Chelsea’s reported transfer pursuits so far this summer suggest Antonio Conte has learned from the mistakes of the last seven managers to precede him as reigning Premier League champion.

Indeed, the failure of any side to defend the English crown since Manchester United in 2009 is undoubtedly interlinked with questionable recruitment in the subsequent summer, a reluctance to alter a title-winning formula and instead opting to freshen up the fringes of the first team squad. But as we all know, standing still in the Premier League nearly always means you end up going backwards.

In contrast, Conte is changing some key dynamics of his side. Tiemoue Bakayoko looks set to come in for Nemanja Matic, Romelu Lukaku is in line to potentially replace Diego Costa up front, Alex Sandro is being eyed as an upgrade on Marcos Alonso and Virgil van Dijk is reportedly being targeted as a ball-playing defender who can join the midfield from the back three.

Conte is changing up and should all four deals come off, the Blues will be a much different proposition from the one that lifted last term’s title, making them much tougher to predict for the 19 Premier League sides who will all want to claim a scalp in the form of the reigning champions.

But before Conte begins to make structural changes to a side that were clear of the rest of the pack for the majority of last season, Chelsea’s weaknesses must surely be addressed first. And from the near-unchanged XI that won last term’s title through their quality, consistency and organisation, one particularly stands out – Victor Moses at right wing-back.

That’s not to discredit what was unquestionably the most influential campaign of the Nigerian international’s career to date. He proved that even the older members of Chelsea’s controversial loan brigade can still make an impact in the first team at Stamford Bridge after several years away and Conte’s selection of him at wing-back was nothing short of inspired.

The role glossed over his inconsistencies going forward and found new, defensive uses for his power and stamina. Without him on the right-hand side, Chelsea’s 3-4-3 wouldn’t have been luxury to that perfect balance which made them the best side in the Premier League.

But we know Moses is not a wing-back by nature and if we’re being brutally honest, we know he’s not exactly a Champions League-quality player either. Although Moses more than held his own last season, his role increasingly simplified throughout the campaign and he finished up with just three goals and two assists – Marcos Alonso on the other flank, despite being considered a more natural defender, produced six and three respectively.

Likewise, the FA Cup final really highlighted Moses’ shortcomings against high quality opposition, sent for an early shower after two naïve yellow cards during a game in which Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Alexis Sanchez ripped him apart for much of the afternoon.

The simple problem, however, is the number of superior options actually available to Chelsea this summer. Tottenham’s Kyle Walker and ex-Juventus man Dani Alves, now effectively a free agent, are the obvious candidates, but a deal between Spurs and Chelsea for the England international is incredibly unlikely and just like the former Barcelona star, he’s been aligned with a move to Manchester City far more strongly by the press.

After that, truly attainable top-class options are a little thin on the ground – perhaps Southampton’s Cedric Soares, perhaps PSG’s notoriously troublesome Serge Aurier, perhaps Roma’s Alessandro Florenzi if he suddenly decides to leave his boyhood club.

Each player is accompanied by their own unique doubts, whether it’s their availability or a question of if they can actually improve upon the service of a player who has the advantage of a year’s familiarity with Conte’s system.

But if there’s one factor working in Chelsea’s favour, it’s that right-back and particularly right wing-back proved to be a surprisingly universal role in the Premier League last season. A whole host of different kinds of players lined up on the defensive right throughout 2016/17, not least including Fernandino and Jesus Navas at Manchester City, Michail Antonio at West Ham, Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young at Manchester United, Craig Dawson at West Brom and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at Arsenal, as well as the more naturally-equipped Walker, Kieran Trippier, Soares and so on. Moses too, is a case in point.

Consequentially, it’s still possible for Chelsea to find an upgrade on Moses this summer without signing a ‘natural’ right wing-back, as long as the traits they would bring to the position suits the way Conte wants his side to play. Someone like Antonio, for example, would add goals, power and aerial threat, whereas Young would bring experience and delivery from out wide and, in contrast, Fernandinho would offer the option of tucking in to make the midfield narrower.

Yet, it’s still a question of what actually suits Chelsea, who improves upon Moses and who is available. Antonio has already signed a contract at West Ham, Fernandinho isn’t leaving City any time soon and many of the aforementioned players feel like downgrades. If there’s one option perhaps not obviously improving on Moses but potentially worth the punt, however, it’s Arsenal’s Oxlade-Chamberlain.

In many senses, the England international is in a similar position to Moses at this point in his career; a decent and hardworking player on the fringes of a major Premier League club whose inconsistent output has lead to questions over his longevity at that level. But when the Gunners switched to 3-4-3 at the tail-end of last season, he was arguably the biggest beneficiary – just like his Chelsea counter-part, the wing-back role showed off his impressive athleticism, power and doggedness, whilst diminishing the expectancy on his end product.

It could well prove to be the position that finally sees Oxlade-Chamberlain reach his full potential, amid a career in which versatility has seen him jostled around a variety of midfield roles without truly excelling in any of them, but to adopt it permanently at Arsenal he’d have to shake off sizeable competition from Hector Bellerin – and we don’t even know if Arsene Wenger will continue to set up his side in 3-4-3 next season.

Usurping Moses at Chelsea, on paper at least, is a much less daunting challenge and even if it doesn’t work out for Oxlade-Chamberlain in west London, there are factors protecting any investment Chelsea make this summer. For starters, his contract expires in twelve months, meaning Arsenal will likely be forced to sell on the cheap. And in terms of resale, relatively young England internationals always garner enough interest to command half-decent transfer fees.

No doubt, in comparison to Alex Sandro arriving on the other side, Oxlade-Chamberlain is a little underwhelming. But following a season in which right-back and right wing-back has proved to be one of the more versatile positions on the pitch and amid a summer in which top-quality naturals in the latter role aren’t exactly in surplus, signing a young, promising, versatile England international with Premier League experience who showed glimpses of brilliance at wing-back last season certainly isn’t a bad option.

The real question, Chelsea fans, is whether you think he’d be upgrade on Moses long-term. Let us know by voting below…