Enzo Fernandez has sent a subtle hint to Chelsea in regard to their summer transfer dealings. In what is set to be a window full of changes, both in and out of Stamford Bridge, Mauricio Pochettino is expected to have plenty on his plate to sort out.
The Argentine not only has to quickly evaluate who he wishes to make a key part of his squad ahead of pre-season, once he is announced, but he also needs to go about adding key additions across the field. Goalkeeper, defensive midfield and striker are the three main roles being looked at.
However, with more than 15 players far from certain to remain in west London that list may yet grow dramatically. It could leave Pochettino with an unprecedented level of change to deal with, even for a club that has lost all identity in the past 12 months.
READ MORE: Chelsea star Joao Felix fires four-word response to £86m Newcastle transfer claim
One player in limbo more than others is Joao Felix. The Portugal star has had a mixed time of things since moving on loan in January. Although he is the third top-scorer in the squad in that time he failed to add any output in the Champions League. That was the primary expectation of Todd Boehly and Co, after all.
He has also struggled to make an already disjointed attack become much more cohesive with goalscoring issues continuing throughout his six-month so far. The two goals scored against Nottingham Forest came without his input and the Blues had put two past Bournemouth before he sealed the game one week earlier.
He is settled in London and at the club. He has shown sparks of brilliance that few others in the group can match but after a £12m fee was paid for his services, just three goals and no assists is a mediocre return for a player with talent to spare. Having had a close look at the 23-year-old, anything close to the £111m Atletico Madrid paid Benfica for him in 2019 seems widely overshot.
Chelsea, it has been reported, would consider another loan move for the player but have Pochettino's attacking plans to think about as well as an already overcrowded frontline and financial obstacles to bypass. Without Champions League football there is also no guarantee that he would jump at the chance to stay.
However, despite his middling and often fan-infuriating displays at SW6, Fernandez has praised the silky forward. Speaking to the Residency, Fernandez said: “The one that surprised me the most. Top player!”
The pair have both benefited hugely from Benfica's exceptional talent ID system in Portugal and have made their name as two of the most talented players for their age-group worldwide. Fernandez's first assist for Chelsea was also for Felix, chipping a ball to him against West Ham.
Perhaps it is not surprising that a player with such evident quality is admired by his teammates but the lack of tangible results that have come with that is yet to truly win over fans. It leaves plenty of questions at the door of the incumbent Pochettino, too.
He is a manager that works off hard work, ground covered and high-pressing rather than sheer on-ball quality and on the face of it appears to be opposed to Felix's laissez-faire out-of-possession work.
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