The FC Chelsea has hit the transfer market in unprecedented fashion, but it doesn’t show on the pitch. Borussia Dortmund is therefore with great chances in the round of 16 Champions League.
Who in January the transfer activities of FC Chelsea observed, who could only rub his eyes in amazement. As a fan of Borussia Dortmund, you could also get scared and anxious, after all, BVB will get it in the round of 16 Champions League to do with the Londoners. The first leg will kick off in Dortmund on Wednesday (02/15/2023).
Spent more than 320 million euros in January
Chelsea paid a whopping 121 million euros for the 22-year-old Argentinian world champion Enzo Fernández from Benfica Lisbon. Never before had a British football club paid so much for a player. The sum of the transfer expenses of the Londoners, who took a total of eight players in January, rose to the equivalent of more than 320 million euros.
Already in the summer – after the takeover of the club by a consortium led by US businessman Todd Boehly – Chelsea had in the premier league set a record and spent more than 300 million euros on new players. The more than 600 million euros this season is more money than all Bundesliga clubs have spent together this season.
During the crazy shopping spree, use the “Blues” a loophole in the Financial Fair Play-Rules. Fernández and also the Ukrainian Mychajlo Mudryk (up to 100 million euros from Shakhtar Donetsk), for example, were given employment contracts until 2031 (!), so that the Londoners can stretch the transfer fees on the balance sheet.
Sporty only mediocre
The Dortmunders don’t have to freeze in fear before the round of 16 in the premier class. Despite their new superstars, Chelsea simply cannot win at the moment and are in crisis. Most recently, the team around German national player Kai Havertz came to London derbies at West Ham United not beyond a 1:1. The hit of the “blues” fell after a nice combination of the two signings Joao Felix and Fernández – after all.
For Chelsea it was the third draw in a row. In nine competitive games after the World Cup in Qatar, the team from team manager Graham Potter only two wins. The club is average in the Premier League – 31 points mean ninth place. They are ten points behind fourth place, which entitles them to qualify again for the lucrative Champions League. In the FA Cup and Chelsea have already been eliminated from the League Cup. So the proud club is more of a pseudo-giant than a frightening star ensemble these days.
Enormous pressure
Of a “development process” speaks Potter and asks for patience, his crew have “a lot of potential”, but haven’t found each other yet. But is patience the thing for US investors? They currently see that their strategy is not without risk. This puts a lot of pressure on Potter and the crew. The Londoners are doomed to win against Dortmund.
But the black and yellow come with six competitive wins in Sere in the back. Coach Edin Terzic’s team is back in the middle of the championship fight and full of self-confidence. A departure means a season without a title for Chelsea. In the league, the “Blues” also threaten to miss the qualification for international business.
Fans want Tuchel back
The fans are dissatisfied and sharply criticize the new owner Todd Boehly. Not because of his transfer policy, but because of Thomas Tuchel’s dismissal. He had to go in September last year regardless of the 2021 Champions League triumph. Then Potter took over and after three league wins the ongoing crisis phase began.