Chelsea 8/1 to finish in top four after record-breaking January spending spree

Chelsea will be hoping for a much-improved second half of the season after splashing out over £300m in the January transfer window, with the 10th-placed Blues now priced at 8/1 to finish in the Premier League's top four this term.

Under American owner Todd Boehly, Chelsea smashed all kinds of transfer spending records in January, acquiring eight players in total for well over £300m.

This staggering figure means the Stamford Bridge club outspent the entirety of all of the clubs in the Spanish, Italian, German and French top-flights combined, with Chelsea's spending driving the Premier League's overall total in January to a record-breaking £815m.

Enzo Fernandez became British football's most expensive import ever in a last-ditch deadline day deal, with the Argentine World Cup winner arriving from Benfica for a fee in the region of £105m.

The 22-year-old playmaker will be tasked alongside fellow lavish new recruits such as Ukrainian winger Mykhailo Mudryk, Portuguese forward Joao Felix, French central defender Benoit Badiashile and English wideman Noni Madueke, with helping inspire the Blues to better fortunes after a disappointing first half of the season.

Chelsea are currently sat in a dismal 10th place in the Premier League table, with a last-16 Champions League tie to come against Borussia Dortmund later this month.

The Blues are currently priced at 8/1 to finish in the top four in the league, with the west London side appearing in grave danger of missing out on Champions League qualification for just the third time in 19 seasons as they trail fourth-placed Manchester United by 10 points.

Such a feat is not impossible, however, especially if Chelsea manager Graham Potter can gel his new signings together quickly, with the likes of Fernandez and Mudryk capable of taking the Premier League by storm should they be placed within the right system and filled with enough confidence.

This achievement would require a marked upturn in form though, with Chelsea having won just two of their last 12 Premier League matches.

Take a look at our selected Outright odds markets for Chelsea in the Premier League below:

Selected Chelsea Outright Premier League markets

Outright markets:

To Win Outright - 1000/1
To Finish in Top 2 - 250/1
To Finish in Top 4 - 8/1
To Finish in Top 6 - 5/4
To Finish in Bottom Half - 14/1

Team Finishing Position market:

1st - 1000/1
2nd - 250/1
3rd - 25/1
4th - 11/1
5th - 5/1
6th - 4/1
7th or lower - 4/7

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Of course there is an alternative route to Champions League qualification ahead of next season for Chelsea, which would require Graham Potter's charges to sensationally win the prestigious European tournament during this campaign.

Such a scenario would see the Blues achieve what they did back in 2012, with the club's maiden Champions League triumph in Munich ensuring their qualification for the subsequent year's edition of the tournament despite finishing 6th in the Premier League.

Success in this year's Champions League is not out of the question for Chelsea either, with a last-16 draw against a Borussia Dortmund side currently languishing in fourth place in the Bundesliga presenting Graham Potter's men with a good opportunity to progress through to the quarter-finals.

Indeed their array of new arrivals may be well suited to Champions League action, with high-profile additions Fernandez, Mudryk, Felix and Badiashile arriving from the top-flights of Portugal, Ukraine, Spain and France respectively.

Champions League duty could just provide this Chelsea side with a welcome distraction from their Premier League struggles, and should they gather a bit of momentum in the competition, who knows how far they could go?

Have a look at some selected Outright odds markets for Chelsea in the Champions League below:

Selected Chelsea Outright Champions League markets

To Win Outright - 16/1
To Reach Final - 11/2
Furthest Progressing Premier League Team - 7/1