Why Chelsea buying Ross Barkley is good business
Ross Barkley was reported to be close to at £35m transfer last summer. But, it’s rumoured Chelsea agreed with his agent to let his contract run down to January. Saving Chelsea £20m.
Conte is on a tight budget at Chelsea and has struggled to make signings. Causing a lack of squad depth and some worries at the start of the season. Therefore a £20m saving and adding depth to a thin midfield is good business.
But, Conte’s side have had a strong first half of the season sitting in 3rd, a point behind 2nd. However, the title has already been lost to Guardiola’s unbeaten Manchester City.
Ross Barkley has been predicted a bright future for years. He debuted for England’s senior team aged 19, after 34 caps for England’s youth teams. In 2011, Martin Keown said 17 year old Ross Barkley would be ‘one of the best players we’ll ever see in this country.’ Tim Cahill also said he was ‘the most talented footballer he had worked with.’ He regularly received praise from pundits and ex-England stars when he started to play for Everton. Often being compared to Paul Gascoigne. And he was included in Roy Hodgson’s 2014 World Cup squad.
Barkley hasn’t played a Premier League minute this season due to a hamstring injury. He has only missed 12 matches through injury before this season, in 2014 from two separate injuries. Missing half a season of football at a young age that is important for development is frustrating. But, Barkley already has over 10,000 Premier League minutes to his name and has played some Europa League football at Everton.
I am a big fan of this transfer because I want to see Barkley succeed at a top club. Conte is a brilliant manager and hopefully Barkley can grow under him to the player he was predicted to be. And star for England. At £15m this is relatively low risk for Chelsea. There’s a good chance he will succeed and if not then he is a good squad player for the time being. If he were to not reach his potential and not be to Chelsea’s standard then its a low fee for a player who is young, respected and has resale value. He certainly won’t lose his value.
In my opinion he can really earn a spot at Chelsea and perform well. He has had two strong seasons at Everton recently which I feel went under the radar at times from non-Evertonians. For the relatively low fee he is a great investment for Chelsea and can earn a huge return on investment through his performances and value.
Chelsea legend, Frank Lampard has said it was a great signing, praising Ross Barkley’s ability and that in today’s market £15m for a relatively young English midfielder is good business. Which I agree with.
