Just a week of normalcy in the transfer market. That’s all Chelsea fans are asking for.
The Blues are never far from divisive rumors, and the latest report to trigger a civil war supporter has suggested that Chelsea have proposed a direct swap deal between young winger Callum Hudson-Odoi and Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman.
Hudson-Odoi’s future is up in the air / Pierre-Philippe Marcou – Pool / Getty Images
On the one hand, this is a proposal to replace a stagnant fringe player with a core part of perhaps the best squad in Europe. It sounds good.
On the other hand, it is here that Chelsea gets rid of a high-potential youth for an injured, expensive addition to a forward line that is already stacked. Not so good.
It’s not hard to see why this has divided Chelsea fans, and truthfully both sides of the argument have a lot of logic, but you can not help but feel that there are some more negative than positive here … on top of the whole story does not makes a lot of sense anyway.
We know that Chelsea are on a fundraising mission to buy Dortmund’s Erling Haaland, £ 150 million, and Hudson-Odoi is known to be one of the club’s preferred transfer pieces. He is a valuable youth who can take up a large part of the fee himself.
So why switch him to another player? Why take a player on a higher salary than Hudson-Odoi already huge salaries?
It is for these reasons that this deal probably does not happen, but let’s assume it is. Let’s assume that Chelsea are really considering sending Hudson-Odoi to Bayern in exchange for Coman’s contract rebellion.
A swap deal does not make economic sense / John Berry / Getty Images
First, we can not pretend that Coman would not be welcome in Chelsea. He is a regular supplier of almost double figures in both goals and assists each season, and last year was actually the best in his career when it comes to production.
That type of player will always be welcome at Chelsea, but perhaps not at the expense of one of England’s most exciting young prospects.
It can not be denied that Hudson-Odoi has struggled to recover hype from his days before the injury, but his talent still shows up quietly. He may not contribute directly in front of goal, but he is still the club’s most progressive winger and the numbers support that.
Hudson-Odoi managed a team-high 13.6 progressive carry (a dribbling towards the goal) per 90 minutes last season. Mateo Kovacic was second 9.55, with Christian Pulisic third with 8.86.
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– Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 17, 2021
No one on Chelsea’s front line actually tries to make things happen as often as Hudson-Odoi (and it’s not even close), and someone with his skill should be much more important to a Chelsea side who have been ineffective in scoring goals.
With that said, it’s good and good to run towards the goal, but doing something when you get there is a completely different matter.
It can not be denied that Coman is currently the superior player, but he is also five years older than Hudson-Odoi and is only getting into his best now. What should I say that the Chelsea man has not darkened that level when he hits 25?
Hudson-Odoi is obviously a work in progress, but Thomas Tuchel can help him add the skills he lacks. If the 20-year-old can add goals and assists to his devastating dribbling, he could be one of the most dangerous wings in Europe.
Tuchel can take Hudson-Odoi to the next level / MIKE HEWITT / Getty Images
It’s not ideal to take into account significant progress from such a high-income earner, but that’s the world Chelsea are in now, and to make money without allowing Hudson-Odoi a fair chance to flourish just doesn’t make sense, especially in a move that would in fact, it ends up costing Chelsea more money.
If Bayern decide to talk cash, the situation may change, but a straight change? Hard pass.
