Should Chelsea sign Southampton left-back Luke Shaw for £30m?

Luke Shaw

The young Southampton left-back Luke Shaw has impressed in the Premier League and is a reported £30m target for the Blues. Here are three reasons why we believe Shaw could be a valuable addition to the Blues squad.

Deteriorating Ashley Cole no longer sufficient

Ashley Cole may have served many great years at Chelsea, but at a top football club there is no room for sentimentality, and he should be dropped. He has been slow and sluggish over the past few years and is arguably the reason behind Chelsea’s not so brilliant defensive record, though some of the blame could also be pointed in the direction of John Terry. Anyway, it is not right to make excuses for the England international, and he must shoulder some of the blame and accept a role on the Chelsea bench or move on to a smaller club.

Lack of English players

England’s biggest clubs aren’t famous for developing local talent, as most of the credit goes to the likes of West Ham and Southampton for their extensive scouting programmes. The two clubs often make huge profits, and some players like Frank Lampard and Matthew Le Tissier have gone on to be two of England’s greatest ever talents. Chelsea won’t exactly rectify their poor reputation with young players by spending big on a Southampton youth graduate, but if they gave him a place in the starting XI they may find it easier to attract young players in the future, and may give Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku a reason to stay at Stamford Bridge a little while longer.

To reduce their average age

Chelsea have are encountering a problem that starts to affect most clubs, the players that have brought them success in the past have become old and find it hard to compete for the whole of 90 minutes and also struggle to keep up with younger opponents. The likes of Frank Lampard can still offer something to the team, but age has seemed to hit John Terry and Ashley Cole harder than the midfielder, and that is why Shaw should be brought in, to take over Cole’s position at left-back and add some fresh youthful legs to the Chelsea backline.