So the transfer window officially closed around 5 hours ago, and Chelsea have gained quite a number of new players during the summer, most of them being youth players.
With the exception of Raul Meireles, who I profiled in the previous post, here is a list of Chelsea's transfer activities this summer:
PLAYERS IN:
1. Thibaut Courtois
This 19-year old Belgian goalkeeper is brilliant buy for Chelsea at a fee of £9m, and was signed from Racing Genk early in the transfer season. He's a rising star in the Belgian international squad and can become a long-term replacement for Petr Cech. He's very quick, with excellent reflexes, and knows his position well. He's been loaned out to Atlético Madrid for a season to gain some possible first-team experience.
A ten-minute video of some of Courtois' best saves.
2. Lucas Piazón
Lucas Piazón is a 17-year old attacking midfielder from Brazil who currently plays for São Paulo but will be joining Chelsea on January 20, 2012. He played on the Brazil U-15 squad where he scored 11 goals in 7 games. He then moved on to the U-17 squad, where he scored 4 goals in 13 games. He's fast, works well with other players, and can create plays. He was signed for £7.5m.
This is Piazón playing for Brazil U-17 where his goal actually goes through the netting of the goal. Watch until the very end - that's when it becomes obvious. He also sets up a neat give-and-go beforehand.
3. Ulises Dávila
Dávila is a 20-year old attacking midfielder who played for the Mexican U-20 team and the senior Mexico team during the Copa America in 2011 as a replacement for one of the five players involved in a prostitution scandal that year, although he didn't play any matches. He's quite fast, makes runs, and has the ability to get around players. Here's proof:
4. Juan Manuel Mata
Juan Mata is a 23-year old left winger who can also play as an attacking midfielder. He's a creative, intelligent playmaker who will work well with Fernando Torres. He exhibits that well about 40 seconds into the video when he creates a perfect opportunity for Torres, who gets a good header off, but it's saved by John Ruddy.
5. Oriol Romeu
The 19-year old defensive midfielder (who can play in a CB position if needed) played for Barcelona B until recently, when he signed for Chelsea for a fee of 5 million euros. He's been likened to Sergio Busquets, arguably the best player in the world at his position, being very capable of getting around players and passing well.
6. Romelu Lukaku
It's always been Romelu Lukaku's dream to play for Chelsea, as evidenced in this video, where he takes a tour of Stamford Bridge tells off his teacher for saying that he has to be realistic about his options, after Lukaku expresses his desire to play there one day. Good for him. The 18-year old Belgian striker played at Anderlecht, where he had a great record of 33 goals in 73 appearances for the club. He also plays for the Belgian international team, and was signed by Chelsea for a fee of around £18. Needless to say that he'll be a great addition to the squad.
PLAYERS ON LOAN:
1. Yossi Benayoun (Arsenal - season-long)
2. Patrick van Aanholt (Wigan - season-long)
3. Jeffrey Bruma (Hamburger SV - season-long)
4. Gael Kakuta (Bolton - until January 1)
5. Thibaut Courtois (Atlético Madrid - season-long)
6. Ulises Dávila (Vitesse Arnhem - season-long)
Unfortunately, Chelsea weren't able to sign many of the players they were hoping to get this summer, including all five of their top transfer targets (listed two posts ago), but hopefully they can make some great strides this year, especially with all of this young talent that they've received, and bring home the title. The real test will be the upcoming Chelsea-Manchester United match at Old Trafford on September 18.
Cheers,
~Matt
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