Youri Tielemans has just proved Chelsea were right to sanction £50m deal
Back in the summer, Chelsea had a decision to make when it came to the midfielders Xabi Alonso would use ahead of the new season. Romeo Lavia was kept, and two new signings were made.
Of course, Chelsea did not plan to sell Enzo Fernandez, and when they eventually did, it was too late to find a replacement. Lamine Camara’s £47m move was called off midway through his Blues medical.
Jordan Henderson and Valentin Barco have arrived to provide depth, but a rare injury to Moises Caicedo has left Alonso struggling to find the ideal midfield partnership. Some have even questioned a £50m sale.
Romeo Lavia or Andrey Santos? Tielemans proves Chelsea right
The Blues offloaded Andrey Santos to Man United early on in the summer, raking in £50m for the Brazil international. Santos made little impact at Chelsea, even if some feel he was perfect for Alonso’s midfield.
Ultimately, profit was there to be had, and Chelsea took it. But Man United also signed Youri Tielemans and Carlos Baleba, with Jamie Redknapp making the point that Baleba overtakes Santos when he is fit.
Meanwhile, Lavia is taking advantage of the space in front of him. His early-season performances have largely been positive and during the break, he has been excellent for Belgium – just read Belgian media.
Santos is one of Chelsea’s most-underrated players 🧩
Man United and Newcastle are interested.
Speaking after his display in the 1-0 loss to France, Tielemans heaped praise on his new international teammate, who started his first game for Belgium on Monday: “Very good, very precise on the ball.
“Rock-solid defensively. He tries to play forward. That is all he has shown at Chelsea so far. Today he confirmed that with us. We are very happy that he is here and we hope he can continue on this path.”
While Santos continues to struggle for game time at Man United, more than he did at Chelsea, Lavia has jumped at the opportunity and has taken advantage of it, even starring alongside Tielemans for Belgium.
Chelsea picked the right player to sell earlier in the summer
Given his injury issues and Santos’ form alongside Caicedo during the second half of the season, the obvious choice would have been to sell Lavia and keep Santos. But Chelsea chose to offload Santos.
Now, things have changed. Santos is struggling to prove why Man United paid £50m for him, while Lavia is finally showing Chelsea – and indeed, Belgium – why BlueCo spent £58m to sign him from City in 2023.
Tielemans’ praise proves that, especially because he is both Lavia’s and Santos’ teammate. His praise for the Chelsea star is evidence for the transfer team and Behdad Eghbali that they made the right choice.
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