end of the season, and they’ll look for an alternative without a doubt.”
Following Romelu Lukaku’s loan departure, Chelsea desperately needed a new number nine, and there were not many options in the market, especially the top ones.
Aubameyang, alongside Armando Broja, is still a solid option to have, but as Cascarino pointed out, Chelsea will need someone more reliable.
Ideally, Broja can develop into one, but clubs like Chelsea will always have the option to invest in other striker targets in the transfer window.
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