There’s never a dull moment at Chelsea where transfer windows are concerned.
Ever since Clearlake Capital took over at the club, the amount of business that has been done in and out of the club has been at a level never previously seen in the Premier League.
Whether that way of working could be said to be a success is a moot point at present, given that the Blues haven’t been that close to the kind of success that Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali likely envisaged.
The club’s opening day loss to reigning English top-flight champions, Man City, offered no real clue as to whether Enzo Maresca might be more successful that his predecessors in the job, and the Italian – who has never managed a club in the top flight of any European league – will know that he can’t afford to be another manager who ‘needs time.’
Chelsea’s owners clearly don’t give any of their managers time in the hot-seat, they expect them to deliver from the get-go.
Joao Felix close to permanent Chelsea switch
If Maresca hasn’t shown a vast improvement over what’s gone before by Christmas, there’s a strong likelihood that he’ll be out on his ear.
In any event, he will be hoping that the headline-grabbing capture of the brilliant Joao Felix, will go some way to bringing the glory days back to Stamford Bridge.
CaughtOffside columnist and transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, noted Atletico Madrid manager, Diego Simeone’s words on his player overnight, and it would suggest that Felix is close to becoming a permanent signing for the Blues.
??? Diego Simeone: “João Félix out tonight? Soon you will be informed, it’s about a transfer”.
“I’ve already been informed about that”.
? João will fly to London tomorrow in order to become new Chelsea player. pic.twitter.com/aIeKI7Jihb
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 19, 2024
“Joao Felix out tonight? Soon you will be informed, it’s about a transfer,” Simeone said.
“I’ve already been informed about that.”
It would bring to an end a long, drawn out saga both for the Portuguese player himself and for the West Londoners, as they look to land a player who, on his day, will light up the Premier League.