Chelsea have a foundation under Enzo Maresca, and while not all of the players in the club's hefty extended squad have been shipped on this summer, it has been trimmed, and the Blues are heading toward their finest season in a few.
Okay, okay, maybe that's premature, but the recruitment this summer has been emphatic and there's already an indication that Maresca's control-focused tactical approach could bear dividends for a club struggling for a coherent identity in recent years.
The 6-2 victory at Molineux one week ago offered a glimpse into Chelsea's free-flowing attacking potential, and though the excitement was tempered by the recent Stamford Bridge draw, Ebere Eze's sumptuous second-half strike cancelling out Nicolas Jackson's early opener, there were positives aplenty.
Chelsea exhibited a pleasing degree of aggression while maintaining ball-playing fluency. As per Sofascore, the Blues created five big chances to Palace's zero while also winning 52% of the contested duels and retaining most of the possession (63%).
Pedro Neto had a bit of an off day, with journalist Nizaar Kinsella remarking that the £54m summer signing was "struggling to get into the game", but with such strength in depth, capped off by Jadon Sancho's last-gasp transfer from Manchester United, Chelsea are shaping up to have one of the Premier League's finest frontlines.
Why Chelsea signed Jadon Sancho
Sancho has fallen heavily by the wayside since leaving Borussia Dortmund to sign for Manchester United for £73m in 2021, aged only 21.
He'd stepped into the limelight over in Germany for his dynamic wide performances and breathtaking skills and dribbling, hailed as an "exceptional talent" by United's Harry Maguire before he'd made the move to Old Trafford.
Sancho, now 24, might not have found his feet at Man United, but the Red Devils have struggled for form and identity in recent years and it's probably right that he has moved away, wiped the slate clean, so to speak.
Admittedly, Chelsea haven't exactly had the most stable framework intact either but Maresca's vision is in the process of being realised, and Sancho could now kickstart his once prodigious career, joining a sizeable array of talent and effectively replacing Raheem Sterling, who has joined Arsenal on a season-long loan deal.
Sancho, too, has signed for Chelsea on an initial loan move, though there is an obligation for the Londoners to fork out £25m to sign him next summer, which marks significantly promising business for a player of immense quality, just not quite harnessed on English shores.
Chelsea's attacking efforts left plenty to be desired last year but so too did the defensive work, with a lack of organisation and steel leading them to ship 63 goals – the most in the division's top eight.
Levi Colwill was part of that effort but often shoehorned into a left-back role. Now, the homegrown talent is thriving, and his market value reflects that.
Why Levi Colwill is Maresca's defensive linchpin
Colwill's already been through a lot in his still early-stage career. He's still only 21 years old but the one-cap England international has swiftly established himself as one of Chelsea's core defenders, making a real impression so far this season.
The left-sided centre-back has completed 95% of his passes and won 70% of his duels under Maresca's wing in the Premier League, as per Sofascore, also averaging four clearances per match and committing only one foul.
His biggest strength might lie in his passing ability but Colwill also knows how to protect his shot-stopper, ranking among the top 6% of positional peers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for tackles and the top 19% for interceptions per 90, as per FBref.
Marc Cucurella is Chelsea's designated left-back, but the signing of Renato Veiga from FC Basel has spoken of Maresca and the club's desire to bolster that position with an understudy capable of rising to a first-choice position in the years to come – Veiga is highly regarded but only 21 years old.
Colwill split his time between central and wide defence last season due to injuries to both Cucurella and Ben Chilwell, something that frustrated the up-and-coming Blue, who indeed views himself as a central defensive player, albeit with athletic properties that suit left-back.
Centre-back
105
3
5
Left-back
24
1
1
Left midfield
3
0
0
Praised as "absolutely different class" by Chelsea reporter Simon Phillips, Colwill is still so early into what could be a formidable career, though some of Europe's finest clubs have already sniffed around and Chelsea bosses will be well aware that they have already hit the jackpot with this one.
Market Movers
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Levi Colwill's market value in 2024
One year ago, Colwill signed a lucrative new deal with Chelsea, penning a six-year contract that has the option to stretch into another additional year. Having just completed a successful loan spell with Brighton & Hove Albion on the South Coast, the £100k-per-week talent was fast on the rise.
The move was largely to tie Colwill down amid the vested interests of Liverpool, who had identified the young Englishman as the perfect long-term successor to Virgil van Dijk. Liverpool have since cooled their intrigue but Paris Saint-Germain had looked to make a move this summer, only to be told that they would have to pay £100m to tempt Chelsea to sell.
This means that Colwill, hailed as a "special" player by journalist Tom Overend, is worth four times more than Sancho is now and, given that he is the same age that his countryman was when he made his big-money move to Man United, worth more at the same stage of his development.
His aptness within Maresca's system, the interest in him from some of Europe's powerhouses and his £100m price tag so early into his career speak volumes. Chelsea, well and truly, have hit the jackpot with this Cobham sensation.
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ByAngus Sinclair