Atletico Madrid and Portugal forward Joao Felix has officially moved to Chelsea on a loan deal. The deal will keep him at the club till the end of the season. Before Chelsea snapped him up, Felix was linked with Arsenal and Manchester United.
According to reports, the Londoners and Atletico Madrid agreed on an €11 million loan deal for the 23-year-old striker. There is no news of an “option to buy” clause in Felix’s contract yet. The player’s wages, from now till the end of the season, will be paid by Chelsea.
Graham Potter was appointed after Thomas Tuchel was sacked earlier this season. Potter has been under pressure lately as he looks to bring in effective reinforcements to bolster the strength of his existing squad. Felix is the fourth player Chelsea have roped in this month. The Blues have already signed Benoit Badiashile from Monaco, Andrey Santos from Vasco de Gama, and David Datro Fofana from Molde.
Chelsea have been quite shy in front of goal this season. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has not found his rhythm at the club, as Potter’s men have scored only 20 goals in 17 league games so far. As Arsenal try to pull clear of Manchester City and other clubs below them fight for the remaining two top-four spots, Chelsea are struggling in tenth place.
The club will hope that Felix adapts quickly to the Premier League and helps them increase their goal and points tally to move further up the table. After Kylian Mbappe, Joao Felix became the most expensive teenager in football history after Atletico snatched him from Benfica for a whopping €126 million. Felix played his part in Atletico’s glory in 2021 when they lifted the La Liga trophy.
Lately, the 23-year-old has been struggling in front of goal. Reports suggest that Felix has temporarily left Atletico because the relations between him and Atletico manager Diego Simeone have soured.
Chelsea will be hoping to give the young striker a fresh new start at the Bridge, hoping he thrives in a new environment. It will be interesting to see how Potter utilises the striker who scored once and assisted twice for Portugal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
