As has been well reported, Chelsea’s preparations for the new season have been somewhat disturbed.
Changes of personnel in both the playing and managerial department remain a running theme but, with the new Premier League season just a few weeks away, it’s time to get into action.
New recruits have, thus far, been somewhat thin on the ground and, in 38-year-old goalkeeper Rob Green, included some of the most bizarre signings of the summer.
Stars are what the Stamford Bridge faithful are crying out for and, as yet, they don’t appear to have got any.
Yet there’s still and, if reports in Germany are to be believed, the acquisition of a bonafide wonderkid could be imminent. Bayer Leverkusen’s Leon Bailey is the man in question, and the interest is said to be concrete.
Despite being just 20-years-old, Bailey’s is a name that has been linked with a host of top European clubs for some time. If he were to make the switch to West London, what exactly would his new employers be getting?
The answer, quite simply, is a huge amount. Bailey has already established himself as a fixture in Leverkusen’s team and, in his 25 Bundesliga outings last season, made quite the impact.
A flying winger with the versatility to play up front too, the Jamaican international is a player capable of winning games single handedly.
With a win ratio increase of 13% with him on the pitch last season, it’s clear that he was putting that potential to good use.
There can be no doubt that he remains something of an unpolished diamond, but the talent is clearly there. Maurizio Sarri has a track record of bringing young attackers on leaps and bounds and, under his wing, the world really could be Bailey’s oyster.
The transfer fee would surely be sizeable and, as is always the case with one so young, laced with a certain level or risk. Bailey, however, looks like a star in the making and could be exactly the player Chelsea are crying out for.