FOUR breakout stars for Chelsea next season

If you are looking for a weakness on this season’s current Chelsea squad, you would be hard pressed to find one. Outside of perhaps an eventual replacement for John Terry, Jose Mourinho has upgraded his two primary areas of need: a dominant goal scorer and star playmaker.

By adding former Atletico Madrid forward Diego Costa and do-it-all Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas, Mourinho has done more than anyone at this point to shore up his attack and load up for next season.

But Chelsea are also hoping that individual improvements from within will lead to more overall team success, and they certainly have more than a few candidates that can contribute to that. Here are FOUR players poised to become stars for Chelsea next season.

Oscar

While Oscar has already enjoyed two fairly productive seasons since joining Chelsea from Internacional prior to the 2012-13 season, the 22-year-old Brazilian native is poised to take the next step as one of the top wingers in the world. Mourinho typically deploys the left-footed playmaker on the left wing or just behind the striker.

Wherever he lines up, his production should be aided by the arrival of Costa, the type of consistent goal-scoring threat up top that Chelsea lacked last season. This should allow Oscar to use his superior dribbling and short passing skills to fit the ball into tight windows while also feeding off of the likes of Fabregas and Eden Hazard to form one of the top attacking units in the Premier League.

Nemanja Matic

Matic returned to Chelsea from Benfica midway through last season for a £21.5m transfer fee after originally going to the Portuguese League club in 2011 as part of a deal involving David Luiz. Originally an attack-minded player, Benfica transformed him into a defensive midfielder, a position he has since thrived in.

With Luiz having since moved on to Paris Saint-Germain, the club is in need of a stopper to replace the Brazilian in front of the back line. Matic could be that man, as neither John Obi Mikel nor Ramires have shown the ability to take over the position full time. Regardless, Mourinho loves having deep squads, and with the more quality players he can deploy, the better.

Andre Schürrle

If you were watching Germany in the World Cup, then you surely couldn’t miss Schürrle. The 23-year-old seemed to always make the big play whenever his country needed it, breaking a 1-1 tie against Algeria with a goal in extra time and setting up Mario Gotze for the winning goal in the Final. He also added two late goals in the 7-1 drubbing over Brazil.

He did all of this as a substitute, a position Schürrle may find himself often next season given the depth Chelsea already have. But that’s not to say he can’t be just as effective and, eventually, work his way into the starting lineup.

He thrives playing as a second striker, something that could be favourable given Costa’s presence. His pace and sprinting ability are real assets late in the match and were a big reason why he was so successful in the World Cup.

Marco van Ginkel

The Dutchman had a brief debut season with Chelsea last season, appearing in just two games before suffering a torn knee ligament that sidelined him for the remainder of the season. But the 21-year-old is expected to make a full recovery in time for training camp and could feature prominently for Mourinho.

The boss gives van Ginkel high praise and has often compared him to Chelsea and England legend Frank Lampard due to his ability to play at any level of the central midfield. His ability to effectively play box-to-box is enabled by his physical nature defensively, and his dribbling and finishing skills make him just as effective on the offensive end. With Chelsea in desperate need of someone to take over for Lampard next season, van Ginkel could snatch a starting role in no time.