Chelsea’s youth-focused project has earned them their fair share of criticism in recent times, but could it perhaps help them win the race for Eli Junior Kroupi?
The talented young Frenchman has enjoyed a superb debut season in the Premier League, becoming the highest-scoring teenager in his first season in the competition with 13 goals.
According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea are now set to rival Arsenal for Kroupi by asking to be kept informed on the Bournemouth star’s situation this summer.
Still, the general feeling is that the Cherries don’t want to sell the 19-year-old, so it will be interesting to see how this saga pans out.
Eli Junior Kroupi – a Chelsea signing that actually makes sense
We’ve been made aware of Arsenal interest in Kroupi, and one imagines he might find it hard to turn down an approach from the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners have just won the Premier League title and are looking forward to a Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain, so it’s easy to believe Kroupi would view them as a priority.
Still, this is where Chelsea’s project could also help them, as Kroupi could feel confident of being given a key role and plenty of playing time to develop due to the Blues’ philosophy of building around young players.
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This project hasn’t won everyone over yet, as some of Chelsea’s signings have been pretty poor, such as Alejandro Garnacho and Liam Delap.
But in Kroupi they’d be signing a genuine elite youngster who has already proven himself in the Premier League at a young age. The deal seems perfect for both parties.
Eli Junior Kroupi to Chelsea looks a perfect fit
Using our Transfer Fit rating system, we’ve scored Kroupi to Chelsea as an 18/25 fit.
That’s a terrific score, with the player’s likely cost and lack of experience the only real things counting against him.
Chelsea really need an upgrade on their struggling attacking players, and Kroupi could be perfect to make both an instant impact and to potentially solve that position for CFC for many years to come.
Arsenal also need to add something fresh to their front line, though, so this is sure to be one of the most intriguing transfer battles of the summer.