Chelsea have suddenly become the ideal destination for some of the biggest football prospects in the world especially in the 2023 summer transfer window, a development that has kept football enthusiasts wowed especially in recent weeks.
Since Todd Boehly and his consortium took over the club from Roman Abramovich in 2022, the American billionaire and his partners have been more focused on signing players below the age of 25. As of last count, they have done 18 of such signings.
In three transfer windows, Bohley has spent close to one billion pounds in bringing these youngsters to Stamford Bridge and he doesn’t look like he would slow down anytime soon.
But the most interesting twist to his desire to sign almost every renowned young talent in Europe is the fact that the youngsters are turning down other big clubs for Chelsea.
Chelsea’s latest signing, Moises Caicedo, 21, rejected Liverpool’s approach to move to Stamford Bridge. Afterward, Romeo Lavia, 19, turned down Liverpool’s offer in favour of Chelsea.
The most stunning of them all is the decision of 21-year-old French and Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise to turn down a reported approach from Manchester City in favour of a move to Chelsea.
The Blues have activated Olise’s £35 million release clause and they are set to conclude negotiations on personal terms with him in the coming days.
Now, why are youngsters choosing Chelsea over other clubs in this summer transfer window?
One of the reasons most youngsters are choosing the Blues over other clubs is the obvious plans of the club to build a team for the future, a project that looks so exciting, at least on the outside, especially after Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool in the 2023-2024 Premier League opener on Sunday, August 13.
To make that even more reasonable, coach Mauricio Pochettino is now the coach of the Stamford Bridge side, and the Argentine side is renowned for making youngsters superstars over time. He did it at Espanyol, Southampton, and Tottenham Hotspur before he had the chance to coach star-studded Paris Saint Germain where he didn’t perform so badly in terms of giving youngsters a chance.
He is known to have made players like Harry Kane, Son Heung Min, Luke Shaw, and Christian Eriksen amongst others, the superstars they are now.
These youngsters have probably seen this trait and they want to tap into it so that they can be world-beaters like the aforementioned players or even more.
Aside from that, Chelsea players are known to be among the highest-paid players in Europe, a very good possibility that would make a youngster choose the club ahead of other suitors. Imagine having the opportunity to grow in one of the biggest clubs in Europe, where you will also earn very well, and even have a chance to win titles, that is an ideal dream for every 21st century footballer.
In the same vein, those youngsters know that Chelsea are titles winning club who are ready to spend as much as possible to keep the team winning every season. It is almost impossible to stay at Chelsea for more than two seasons without winning something.
Aside from playing under a manager that believes in young talent, being paid well, and having a chance of contending for titles while you continue to develop as a footballer, another reason why youngsters would want to join Chelsea ahead of most English clubs is for personal reasons.
Personal reasons in this regard are not about players’ desire to satisfy the quest for more money or living in London, which could also be another factor, but playing for a big club which they have supported from childhood. Some of these players born in the early 2000s were born and grew up in an era Chelsea were relatively dominating English and European football which makes it easier for them to have heroes or role models from the club.
Recall that Mauricio Pochettino said in his first press conference as the manager of Chelsea that the club is the most successful in England in the last couple of years. That assertion is not far from the truth.
To put that in a proper perspective, Chelsea are the only club in England that have won five Premier League titles, five FA Cups, Two UEFA Champions League, one Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, and many other domestic honours within the last 20 years which was the same era these youngsters grew up in.
Hence, it is easier for them to believe that Chelsea are the best thing to ever happen to English football without the players using Wikipedia or a history book as a reference.
