Chelsea have been strongly linked with a move for Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt as the Blues look to make their first signing of the summer transfer window.
After the departure of Antonio Rudiger to Real Madrid following the expiry of the German defender's contract, a large hole has been left to fill in the Chelsea defence. Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen and Marcos Alonso are also expected to depart Stamford Bridge this summer, leaving options sparse at the back.
De Ligt moved to Juventus in 2019 following his involvement in Ajax's run to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals in the same year and has quickly evolved into one of the best defenders in Europe. It's reported that Chelsea are willing to pay between £60million and £65million for the Netherlands international, though the Italian side are holding out for around £75million.
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So, if De Ligt was to make the move to Chelsea in the summer, what sort of impact could he have on Tuchel's side? Could the defender help the Blues challenge for the Premier League?
We simulated the 2022/23 season with De Ligt in the Chelsea squad, and this is what happened.
We 'signed' Matthijs de Ligt for Chelsea in July 2022
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for De Ligt to join Chelsea at the start of the summer transfer window, using FM22 to run the simulation. As well as his arrival, the likes of Antonio Rudiger, Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen all left the club.
In his first season at Chelsea, De Ligt slotted into the Blue's backline and became a regular in Tuchel's side. Playing predominantly on the right of the back three, De Ligt made 48 appearances in all competitions, playing 36 out of 38 games in the Premier League.
The 22-year-old averaged a rating of 7.19 per game in all competitions throughout the 2022/23 season for Chelsea. The Dutch defender also managed an 83% tackle success rate on average, with his best competition being the Champions League - winning 100% of his tackles in eight games.
Compared to the rest of the defenders in the squad, De Ligt averaged the second-best rating per game, with only Trevor Chalobah higher. FM22 predicts the English defender to become a key player for Tuchel next season, playing 47 times whilst averaging the best rating out of the defenders.
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2022 put together an overall best Chelsea XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what Chelsea's best XI looked like at the end of the 2022-23 season as predicted by Football Manager 2022:
Full Chelsea best XI (5-2-2-1): Mendy; James, Chalobah, Silva, De Ligt, Chilwell; Kante, Kovacic; Mount, Sterling; Havertz.
De Ligt filled the hole left behind by Rudiger, starting in the backline alongside Thiago Silva and Chalobah. N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic were the best midfield duo in the simulated season, whilst fellow transfer target Raheem Sterling also joined, starting with Mason Mount and Kai Havertz in the Blues' front three.
So, how did the Blues perform in the league and cup competitions after signing De Ligt in the summer transfer window? Let's take a look.
Chelsea's results from the 2022/23 simulation:
Chelsea earned eight more points in the Premier League during the simulation than the 2021/22 season, but Tuchel's side remained in third place. Joint on points with Man City but only behind on goal difference, the Blues finished just seven points behind champions Liverpool. Interestingly, Chelsea ended the season as the league's top scorers, with both Havertz and Sterling scoring 18 goals each over the course of the Premier League campaign. It was defending where Chelsea slacked, conceding the most out of the top four.
Chelsea managed to reach two finals in the simulation once again, but unlike the 2021/22 season and picked up one. Against De Ligt's former side, goals from Havertz and Sterling handed Tuchel's side a 2-0 win over Juventus to win the Champions League final.
A thrilling encounter in the Carabao Cup final saw Chelsea lose 3-2 to 10-men Liverpool, with Neymar - who has been linked with a move to Chelsea - scoring for Liverpool as they lifted the trophy. A disappointing 2-1 defeat to Leicester City also saw the Blues knocked out in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Overall, this Football Manager simulation predicts that if Chelsea were to sign De Ligt ahead of the 2022/23 season, the Dutch defender could prove to be a great signing, helping Chelsea win the UEFA Champions League. Though, in the league, the defensive record did not improve, potentially highlighting the need for more defensive depth if more defenders were to leave this summer.
Would you like to see De Ligt sign for Chelsea this summer? Let us know in the comments!
