Chelsea should stay out of a reported race to sign an England international.
Chelsea are being linked with a move for a Premier League star who recently broke into the England team. The Blues took a more responsible approach to transfers in the summer due to UEFA taken exception to the way they have spent in previous windows, leading to a hefty fine.
Even with a more reasonable window, which saw them sell more than they bought, Chelsea have built up a hugely talented squad over the last couple of years, and the depth of their squad is currently being used and tested amid an injury crisis that Enzo Maresca has put down to the summer’s Club World Cup.
Whether Chelsea will spend again in the January transfer window remains to be seen, but one player they are now being linked with is Nottingham Forest star Elliot Anderson, who now has three England caps having been called up a couple of times of late.
The Mirror say Manchester City are said to be at the front of the queue, but Chelsea are being tipped to provide ‘strong competition’, reportedly interested in adding the midfielder, who is under a long-term deal at Forest until 2029 following his £35million arrival from Newcastle United.
England boss Thomas Tuchel said of Anderson’s debut for England in September international window: “That was the test and I think he passed the test. He was a little nervous at the beginning of the training week – then he did good. We are sure he can become a very good player.”
Chelsea should stay out of the race
Chelsea may be being linked, but they should think twice about going for Anderson, and it has nothing to do with the player’s ability. The Blues have already added depth to the midfield with the signing of young talent Dario Essugo, who has struggled with injury early in his time at the club.
Essugo won’t return until January, but he deserves the opportunity to grow into the role, and while he is more defensive, do Chelsea really need another player to play a more attacking role? The Blues have Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer as their starters, and behind them, they have Andrey Santos pushing for opportunities, along with Facundo Buonanotte and Romeo Lavia.
Chelsea are never going to stop spending if they don’t give these investments time to develop without adding better and better players ahead of them, and that was the whole point of signing young, wasn’t it?
The Blues wanted to spend big to add a huge amount of young talent in a bid to reduce how often they were spending tens of millions to sign the finished or near finished products. Now they must resist temptation to upgrade and improve without seeing what some of these young players can offer. Ditch old habits, et Manchester City sign Anderson and see if you were right about the talent you thought some of those aforementioned players have.