Chelsea had recently acquired the services of Gonzalo Higuain on a loan deal for the remainder of this campaign, and according to ESPN reporter Dan Graca, as mentioned by the Daily Star, the Pensioners are set to push on in search of a new midfielder. They have set their sights on Leandro Paredes who currently plies his trade at Zenit St. Petersburg in Russia.
Speaking prior to Higuain’s acquisition, the Daily Star reports that Graca expressed his thoughts on the Calcioland podcast and said, “So Paredes is a player that we’ve been asked a lot about from Chelsea fans and I definitely get that he is more of a natural replacement for Fabregas than say, [Nico] Barella.
The ESPN reporter went on to add, “The report today is that PSG made an official bid to Zenit to sign him while Chelsea are definitely interested, they have yet to make a big but they are certainly interested.
“So, let’s see if Chelsea are going to wait until after the Higuain stuff is resolved to get really into it, or if they can walk and chew gum and do both.”
It is important to note that various outlets including Guardian are claiming that PSG have already sealed a deal for Paredes. If Graca’s claims are correct, then the Pensioners could be in line to secure the services of the Argentine midfielder now that the Higuain transfer has been finalised. The Pensioners have lacked quality in midfield with NGolo Kante often being played out of his natural position while both Mateo Kovacic and Ross Barkley have failed to make the most out of the first-team opportunities that were handed out to them.
To make matters worse, Jorginho has also been guilty of playing backward passes too often and has not been inventive enough going forward. Hence, a player like Paredes could add some much-needed creativity to Sarri’s midfield which might help them push for a top 3 finish in the second half of this campaign.
Paredes has featured in 22 matches for Zenit this term, scoring four goals while creating four assists in all competitions. He has also earned nine international caps for the Argentine national side and has one goal to his name for his country.
The addition of the Zenit talent will undoubtedly bolster Sarri’s midfield options at Stamford Bridge. However, the 24-year-old Argentine prospect has still not proven his worth at the highest level so it would be a significant gamble for Chelsea to recruit a player with the hopes that he can make a smooth transition to Premier League football.
The jury is still out on whether such a transfer would work out for all parties. Having said that, the Blues of London need to take more risks in the transfer market or else risk missing out on a top 4 place at the end of this campaign.
