Chelsea set to launch ambitious bid for Tottenham star Danny Rose… but do they really need him with Marcos Alonso around?
Blues boss Antonio Conte keen to land the Spurs full-back, but with Sunday's hero already at the club, why bother?
CHELSEA boss Antonio Conte looks set to launch an ambitious bid for Tottenham left-back Danny Rose before the transfer window slams shut.
In fact, the Italian has been linked with a host of wing-backs this summer, including Juventus' Alex Sandro.
Conte is hoping to build on his successful first season, where an inspired switch to 3-4-3, with two wing-backs, led the Blues to Premier League glory.
While Victor Moses looks set to keep hold of his role on the right-hand side of the system, Marcos Alonso looks less than certain to start.
The Spanish left-wing-back scored a superb free-kick to give Chelsea the lead against Tottenham at Wembley on Sunday.
He then netted the winner with just minutes left on the clock, after Michy Batshuayi had found the back of his own net to level proceedings at 1-1.
Alonso's stunning, match-winning performance now begs the question: Do Chelsea need Rose?
We take a look at all the important stats to find out which left-back is the better player...
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Since Alonso joined the Premier League ranks in 2016, he's played 33 times - including 32 starts - to Rose's 18.
In fact, the Spaniard has logged nearly twice as many minutes - winning the Premier League in his first season - with 2,874 minutes, to the Spurs man's 1,533.
Based on the per 90 minutes stats - to make things fair - Rose is actually arguably the better passer.
While both boast a similar completion rate at around 77 per cent, Rose attempts five more - and completes more than three - passes per match.
On the tackling front, Rose complete's 2.9 per 90 minutes - compared to Alonso's 1.9, suggesting Rose could be the better defender.
However, on the attacking front Alonso easily has the lead - particularly in goals scored.
The former Real Madrid man has scored eight goals since the start of last season, to Rose's two.
Alonso has also grabbed one more assist compared to his Spurs counterpart.
The Spanish star's minutes per goal involvement is a highly impressive 261.3 - while Rose loiters well back on 383.3.
Alonso also takes more shots, gets more on target and converts his attempts at a higher ration than Rose.
However, Rose does have one thing in his attacking arsenal, as he creates 1.5 chances per goal compared to Alonso's 0.8.
Overall the pair are pretty close in all areas on the pitch... until it comes to goals scored.
And in Chelsea's new era of attack-minded wing-backs, perhaps Alonso is the better fit for Conte.