Vesper

Chelsea’s £140m Enciso deal, United’s new No 7, Ritchie to Saudi: Imagining the January window https://theathletic.com/4825257/2023/09/04/january-transfer-window-imagined/ Well, what a transfer window that was! January 2024, we will never forget it. A series of football players were transferred — in exchange for money — from one club to another. It really was memorable. In many ways, it was completely different to all the windows that have gone before it. Although then again, there was a surprise twist no one saw coming when Chelsea broke the British transfer record to sign Brighton’s Julio Enciso for £140million. New Chelsea boss Frank Lampard spoke of his delight as Enciso put pen to paper on a 17-year contract with the option of an 18th. Read our exclusive interview with Jordan Henderson, on Saudi Arabia transfer and LGBTQ+ concerns Henderson ‘only has positive things to say’ about FSG’s Liverpool ownership “We’ve signed so many Brighton players we’re thinking of wearing blue and white stripes,” Lampard wisecracked, before adding: “No, but seriously, he’s a fantastic player and we can’t wait for him to help us try and finish in the top half.” It was a busy window for the Blues who also loaned out Moises Caicedo to Manchester United, sold their most promising academy graduate to a mid-level Premier League club for £40million and signed a player from the Bundesliga you have never heard of for £70million. However, they did fail with a late bid for the Amex Stadium. Chelsea had actually seen off late competition for Enciso from Liverpool, whose last-minute bid of £139million was flatly rejected. Enciso was said to be keen on a move to Anfield but Jurgen Klopp instructed the club not to bid any higher, reportedly saying: “The day that £140million bids are football, I’m not in a job anymore.” Elsewhere Manchester United made a late move on deadline day to bring in a striker after the unforeseen struggles of £72million striker Rasmus Hojlund. After being released by Nottingham Forest, Chris Wood moved to Old Trafford on a short-term deal and was handed the No 7 shirt previously worn by Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and George Best. When it was put to manager Erik ten Hag that signing Wood wasn’t befitting of United’s glorious history and traditions, the Dutchman pointed to previous January signings Odion Ighalo and Wout Weghorst (combined goals in their 29 United league appearances: 0) and said he was following the club’s heritage to the letter, before having to cut his press conference short as part of the decaying Old Trafford roof was caving in. United, whose only other January addition was Phil Jones on a free transfer, tried in vain to move on £80million defender Harry Maguire and his near-£200,000-a-week wages. In a desperate attempt to trick Maguire into leaving, United blindfolded the defender and put him in a chauffeured limo while telling him he was going to Arsenal. When Maguire later removed the blindfold and realised he was at West Ham’s training ground, he stormed off in a huff. England boss Gareth Southgate reassured Maguire that his ever-present place in the national side would remain unaffected, citing the 30-year-old’s form for United’s under-21 side in the EFL Trophy as being “good enough for me”. As for who won the window, journalists and pundits alike were unequivocal in their praise of Brighton’s business. “They’re a model club,” every single person in the world said. The Seagulls made a profit of £300million in January but refused to spend big on first-team replacements for the departed Enciso and Kaoru Mitoma, despite the team sitting just two points behind leaders Manchester City. Instead, Brighton’s two additions were an 18-year-old midfielder from the Bolivian third division and a 20-year-old right-back from Garrison Gunners in the Isles of Scilly Football League. Chelsea are reported to be monitoring their situations with an eye on a possible summer move. The biggest Premier League sale came not from Brighton but from Newcastle United, whose promising, young left winger Matt Ritchie moved to Al-Ittihad for £200million. Figures on both sides of the deal insisted Ritchie had been valued fairly, with one senior source saying: “We just can’t wait to see Ritchie line up for Newcastle this weekend. No wait, I mean Al-Ittihad. Hang on which club am I supposed to be working for again?”. Everton also went big with a signing involving the number 200, specifically the £200,000 they paid Stoke City for striker Dwight Gayle. The fee represented the entirety of Everton’s January budget and meant the club had to cut costs elsewhere, with beleaguered manager Sean Dyche agreeing to stop starching his white shirts to save a few pennies. Ritchie’s Newcastle sale was a league record fee, while Nottingham Forest broke a record too with the addition of seven right-backs, six of them from Brazil, as part of a recruitment drive that saw 41 players move to the City Ground and 39 leave. And finally, across Europe the most high-profile transfer involved Barcelona who struck a deal to loan Victor Osimhen from Napoli with an obligation to buy. Barca president Joan Laporta contacted a senior Napoli official with the message “we’ll give you €300million next summer, honest”, followed by the wink emoji. However, after announcing the loan signing of Osimhen and holding a press conference to unveil the 25-year-old, Barca were shocked to discover they couldn’t afford to register him with La Liga.

Chelsea met with Saudi airline Riyadh Air over shirt sponsorship deal https://theathletic.com/4833777/2023/09/06/Chelsea-riyadh-air-sponsorship-shirt/ Chelsea executives hosted representatives from Saudi state airline Riyadh Air and pitched a potential front-of-shirt sponsorship deal as the club continue talks with a number of companies to grow their commercial revenue. Riyadh Air, which already sponsors Atletico Madrid, is owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), the majority owner of Newcastle United. The Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the formation of the new airline in March, which has still not flown a plane and does not plan to do so until 2025. Chelsea officials, including chief executive Chris Jurasek, hosted a Riyadh Air delegation at Stamford Bridge for Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest. The club then pitched to the airline about a multi-year sponsorship deal for the men’s and women’s teams. Another contender for the front-of-shirt sponsor is the betting website Kaiyun Sports, which announced a deal with Nottingham Forest last week. Kaiyun Sports appears to target customers in China — where gambling is illegal — and accesses the UK market via a “white label” agreement with a company on the Isle of Man. It is unclear what country Kaiyun is based in or who its owners are, which is extremely unusual for a sponsorship deal of this prominence. GO DEEPER Special report: How Premier League shirt sponsors 'facilitate illegal gambling' Chelsea are reassured, however, by the fact Kaiyun have existing deals with Real Madrid, Crystal Palace and Inter Milan, while the betting firm already has a partnership deal with Chelsea and was displayed on the billboards at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. The club have previously had a deal with Asian gambling website Leyu Sports, which The Athletic revealed was fronted by non-existent employees, and called off a potential front-of-shirt deal with gambling website Stake in June after a fan-led backlash. Premier League clubs voted to ban all gambling firms from being front-of-shirt sponsors from 2026, but eight of the top flight’s 20 teams have such agreements this season. Read more: Analysed – Every Premier League club’s shirt sponsorship deal Chelsea’s blue shirts have been blank so far this season as the club attempts to replace mobile network Three. There have been negotiations with Infinite Athlete, an “operating system for sports”, but the deal is still awaiting approval from the Premier League. Infinite Athlete is a recently formed company that came together when Tempus Ex Machina (a technology company which signed a seven-year partnership with Chelsea in April) acquired Biocore, meaning Tempus now go under the name Infinite Athlete. The investment fund Silver Lake — which owns more than 18 per cent of the City Football Group, the umbrella organisation which owns Manchester City — is also an investor in Infinite Athlete, but Chelsea do not consider this, or the fact Riyadh Air is owned by the majority shareholder of Newcastle, to be a deterrent. The prospective front-of-shirt deal with Infinite Athlete is only expected to be for the remainder of this season as the company seeks to target the European sports market following its launch. Chelsea’s existing partnership with Tempus saw them install Match View X technology on the club’s app this season, giving fans the chance to watch games back and access player tracking, data and graphics. Chelsea are scouring the market for longer-term deals that would kick in from the start of next season. Riyadh Air and Kaiyun Sports are just two of the companies to have held meetings with the club, but Chelsea sources, who wished to remain anonymous owing to the confidential nature of the discussions, said conversations are ongoing with others, including another major technology company in the U.S. and stressed that no deal with either the Saudi airline or Kaiyun is imminent. The club host prospective partners reasonably often at games and this does not always mean a deal will be concluded. For example, Chelsea have previously hosted the insurance company Allianz, but a deal did not come to fruition. Kaiyun would also be interested in starting a potential front-of-shirt deal this season if the Infinite Athlete agreement is not finalised. However, that deal is at the Premier League approval stage and remains in pole position. The Premier League is reviewing both the market value of the deal and the funding behind the company. Chelsea’s commercial team are focusing largely on businesses within the airline industry, along with insurance firms, technology companies, and the financial services sector for their long-term partnerships. Club sources indicated to The Athletic that Chelsea will be seeking an overall package of up to £60million ($75m) per year for the front-of-shirt sponsorship, to include both the men’s and women’s teams, with the club seeking to compete with the Emirates shirt deal secured by Arsenal. The price may fluctuate based on a variety of factors, such as the length of a deal, the assets included in a contract and whether the club is competing in the UEFA Champions League. Chelsea will not take part in any European tournament this season after failing to qualify. Earlier this year, FIFA did not proceed with a proposed agreement for Visit Saudi, the Saudi state tourism board, to sponsor the women’s World Cup following a public backlash from female players involved in the tournament owing to the state’s record on women’s rights and laws that criminalise LGBTQ+ people. Saudi Arabia says, however, it is investing substantially in women’s football and launched the women’s Saudi Premier League in 2020. Read more: Is Saudi Arabia funding Chelsea? Chelsea have sought to expand their commercial team over the past year, hiring a new chief executive in Jurasek and seeking to improve their digital and fan engagement strategy. If Chelsea did sign a front-of-shirt deal with the Saudi airline, it would mean three of the Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ have a deal with a Middle Eastern state airline, alongside Manchester City (Etihad Airways) and Arsenal (Fly Emirates). In July, Chelsea announced Oman Air as the club’s “official airline partner” in a multi-year deal. A Riyadh Air spokesperson said the company is “not engaged in such talks” in terms of formal negotiations, but did not deny that meetings have taken place. The Athletic approached Chelsea, Kaiyun Sports and Infinite Athlete for comment.

He is pissed about Bayern taking so long for the João Palhinha deal that Fulham could not find replacement, so it collapsed on the last day AFTER Palhinha already completed all his medicals, was in Bayern, and took official pics with their kit on

Ugarte's fee (£51.5m) was less than Lavia's (£58m when add-ons are included) PSG got him because they offered him a far larger salary than we were willing to spend

Net transfer spending: winners and losers https://football-observatory.com/WeeklyPost429 CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post number 429 presents the net transfer spending of the 100 most active clubs in terms of the financial volume of transactions concluded over the last decade. During this period, Manchester United has the most negative balance (-€1.396 billion), while the Portuguese side SL Benfica has the best (+€764 millio) Two other teams have had transfer losses of more than €1 billion over the last ten years: Chelsea and Paris St-Germain. Chelsea also has the most negative balances in the post-COVID period (-€993 million) and the calendar year 2023 (-€558 million). In contrast, SL Benfica outranks AFC Ajax (+€434m) and RB Salzburg (+€422m) over the last decade, while Villarreal has the most positive net spending in the 2023 calendar year (+€117m). Also published today, the 87th CIES Football Observatory Monthly Report presents an even more detailed analysis of transfer-related financial flows in world football over the last decade. In particular, it shows that the amount of transfer fees incurred by clubs in 2023 (around €12.4 billion) was almost 25% higher than in the previous record year of 2019. This is essentially due to the sharp increase of English Premier League and Saudi Pro League clubs’ investments. The figures published include fixed transfer fees, any add-ons regardless of whether they have actually been paid, as well as sums invested in the context of paying loans. Amounts negotiated for loans with an obligation to buy are included in the breakdown for the year of the transfer. Within the limits of available information, the data on beneficiaries considers sell-on fees negotiated by previous clubs. Net transfer spending since 2014 € Million, for the 100 most active clubs in terms of the financial volume of transactions concluded since 2014

ffs Chelsea failed to sign exciting player Antonio Nusa on deadline day after Ian Maatsen refused to leave Stamford Bridge https://www.sportskeeda.com/football/rumor-news-Chelsea-failed-sign-exciting-player-deadline-day-21-year-old-star-refused-leave-stamford-bridge-reports Chelsea reportedly failed to sign winger Antonio Nusa this summer as youngster Ian Maatsen refused to leave. As per Transfer Confidential by Mail, the Blues were interested in signing another young prospect this summer in Nusa. The Norwegian winger plies his trade for Club Brugge, whom he joined from Stabaek in 2021. He has since made 46 senior appearances for the Belgian side, scoring four goals and providing three assists. Nusa had interest from Chelsea on deadline day (September 1), but they wanted to part ways with Maatsen first. Journalist Miguel Delaney had confirmed that the Blues received a bid from Burnley, where he spent last season on loan. However, the 21-year-old declined the offer, as he wants to stay and develop at Stamford Bridge. Maatsen's departure would have helped the west London side in FFP in the long term and also allowed them to sign Nusa, but the Dutch left-back will now stay at the club. Maatsen joined Chelsea's academy from PSV Eindhoven's academy in 2018. He made his debut in their opening game of the ongoing season in the 1-1 home draw with Liverpool. The Dutchman has made substitute appearances in three of the Blues' Premier League fixtures this season. He also played the entire 90 minutes of their Carabao Cup second-round win over AFC Wimbledon.

Corinthians now desperate to sell Brazilian teen Gabriel Moscardo to Chelsea, Blues offering most money https://www.thechelseachronicle.com/transfer-news/club-now-desperate-to-sell-21m-player-to-Chelsea-in-record-sale-blues-offering-most-money/ That is according to Itatiaia in Brazil. So, what is the latest on Gabriel Moscardo and Chelsea? Let’s take a look… What’s the story? Well – according to Fabrizio Romano – Chelsea made a bid for the Brazilian wonderkid at the end of August. Corinthians told Chelsea to pay €25m (£21m) for Moscardo at the time – which would make it a record sale for the Brazilian giants – and talks between both sides continued. Now – however – Corinthians want to sell the teenager to Chelsea quickly, as they find themselves at risk of losing the South American wonderkid for just 80mR$ (£13m). Why? Well, Itatiaia explain how clubs in Brazil have access to Moscardo’s £13m release clause, and the largest sides in Série A are able to afford his £13m release clause. There is now a fear of one Brazilian club triggering his release clause, hence the reason why Corinthians want to finalise a deal with Chelsea as soon as possible. Corinthians are also keen to sell Moscardo to Chelsea as the Blues are willing to send him back on loan for the 2023/24 campaign.

I never called Mou 2015 a miracle

bad picks who made the cut GK Jordan Pickford 7 March 1994 (age 29) 54 0 England Everton GK Sam Johnstone 25 March 1993 (age 30) 3 0 England Crystal Palace DF Harry Maguire 5 March 1993 (age 30) 57 7 England Manchester United DF Lewis Dunk 21 November 1991 (age 31) 1 0 England Brighton & Hove Albion MF Jordan Henderson (vice-captain) 17 June 1990 (age 33) 77 3 Saudi Arabia Al-Ettifaq MF Kalvin Phillips 2 December 1995 (age 27) 27 1 England Manchester City MF Conor Gallagher 6 February 2000 (age 23) 7 0 England Chelsea FW Eddie Nketiah 30 May 1999 (age 24) 0 0 England Arsenal

winning the CL in 2021 was a miracle, and that gave us the Super Cup (barely) and FWCC (barely) we have been atrocious in dometic cup finals for years and other than Mou in 2015, and the 2017 Conte miracle, the league has hardly been a good place for us lately

It was Bayern. I mistyped sorry, will correct https://www.90min.com/posts/bayern-munich-make-decision-trevoh-chalobah-deal https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1808433/Chelsea-transfer-news-deadline-day-Bayern-Chalobah-Southampton https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/Chelsea-fc-chalobah-cucurella-man-utd-bayern-b1103383.html

thug life Mancs at it again Antony's current girlfriend - and mother of his child - Rosilene Silva leaves their Cheshire mansion with a suitcase amid claims Man United star threatened his ex while she was pregnant, damaged her breast implants and sliced her finger Antony's ex Gabriela Cavallin has made abuse allegations against United star The forward has denied the claims but has been removed from Brazil's squad https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-12483119/Antonys-current-girlfriend-Rosilene-Silva-leaves-Cheshire-mansion-suitcase-amid-claims-Man-United-star-threatened-ex-pregnant-damaged-breast-implants-sliced-finger.html

Fraudgate at the helm ‘Disrespected’ England stars should retire from international duty after latest Gareth Southgate snub, Rio Ferdinand says https://metro.co.uk/2023/09/04/disrespected-england-stars-should-retire-after-gareth-southgate-snub-rio-ferdinand-says-19444330/ Rio Ferdinand says he would retire from England duty if he was continually overlooked by Gareth Southgate just like James Ward-Prowse and others have been. Southgate named his Three Lions squad for the upcoming Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine and friendly with Scotland last week and, as per usual, it divided opinion. Much of the discourse centered around the inclusion of Harry Maguire and Kalvin Phillips despite their lack of game time or form for Manchester United and Manchester City respectively over the course of the year. The pair made the cut ahead of the likes of West Ham duo Ward-Prowse and Jarrod Bowen who have made a blistering start to this season, with the Irons fourth in the table and unbeaten after four games. Midfielder Phillips getting in ahead of Ward-Prowse has really irritated fans, given that the former has played just six minutes this campaign, while the latter has one goal and four assists in four appearances for West Ham and former club Southampton. ‘I’ve never known a manager to pick players that are consistently not playing,’ former United and England defender Ferdinand fumed on the FIVE podcast. ‘I get it if a player hasn’t played for five, six or 10 games maybe. But Phillips and Maguire don’t kick a ball. They don’t play, they do warm-ups and they’re getting in England squads. It amazes me. ‘Southgate comes out and says we haven’t got defenders. Go and use a young one man! Go and use someone young or inexperienced who you’re thinking about. You know what Maguire does. ‘It’s a reward for performances playing for England. It’s the best players that are currently playing in their teams. Maguire don’t kick a ball. He comes on for cameos here and there. ‘Kalvin with respect isn’t anywhere near the Man City team. He won a treble last year and well done to him but he ain’t kicked a ball. These men ain’t playing football and they’re still getting in a team based off of work that they done two, three years ago. ‘They’ll be other young midfielders or [someone like] James Ward-Prowse that are thinking, “Wow, what’s happening here? How come I’m not getting a looking?”. It’s a kick in the teeth.’ There was also controversy over the selection of Jordan Henderson following his move to the Saudi Pro League and the exclusion of Raheem Sterling despite his fantastic form for Chelsea in the opening fixtures. ‘If I was Sterling, I’d be very disappointed bearing in mind what he’s done for this England team when he’s been in or around it,’ Ferdinand added. ‘If you’re going by the yard stick that Gareth’s using with the likes of Maguire and Phillips, why is it all right for them guys to get in and not him? Sterling’s probably been the main bright spark at Chelsea. It’s just nuts. ‘I’d retire. If I’m someone like Ward-Prowse I’d just retire. Say, “listen, don’t pick me no more. There’s no point. It’s disrespectful what you’re doing”. ‘It is to people like him, especially Ward-Prowse who’s been putting up numbers for his team on a regular basis. What more does a man got to do to get a sniff?’

Gallaher pounding out 3200, 3500 minutes (we have no Europe to kick him up to the 4000 level) will be disastrous if it happens. He is a massive weak link. Gutted we did not sell him, Trevoh (asking £50m for him from AC Milan Bayern was MADNESS), and CuCu (still hoping the Saudis buy CuCu).

😞

“It hurts” – Chelsea player reacts to insults from former club’s fans amid ‘complicated’ situation https://sportwitness.co.uk/hurts-Chelsea-player-reacts-insults-former-clubs-fans-amid-complicated-situation/ Signed by Chelsea in January and then loaned back to Lyon for the second half of the season, Malo Gusto is now a fully fledged Blues player. The 20-year-old has played in all four Premier League games to date and picked up two assists, and while his current team’s start to the season could be far better, it certainly isn’t as bad as his former one’s. Lyon currently sit rock bottom of Ligue 1, which has caused a lot of discontent among the fanbase, with some of the younger players who have left, including Gusto, being insulted by fans during the 4-1 loss to Paris Saint-Germain at the weekend, to which the Chelsea player has since reacted. Currently with the France U21 squad, Gusto was asked about the events at the weekend, which he witnessed first hand since he was at the stadium to watch his former team. The incident happened after the game, as the players went to clap the fans in the north stand, when the leader of the Bad Gones, the team’s ultras, grabbed a microphone and directly addressed the players. During his speech, he called three players a word we won’t repeat here, indirectly talking about Castello Lukeba, Bradley Barcola and Malo Gusto, who all left Lyon for good this summer for RB Leipzig, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea respectively. In fact, the second on that list came on for his new club during the game and was booed by his former fans. Asked about the situation in a press conference on Tuesday for France’s U21s, the Chelsea defender said: “The situation is complicated, but I hope it will get sorted out because it’s the club of my heart. Bradley is a close friend. I feel sorry for him. Everyone tried to take a road. I can understand the frustration of fans, but for it to go that far, it hurts. We come from Lyon, but that’s football, we have to accept it.”

Disagree. On many levels. Bellingham was NEVER coming here. Pickford is shit. (other keepers out there better than Sanchez or him) You added a player not available then (Toney) who we very well may sign in January. And I rate Caicedo over Rice (this is the only part that is debatable, IMHO).

Chelsea player will be “put on the market in January” if he doesn’t sign a contract extension https://www.Chelsea-news.co/2023/09/Chelsea-player-will-be-put-on-the-market-in-january-if-he-doesnt-sign-a-contract-extension/ With the summer transfer window over the time has come to reflect on it all and the business that was done. Chelsea did some incredible business and spent a lot of money. But as well as that, they managed to sell many of the deadwood players and make some incredible fees on player departures. They could have sold more as well and the squad size is still slightly too big for what Mauricio Pochettino would have ideally liked. A handful of Chelsea’s players could still have been sold on transfer deadline day last Friday but they ended up staying, one of which was Ian Maatsen. Burnley agreed a deal to sign him from Chelsea for £31.5 million, but Maatsen did not want to go and didn’t go! He wanted to stay at Chelsea and fair play to him for that. But if he doesn’t sign his new contract extension at the club, then he will be put on the transfer market in January. That is according to Ben Jacobs writing in his latest exclusive and extensive Chelsea FC column for SPTC today. He said: “I was surprised Ian Maatsen didn’t go to Burnley on a loan with an obligation to buy, especially after Marc Cucurella’s loan to Manchester United fell through. There are a lot of left-backs at the club suddenly, albeit Maatsen has been used in a more advanced position. “Had Burnley offered £20-25m at the beginning of the window, Maatsen would have likely moved. But he got minutes in pre-season and was reluctant to exit, even knowing Burnley so well from his time with them on loan last season. Chelsea now want Maatsen to sign a new contract and if he doesn’t he’s another one who will be put on the market in January.” related: Chelsea star Ian Maatsen celebrates after rejecting £31.5m deadline day transfer Chelsea have been one of the busiest Premier League teams during this summer's transfer window, but one of their proposed deadline day deals didn't end up going through https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/Chelsea-transfer-deadline-day-maatsen-30847250

I would swap him for Lavia in a heartbeat. That one stung. I mindfucked myself as I watched Ugarte being too rash in the few games (not footage) I saw him play in, so I became less interested. Then, when we were super linked, I went back and watched much more and becuase enamoured completely with him. Was gutted when PSG got him. 😞 Those cunts have so many of my wants (some more than other but all of the following I wanted or want at some point) over the past few years it is insane, far more than any other team atm (I never wanted to BUY Neymar, btw, too expensive and I hate his attitude) Gianluigi Donnarumma Marquinhos Milan Skriniar Lucas Hernández Presnel Kimpembe Nuno Mendes Achraf Hakimi Nordi Mukiele Manuel Ugarte Vitinha Carlos Soler Warren Zaïre-Emery Xavi Simons Ousmane Dembélé Bradley Barcola Kylian Mbappé Randal Kolo Muani Gonçalo Ramos Hugo Ekitiké (I still think he comes good, but maybe not at PSG) plus they had Moussa Diaby (Nkunku too, but we eventually got him, same for Thiago) madness

What became Google began in January 1996 as a research project by Larry Page and Sergey Brin (plus Scott Hassan, the original lead programmer who wrote much of the code for the original Google Search engine, but he left before Google was officially founded as a company) when they were both PhD students at Stanford University in California, but technically you are correct, as it was not formally launched as a firm until August 1998.

welcome! Bobby Tambling sitting in front of Peter Bonetti in 1962

After 1-0 defeat, Enzo Fernandez has now done something no other player in Europe has this season https://www.thechelseachronicle.com/club-news/after-1-0-defeat-enzo-fernandez-has-now-done-something-no-other-player-in-europe-has-this-season/ Chelsea have endured a tough start to the 2023/24 campaign – but there has been one very bright spark in Enzo Fernandez. The Argentina international has shown exactly why Todd Boehly spent £106.8m to sign him from Benfica in January with some truly exceptional performances in the heart of midfield. Despite being on the losing side against Nottingham Forest, Enzo Fernandez has now achieved something no other player in Europe has this season. What’s the story? Well, Mauricio Pochettino’s side looked devoid of ideas on Saturday. However, Fernandez continued to test Nottingham Forest with progressive passes, with one even putting Nicolas Jackson through on goal – only for Joe Worrall to come in with a brilliant challenge. Now – according to Squawka – the South American is one of just two players in Europe, alongside Joshua Kimmich, to have played over 40 passes into the final third, as well as more than 40 passes into the opposition box, so far this season. The Bayern Munich No.6 is one of the best midfielders on the planet and has been for years, so it speaks volumes that the Chelsea No.8 is actually outdoing him in both departments. While both Kimmich and Fernandez have made over 40 forward passes in both areas, the latter has actually played 66 balls into the final third and 47 into the box. Kimmich – in comparison – has completed 45 passes into the final third, and 41 into the box, so actually, no other player in Europe is as forward thinking as Fernandez when it comes to passing this season. Chelsea need to help Enzo Fernandez Clearly, Chelsea have a very special player on their hands in Fernandez, but his immense creativity is not being supported by a clinical frontline. For whatever reason, Pochettino’s current setup is not getting the likes of Nicolas Jackson and Raheem Sterling into goalscoring areas, despite Fernandez’s progressive passes putting the Blues into dangerous positions. Having said that, a lot is new at Stamford Bridge right now, and it will take some time for everyone to get used to each other out on the pitch.