Chelsea reach broad agreement with £61m “game-changer”

Whereas they may not have spent the really huge sums of cash they’ve in home windows previous, Chelsea have nonetheless been busy out there this summer season.

As issues stand, the Convention League champions’ standout signings are Joao Pedro, Liam Delap and Jamie Gittens, and they’re set to safe the extremely rated Jorrel Hato any day now.

Nevertheless, for all of the sensible offers they have been in a position to recover from the road, they needed to watch Liverpool get their arms on the free-scoring Hugo Ekitiké, who was touted for a transfer to Stamford Bridge earlier within the window.

Fortuitously, if experiences are to be believed, the West Londoners may very well be closing in on a participant who may very well be their very own model of the French attacker.

Chelsea goal their very own Ekitike

Now, whereas lots has already occurred this summer season, and it’s usually exhausting to maintain monitor of each deal and hearsay, it is true that Chelsea had been linked with Ekitike at a number of factors in the direction of the beginning of the window.

Nevertheless, with the Blues clearly specializing in different, extra urgent targets, and certain not being fairly as as some tales recommended they had been, Liverpool stole a march on them and secured the Frenchman’s companies for a payment of round £69m.

Apparently, whereas the previous Eintracht Frankfurt star is now clearly not obtainable, the West Londoners do seem like they’re closing in on one other attacking gem who may very well be their model of him.

No less than that’s in keeping with a latest report from German outlet Bild, which reaffirms Chelsea’s intense curiosity within the gifted Xavi Simons.

The report goes a step additional, revealing that the Blues have now reached a broad settlement on phrases with the participant himself, and whereas they’ve not made an official supply to RB Leipzig simply but, it is believed the German outfit are holding out for a payment of €70m, which is about £61m.

It could be an costly switch to recover from the road, however given Simons’ capacity and potential, it will be value it, particularly as he may very well be their very own Ekitike.

Why Simons may very well be Chelsea’s personal Ekitike

Now, the very first thing to say is that whereas Simons is an extremely versatile participant and somebody who has made a number of appearances up prime, he isn’t a centre-forward like Ekitike, however there are nonetheless a number of causes the previous may very well be Chelsea’s model of the latter.

Firstly, the younger Dutchman would even be making his option to a ‘huge six’ aspect within the Premier League from a Bundesliga aspect outdoors the standard huge two in Leipzig, equally to how the Frenchman’s shifting to Merseyside from Eintracht Frankfurt.

Second, each gamers are making their strikes at related ages, with the midfield maestro being simply 22 and the thrilling centre-forward simply turning 23 years previous.

The final considerably surface-level similarity is the truth that each of them hung out taking part in for Paris Saint-Germain.

Simons joined the French aspect’s youth system in 2019 after which left and rejoined over the next years till his transfer to Leipzig was made everlasting this January, whereas the brand new Liverpool star joined the Parisians in July 2022, after which left for Germany on a everlasting deal two years later.

Lastly, whereas the previous PSV Eindhoven dynamo is unlikely to match the 22 targets in 48 video games Ekitike scored final season at Stamford Bridge as a result of place he tends to play in, he nonetheless has the power to be an attacking tour de power, and will assist flip video games on their head for Maresca and Co.

For instance, in simply 33 appearances final season, totalling 2763 minutes, the Amsterdam-born “game-changer,” as dubbed by expertise scout Jacek Kulig, scored 11 targets and supplied eight assists.

In different phrases, the sensational expertise, who one analyst has dubbed “among the best 10s on the earth,” managed to common a purpose involvement each 1.73 video games, or each 144 minutes.

In the end, whereas it would not be low-cost, Chelsea needs to be doing what they will to convey Simons to West London this summer season, as he might add some actual high quality to their assault and be a solution to Ekitike.