Rob Pratley does not hold back reviewing the January transfer window 2025!

The good, the bad and the downright stupid...

Throughout the January transfer window, I’ve retained a measured perspective because transfers are not simple things. It takes a lot of time to do a deal - despite what people think - and they can collapse over the smallest of things. Resultantly, I’ve been waiting for the end of the window to accurately assess the activity in and out of the club.

Let’s start with the good. Firstly, I’m pleased we finally saw some sense and recalled Trevoh Chalobah. Secondly, I’m glad we didn’t buy Alejandro Garnacho. Thirdly, I’m pleased we saw sense and accepted Axel Disasi doesn’t fit in Enzo Maresca’s plans. Fourthly… actually no, we’ve exhausted the good points.

I’m not going back into the Trevoh Chalobah situation. My view on it is pretty stark. He was treated appallingly and forced out the club and it is embarrassing we’ve had to recall him. I’m of the view that heads should roll for the way we’ve treated him and it’s no surprise that since he has returned, he has proved he is ample good enough to be a squad option. I’m not sure what sort of ridiculous politics came into play to loan him out in the first place, but quite frankly it can get in the bin.

Onto the Alejandro Garnacho point. I actually do think Garnacho has a lot of talent and ability, which if harnessed correctly will lead to a positive career. The issue is he is stuck in a basket-case environment on a long contract with a manager who frankly would jettison him at a moment’s notice and is perpetually now being viewed as a walking pound note because of the ridiculous nature of PSR regulations, coupled with the dreadful way Manchester United are run. When you also factor in his brother - who seems to have elected himself as some quasi-spokesperson for Garnacho and is rapidly damaging the Argentine’s career by regularly espousing on social media (and to the press, if reports are to be believed - it’s the exact sort of baggage Chelsea do not need.

The final positive point. I have nothing against Axel Disasi, he seems a good character and as a box defender, he has certain qualities. However, he has shown zero ability to play consistently in a high line. He panics and makes silly mistakes, lacking the athleticism and agility to compensate for these lapses and is prone to being caught out of position. I have no doubt he could be a very good player in the right system for the right manager, right team and right league. I have absolute confidence that isn’t in the Premier League for any team that has ambitions of playing a higher line. One thing I will give him credit for - he - like many people - view Tottenham Hotspur as tinpot and irrelevant.

Onto the bad. Oh boy, where do you start. It was pretty clear at the beginning of the month there would be 3 big subplots underpinning the window for Chelsea. Firstly, Joao Felix and Christopher Nkunku wanting more gametime. Secondly, the acquisition of a new central defender to provide cover - which we’ve already discussed above. Thirdly, signing priority players in the two positions that Chelsea lacked in; a proper box striker, or old school ‘No. 9’ and another midfield option to cover for Romeo Lavia.

Starting with Joao Felix. I was on record in the summer saying this was an utterly bizarre move and some ridiculous PSR shenanigans. Felix didn’t pull up trees during his first spell at the club - despite what various compilation makers might have you think - and consistently he’s looked lightweight in the Premier League. It should have rung alarm bells last year when FC Barcelona passed up the option to sign him permanently. I’ve had conversations with another journalist - hello if you do read this - and I know he has an equally dim view on Felix. I always describe Felix as the perfect ‘ideas footballer’. On paper he has loads of qualities - vision, passing, agility, dribbling, can shoot, can take set-pieces - in reality, these qualities are greatly exaggerated.

Instead, Chelsea decided to bite the proverbial bullet and bring Felix ‘home’. In many ways, I suppose he has been treated like an academy graduate - shunted out on loan and clearly marked as not in the plans, despite having a long contract. I don’t exactly have sympathy for Felix as I don’t think he was ever the solution, but I do have sympathy towards his family who once again are being uprooted due to complete utter mismanagement. I suppose Chelsea’s real hope is if he goes away to AC Milan and does well, they can recoup a chunk of the fee and minimise the PSR damage (hey, who would have thought these swaps were a bad decision!). I already dread to imagine what AC Milan player Chelsea are eyeing up for the summer in part of more convoluted swap-shop nonsense because I’m confident it won’t be someone we really require.

Again, it’s a black mark against the directors because it was clear from very early on that Enzo Maresca did not rate Joao Felix and this is reflected in the fact his only Premier League start of recent note was in the loss to Ipswich - where his only contribution was timing a run poorly and being caught offside as he found the net. If you’re going to back a manager for the long term, you need to sign players that he wants, and Felix most clearly does not fit that bill. I hope on a personal level Felix does manage to find happiness again in his play - he has struggled on every level since Atletico first paid that eye-watering price-tag to sign him from Benfica and feels like another player suffocated by that expectation.

On Christopher Nkunku, I am slightly more sympathetic because this just feels like one of those deals that made sense, but other activities have kiboshed it. The knee injury last year and the rise of Cole Palmer has meant the 10 spot is permanently occupied. That said, I’d personally like to see more of Nkunku playing off the left, where he looked particularly good in pre-season last year and also showed a really good understanding with Nicolas Jackson. At the moment, none of the left-wing options have made themselves undroppable and as a result, I think this would add another dimension. Although Nkunku did do some frustrating things on Monday, a lot of his work was positive and aimed to try and create and score, something which we’ve lacked recently.

That said, I think it would also help him settle if we weren’t constantly touting his availability in the newspapers via briefs and inviting bidders for a transfer fee that simply isn’t going to happen based on recent injury record and form. I do ultimately think Christopher Nkunku might be sold in the summer, but until then, Chelsea need to use him properly and get the most out of him. At time of writing, Chelsea are in two cup competitions and battling for a Champions League spot, Nkunku certainly has qualities to contribute to that, but not as a sole striker.

We’ve already done central defenders to death - admittedly seeing us bid for Marc Guehi again was ironic, after many people - myself included - predicted this sort of eventual outcome when he first left. Also equally ironic for two reasons is hearing about the huge bid for Murillo which was swatted away by Nottingham Forest. Firstly, Murillo’s a really good player, but Forest play a system that highlights his strengths and alleviates his weaknesses. I have zero faith that we’d adjust our entire style of play to achieve this. Secondly, Chelsea were linked quite heavily with Murillo before he joined Forest and at the time he was derided as not being good enough for what Chelsea needed.

On the topic of defenders and one last point: Renato Veiga’s loan situation could be an article alone, it was one of the most ridiculous, stupid scenarios I’ve seen in some time and the story changed more times than a re-write of a soap opera. Again, I hope Veiga does okay on his loan because that means Chelsea can then move him on for a decent fee; this episode if nothing else has proved that some players might believe in what they are told at first, but this view rapidly diminishes. Just play Ishe Samuels-Smith instead who actually understands how to invert.

Let’s move onto the elephant in the room. Signing priority players for key positions. At the start of the window, Chelsea FC Women identified they needed a quality central defender, and a top No. 6. They also ended up needing a goalkeeper due to joyous news of Zećira Mušović’s pregnancy - congratulations again to the Swedish keeper. They ended the window with a quality central defender, a top No. 6 and top goalkeeping prospect.

In contrast, Chelsea FC started the window needing a central defender, midfield cover and a penalty box nine. They signed… 1.5 of these? Recalling Chalobah from loan is hardly some masterstroke, nor is briefing he is still for sale in the summer before he even kicks a ball. After all, how embarrassing would it be if he then got Player of the Match in his first game back? Mathis Amougou might turn out to be an absolute steal and we might talk about his signing in a couple of years time as being pivotal to future success. On the other hand, he might just fall into the Cesare Casadei bracket of promising young player who does okay but ultimately gets jettisoned several years later for a small profit or break-even whilst other prospects go elsewhere, or miss out on opportunities.

Seeing it briefed that he isn’t really expected to be a part of the plans before the end of the season begs the question of why sign him now? Why not let Strasbourg sign him? Or alternatively - if you have to sign him, why not send him to Strasbourg and recall Andrey Santos? The Brazil midfielder is absolutely dominating in Ligue 1 and is a shoo-in to be Strasbourg’s Player of the Year and will likely make the Ligue 1 Team Of The Season. It’s no surprise to hear the likes of PSG and FC Bayern are already circling around him for the summer and Chelsea NEED to show a clear pathway. If he is returning in time for the Club World Cup, I would have him straight into the action. Whilst I can maybe understand why you’d want to keep Andrey out on loan - Strasbourg themselves are having a decent season and he has been pivotal to it- equally I see zero reason to sign Amougou who is only slightly younger, in the same position and not on the same level.

If you aren’t recalling Andrey, that’s fine. You have Lesley Ugochukwu to recall too. You know, the player who was in the exact same position as Amougou two seasons ago, playing well for Stade Rennes and also gaining valuable Premier League experience battling against relegation at Southampton. I do think that Chelsea would have recalled Ugochukwu if Ivan Juric hadn’t become Southampton manager. Even then, I still think they should have done so. People say Ugochukwu isn’t really a sitting midfielder, but I don’t really think we have a proper ‘sitting midfielder’ in the system, at least not at the moment. Ultimately I can appreciate you wanting him out on loan to get experience and play regularly, but does feel like Ugochukwu is gaining experience to be sold to the highest bidder this summer. I’ve got no doubt that Chelsea can make profit on Lesley Ugochukwu. I do also have zero doubt other players will see how he’s been treated and this will impact their view on it.

Onto the final point. Long time readers will know I am a huge proponent of the proper ‘No. 9’. From Peter Osgood, to Mark Hughes, Didier Drogba & Diego Costa to Olivier Giroud, Chelsea has been a fruitful and happy hunting ground for the more traditional centre-forward. I do think Nicolas Jackson is improving and has been dealt a difficult hand, especially this season with no other senior support. That said, I do also think he’s looked tired at times and also has been in poor form recently. Another senior no. 9 would take some of this burden off of him.

People will say there was no clear option on the market. But I’m pretty confident you could have made one happen. A decent bid for Liam Delap would have made Ipswich think twice and also possibly turned the player’s head. Jorgen Strand Larsen would have welcomed being rescued from his Wolves relegation battle and no doubt Celta Vigo would have happily accepted a big fee in exchange for cancelling the convoluted loan deal. Jean-Phillipe Mateta spent a large chunk of the first half of the season looking for a way out of Crystal Palace, I’m sure Chelsea could have got Steve Parrish to listen, especially as again I think his head would have turned. These are just a few potential names and no doubt there were countless others. It remains a huge issue for Chelsea that they will have games where teams will sit in, be compact and challenge them to break them down.

Having a physical presence that can meet these battles head on and relish them is a huge boost - look at the effect Marc Guiu’s strength and running had on the West Ham defence. His occupying of the two central defenders against West Ham gave Marc Cucurella room to bring down Neto’s cross in the run-up to the first goal. Are any of the above long term solutions for the nine role? I’d wager not - besides maybe Delap if he develops further - but in a situation like this season, goalscorers are critical and in tight games, a proven centre-forward can be the difference between 3 points, 1 point or 0 points. It’s not as if you also couldn’t move one of them on in a year or two if they end up 3rd choice.

Overall, this window is one that whilst lacking in unnecessary signings for the whole, was instead punctuated by ridiculous briefs that changed with the wind. Initially a quiet month was then set to be a busy one, then an exciting one, then a busy final week, then waiting for the summer having done groundwork. Fans are not stupid and rapidly the Sporting Directors are losing any credibility. From the summer signings, two have already been jettisoned on loan and one has barely featured. The other should feature more, but has been caught up in positional politics - another blight of this club - and the final two have done okay but need to show much more in the form of end product.

If you’re going on about having a four window plan - this time period is already over and the clock is ticking. Players know they need to start performing, the senior management and board need to perform too. At the moment, you’re not far off direct dissent and unrest at matchdays against the Sporting Directors. And to be honest, I can’t say that - unlike in other cases - I think this would be harsh.

If you are going to treat fans like fools and laud over-the-top praise over the smallest successes and tiniest bits of progress - it’s only ever going to end up one way.

Rob Pratley