© ProShots
Chelsea signed Axel Disasi from Monaco, but did they really need to sign him?
Wesley Fofana’s ACL injury prompted the Blues to dive into the market and look for a replacement despite still having four senior central defenders to fall back on, as well as a promising youngster in Bashir Humphreys.
And not only did they sign a replacement, they picked French international and Monaco star Axel Disasi for €45m.
There is no denying the fact that Disasi is a solid defender, but Chelsea may have paid more than expected to get him, as his expected transfer value (xTV) stands at €20.1m.
More importantly though, this move could spell the end of Trevoh Chalobah’s tenure at the club.
The youth squad player has been repeatedly linked with a move to Inter and this could be what tips the scales.
As FootballTransfers has previously explained using data from SciSports, Disasi is not an update on local talent. On the contrary, Chalobah rates better than the Frenchman, and when it comes to rotation players, there are few who can match his experience and versatility.
Chalobah is 24 years old and Disasi 25, so both are in the best moment – theoretically – of their careers, and they will demand activity. Without international tournaments involved, properly distributing the minutes between five veteran central defenders will be difficult.
With Chelsea spending €80.4m on Fofana, he should surely be seen as the long-term starting option once he’s fully recovered, so unless Mauricio Pochettino is willing to experiment with a three-man defence, which seems unlikely at this point, there will be little room for Disasi.
© ProShots – Axel Disasi
Do Chelsea need money?
On Thursday (August 3), news broke that Todd Boehly had started courting investors who could give Chelsea a cash injection after the ill-fated 2022/23 campaign that saw them miss out on the Champions League, Europe League or Conference League, despite spending 600 million euros.
The sales have offset the Blues’ expenses this summer and they currently have €70m in their favor and are also owed a €17m sales bonus on the transfer of Tino Livramento from Southampton to Newcastle.
But if they end up signing Moises Caicedo and Dusan Vlahovic as well, the balance in their favor would quickly turn negative as they could cost a combined €140m, if not more.
This again raises questions about whether it was really necessary to invest in Disasi, especially if reports that Boehly is looking to raise capital turn out to be true.
Truth be told, this move is reminiscent of last season’s impulsive transfer decisions.
2023-08-04 19:11:10
#Chelsea #burn #money
