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Football London
Football London
Sport
Tom Coley

Chelsea just got '$60m' confirmation of transfer bargain as Todd Boehly hits double jackpot

With a squad of 33 players plus the arrivals of Malo Gusto, Levi Colwill, Ian Maatsen and Christopher Nkunku in the summer, Chelsea's first thought ahead of the next window is for a clearout not for even more recruits. That being said, there are still areas that still need major improvement.

The goalkeeping department is being questioned with Kepa Arrizabalaga's hit-and-miss form as well as Edouard Mendy's lack of gametime. Up front, there is a lack of goals and a new centre forward is high on the list of priorities despite a plethora of attacking options.

It is midfield that has been the area of concern for longest though. Before Enzo Fernandez joined in January it has been over four years since the last new player was added to the squad permanently in that role.

READ MORE: Chelsea have four-day Erik Ten Hag deadline for new manager decision after Jose Mourinho example

The Blues splashed out £106.8m on the Argentine World Cup winner with a record breaking Premier League fee, a deal that raised eyebrows across the league. The 22-year-old had played less than 70 senior games at that point but was added to the squad in the midst of a mass turnover of players in the winter.

He came as a cheaper option despite his massive price tag, than Jude Bellingham. The 19-year-old is expected to move in the summer for another massive fee with Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester City all interested in the Borussia Dortmund starlet. He has his own price tag of $161m (£130m) according to the Athletic.

That itself has already risen from around $100m (£80m) before the World Cup. It's a remarkable $60m increase in the space of just over four months. As one of the standout players in his position at the tournament, Bellingham's stock has only gone up and may well continue to do so with increasingly vital roles for England as well as his club.

Dortmund are still challenging for the Bundesliga title this season and know that they have the attention of all the world's biggest clubs when it comes to getting his signature. Chelsea though are no longer expected to be part of the chasing pack having already made their big statement buy in Fernandez. It could prove to be a smart piece of business too.

Even for such a large amount of money Fernandez has shown signs of living up to the hype. His two glorious assists in his first three months as a Blue have come in Cesc Fabregas-esque style. Given that Liverpool and Madrid were among the teams hoping to pick up Fernandez from Benfica at the end of this season, Chelsea's early capture could prove to be a bargain.

On an eight-and-a-half year contract he could be at the club into his 30s and should he progress in the way that is hoped, that £100m may well be repaid well and truly over the course of the next decade. What was also on show here is the true power of the World Cup.

While Fernandez, the most exciting of all Chelsea's January signings, went from being a relative unknown 12 months ago to being a player in true global prominence, Benoit Badiashile was picked up for just £35m. The Frenchman has had an equally impressive start to life in England and already looks to be great value for money.

He, unlike Fernandez, played no such role at Qatar 2022 and therefore didn't gain the same plaudits and media praise as his new teammate. For Chelsea that may well prove to be massively beneficial. For Todd Boehly and Co it is one of the few pieces of business that so far looks to have gone to plan.

Whilst some will say that the Blues overspent on Fernandez due to inflated World Cup prices, they have also show signs of hitting new types of deals with Badiashile too.

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