Chelsea can unearth bigger talent than Paez with “one-man war machine”

It’s honest to say that Chelsea have encountered rocky waters in current weeks as Enzo Maresca‘s facet have suffered three defeats of their final 4 matches in all competitions.

The Blues have misplaced twice to Brighton & Hove Albion, as soon as within the Premier League and as soon as within the FA Cup, and have been overwhelmed 3-1 by Manchester Metropolis within the top-flight.

A 2-1 win over West Ham United at Stamford Bridge on deadline day in the beginning of February is their solely constructive end result since their win over Wolves on the twentieth of January.

The London giants have already been knocked out of the FA Cup and the League Cup, while they’re falling quick of their push for a high 4 end as they sit sixth within the Premier League.

Maresca could possibly be tempted to push the board to herald extra new recruits in the summertime switch window to bolster his squad, with a view to compete throughout all competitions within the 2025/26 marketing campaign.

Nevertheless, Chelsea have a plethora of younger abilities out on mortgage who may return to Stamford Bridge so as to add to the supervisor’s choices subsequent season, together with Ecuador worldwide Kendry Paez.

Why Kendry Paez could possibly be an possibility for Chelsea subsequent season

Fabrizio Romano reported on Monday that the 17-year-old attacking midfielder has arrived at Cobham to start his transition to life at Chelsea and in England, forward of his transfer to the membership in the summertime.

The younger dynamo is just not capable of formally full his transfer, for a reported fee of £16.6m, till his 18th birthday in Could, however he has begun to organize himself for when he’s a fully-fledged member of the squad.

Paez is a flexible ahead, who can play on both flank or as an attacking midfielder, and will have the ambition to battle for a first-team spot at Chelsea for the 2025/26 marketing campaign.

He at present performs for Independiente in Ecuador and has racked up 13 goals and six assists in 70 matches at first-team degree for the membership thus far, which exhibits that he does have the potential to supply a good menace in entrance of objective.

Nevertheless, Paez has not performed home soccer exterior of Ecuador and which means he has but to show himself in Europe, so it stays to be seen whether or not or not he’ll be capable of make the step as much as the Premier League subsequent season.

Maresca, although, has one other star out on mortgage who may return to Stamford Bridge in the summertime and be unearthed as an excellent greater expertise than Paez, within the type of Andrey Santos.

Andrey Santos’ kind for Strasbourg

At first of 2023, Chelsea swooped to signal the central midfielder from Brazilian facet Vasco da Gama for a reported fee of £18m, re-joining the membership on mortgage till the tip of the 2022/23 marketing campaign.

Santos then went out on mortgage to Nottingham Forest within the first half of final season, making just one appearance within the Premier League, earlier than signing for Strasbourg on mortgage in France in January of final 12 months.

The Brazil worldwide has spent the previous 13 months or so on mortgage with the Ligue 1 facet and has caught the attention together with his performances in the midst of the park in a significant European league.

As you’ll be able to see within the desk above, Santos has showcased his skill to push ahead from midfield to make issues occur on the high finish of the pitch for the French outfit.

The Brazilian starlet additionally has the mobility and physicality to persistently win the ball again for his crew with tackles and interceptions, while not often shedding bodily battles with opposition gamers.

Santos has, due to this fact, confirmed himself in a significant European league on a constant foundation, having been there for over a 12 months, and that’s the reason he could possibly be an excellent greater expertise than Paez, who’s but to play a match in Europe, for Chelsea subsequent season.

What Andrey Santos may deliver to Chelsea subsequent season

As aforementioned, the Brazil worldwide is a central midfielder and which means he will probably be competing for a spot in the midst of the park underneath Maresca subsequent time period.

The younger expertise might want to see off competitors from the likes of Romeo Lavia, Kiernan Dewsbury-Corridor, Moises Caicedo, and Enzo Fernandez to safe a spot within the beginning XI for the 2025/26 marketing campaign.

His performances in Ligue 1 for Strasbourg over the previous one year means that the potential is there for him to be the top coach’s most well-rounded midfield participant subsequent time period.

Andrey Santos vs Moises Caicedo

Andrey Santos vs Enzo Fernandez

As you’ll be able to see within the charts above, Santos supplies a mixture of what Caicedo and Fernandez supply in midfield, as he combines being a menace as a scorer and a creator of targets with dominant defensive work for his facet.

The 20-year-old starlet, who was as soon as described as a “one-man war machine” by expertise scout Jacek Kulig, may are available in to supply the very best of each worlds and supply Maresca with a well-rounded midfield possibility.

On the age of 20, he’s additionally three years youthful than Caicedo and 4 years youthful than Fernandez, which implies that he nonetheless has loads of time left forward of him to develop and enhance with extra expertise on the high degree.

Santos, given his kind in Ligue 1, may are available in as an instantaneous starting-quality possibility for Maresca, with the skillset to play alongside both Caicedo or Fernandez, while Paez is but to show himself in Europe and it stays to be seen whether or not or not he’ll want a mortgage or two earlier than rising as a first-team possibility for Chelsea.

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For now, Blues supporters ought to keep watch over how Santos performs for Strasbourg within the second half of this season, as he could possibly be like a brand new signing for Chelsea subsequent time period.