In a recent report, Birmingham Mail claimed that Chelsea have joined the race for Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz. It has been stated that Blues are eyeing a move for the Brazilian midfield ace during the January transfer window.
Luiz’s Season Of Mixed Emotions At Villa Park
The 24-year-old has struggled to earn regular first-team starts at the West Midlands club this season due to the arrival of Boubacar Kamara earlier this year. Still, Luiz has done well to find the back of the net twice in seven matches for Aston Villa this season across multiple competitions.
The Rio de Janeiro-born sensation has seen most of his playing opportunities come off the bench which explains why he is only averaging 0.7 tackles and 0.7 key passes per game in Premier League football. He has even been careful when interchanging possession from midfield after making 86.7% of his attempted passes in the top tier of English football (stats via whoscored).
Luiz is under an expiring contract at Villa Park which could open the door for the Blues to acquire his services when the transfer window commences at the start of January.
What Will Luiz Bring To Chelsea?
Luiz can get stuck in with some good tackles to make life difficult for the opposition at the centre of the park. He can sense the danger quickly to earn the ball back for his team at times and doesn’t mind putting his foot through the ball when required. Luiz is primarily a defensive midfielder but is also comfortable fulfilling the responsibility of acting as a box-to-box midfielder if his manager tells him to do so.
The Brazilian playmaker is a good passer of the ball and can even chip by scoring the odd goal every season. However, he has struggled to be consistent with his performances at Villa Park in recent years.
Hence, Luiz could be a risky option for Chelsea to consider this winter. Still, he would be available for a bargain fee which makes him a low-risk, high-reward signing for Graham Potter to pursue in January.
We can expect the South American sensation to bring more bite and steel to the West London club‘s midfield and might even help them compete for some major trophies in the coming seasons. Therefore, Potter would be wise to try everything he can to lure Luiz to the English capital at the start of the next calendar year.
