Chelsea have put pen to paper on the signing of a starlet striker, which also comes as his division’s “record transfer” to date, as Todd Boehly and BlueCo once again show they’re not shy about recruiting world football’s brightest young talent.
Chelsea knocked out of FA Cup fourth round by Brighton
It was a weekend to forget for manager Enzo Maresca and his squad, who squandered their only remaining opportunity to win a domestic trophy this season.
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Strikes from Georginio Rutter and Kaoru Mitoma cancelled out Bart Verbruggen’s early own goal to hand the Seagulls a deserved 2-1 win over Chelsea at the Amex, meaning the west Londoners are reliant on their participation in the Europa Conference League for any form of silverware.
It was a deeply disappointing afternoon, with Chelsea managing just one shot on target all game – perhaps bringing into question why BlueCo didn’t sign a prolific striker while they had the chance in January.
|
Chelsea’s next five Premier League fixtures |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Brighton (away) |
February 14th |
|
Aston Villa (away) |
February 22nd |
|
Southampton (home) |
February 25th |
|
Leicester City (home) |
March 9th |
|
Arsenal (away) |
March 16th |
Chelsea held talks with Ipswich over Liam Delap (Simon Phillips), and were linked with a host of other high-profile centre-forwards. However, Maresca will have to wait until the summer to bring in an alternative to Nicolas Jackson, with Christopher Nkunku failing to make an impact at Brighton on Saturday.
“Sometimes I think you need to play games without players to realise how important they are,” said Maresca on Jackson’s absence for Brighton.
“We said many times about Nico: he is important on and off the ball. Off the ball, his intensity is very good and on the ball, he is always a threat. Overall, even without Nico, the game was both.
“We started the game very good. In the first-half, probably the only shot on goal they had was the goal. We controlled, we created some chances and the second-half, more or less it happened the same – probably the only shot on goal was the second goal.
“We had a few chances to draw and we missed. Now, if there is something good after a defeat, it is now we can be focused on the Premier League and Conference [League].”
Chelsea seal Kazakhstan league “record transfer” for Satpaev
For the long-term, it has now been confirmed that Chelsea envisage a very bright future for 16-year-old striker Dastan Satpaev.
Kazakhstani first division side FC Kairat announced that Satpaev will be joining Chelsea, after both clubs agreed a league-record deal over the teenager, with the west Londoners paying around £3 million plus add-ons for his signature.
He’s also put pen to paper on a five-year contract at Stamford Bridge, and will join Maresca’s side when he turns 18 in the summer of 2026.
The Kazakhstan Under-17s captain is someone who Chelsea have been attracted to by his serious potential, and he could well become the face of his nation if all goes to plan in future seasons.
