Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner were terrible, but Chelsea could at least claim ignorance. They know Joao Felix doesn’t create or score goals, and yet still want him?
It’s one thing to sign a forward when in desperate need of goals and assists, to then find out they’re not productive; Chelsea are industry leaders in that regard. It’s quite another to sign a forward when in desperate need of goals and assists after you’ve experienced said player’s lack of productivity first-hand.
What we’ve seen of Felix thus far should be putting Chelsea off signing him on a permanent basis, not strengthening their resolve to spunk another £100m.
Nobody can deny his talent. He’s a beautiful player to watch and if football was about pure entertainment, Chelsea should sign him come hell or high water. But close control, quick feet and half-turns count for very little when there’s no end product, and while those clippable moments of wonderful skill loom large, scratch beneath that polished surface and you’re left with a player whose impact has been insignificant.
Felix has scored two goals and is yet to register an assist in nine Chelsea appearances. His 2.79 shot-creating actions per 90mins makes him the 11th best at the club. He’s played 0.88 key passes per game, which is the 14th best. He doesn’t create opportunities and, thus far, hasn’t scored many goals.
Joao Felix does not want to go back to Atletico Madrid. pic.twitter.com/Eu8tR07T1S
— Frank Khalid OBE (@FrankKhalidUK) March 23, 2023
That could change. He’s hit the woodwork on four occasions and has often opted for the best method to finish a chance without pulling it off, which is more than can be said for Chelsea’s other misfiring forwards. But he’s never been prolific.
Perhaps the greatest benefit to having Felix in the side is his ability to draw defenders towards him to open up space for others. But the question Todd Boehly and the various Chelsea directors should be asking is: Is an ability to create space for others to assist and score goals worth £100m? And wouldn’t that money be better spent on the players that do the actual assisting and scoring?
If Chelsea have the money for Felix as well as another £100m+ for a guaranteed source of goals then you might think: fair enough. But then why not buy a more creative second striker who can also chip in more frequently than Felix?
Because although the praise of Felix has been pretty glowing this far, there’s no doubt the…
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