When you look at the amount of players who went under the radar at top clubs, Chelsea is right up there on top of the list. Some of them had a serious downfall in their careers while some others hogged the limelight at other clubs. The lack of playing time and the tendency to splash out money on new players is surely one of the reasons why these players never made a mark at Chelsea. A revolving managerial door at the club also adds to the players’ woes as it is not necessary that these signings are included in the new gaffer’s plans for the season.
Even though Chelsea have managed to pull out some brilliant signings over the last few years in the likes of Cesar Azpilicueta, Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois, there are more number of players who were brought in but failed to get enough playtime and searched for greener pastures. Here we take a look at five Chelsea flops who are currently having a great season after leaving the former Premier League champions for various reasons.
#1 Kevin De Bruyne
The Belgian was a long-term target for Chelsea after impressing in his time at Genk. He played a crucial part in leading Genk to the Belgian Pro League title in 2010-11, scoring five goals in the process. He made a total of 113 appearances for Genk and scored 17 goals in his four seasons at the club. Andres Vilas Boas, the then Chelsea manager, was quick to notice his abilities and signed him in the 2012 January transfer window for a reported fee of £6.7m. The winger was then loaned out to Genk for the rest of the season.
De Bruyne earned the plaudits after his loan move to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen in 2012-13 where he managed to make 34 appearances and scored 10 goals. He was also named Bundesliga Young Player of the Year for that season and it helped him earn a move back to Stamford Bridge. But life under Jose Mourinho was not fruitful for the Belgian as he only made 9 appearances and struggled for playing time.
However, the turning point of his career happened after he moved to Wolfsburg in the winter transfer window of 2013. The Belgian spent three successful years with the Bundesliga outfit scoring 20 goals in 72 appearances and was also named the Bundesliga Player of the Year in 2015 after racking up the highest number of assists in the season. Wolfsburg finished as runners-up in the league that season and also won the DFB Pokal thanks to De Bruyne.
De Bruyne made a comeback to the Premier League after joining Manchester City in 2015 for a whopping fee of £55m and has easily been one of the best midfielders in the league so far. He made 41 appearances for the club in his first season and scored 16 goals across all competitions. He has made 11 league appearances for City this season, scoring 2 goals and registering 7 assists so far.
#2 Mohamed Salah
Mohamed Salah was Jose Mourinho’s third signing after his arrival in England for a second stint in the 2013-14 season for a reported fee of £11M. The Blues battled it out for the midfielder with Liverpool and managed to secure his services in the January transfer window of 2014. The Egyptian was expected to get regular playing time after the departures of Kevin De Bruyne and Juan Mata but he failed to make an impact in his two seasons at Stamford Bridge.
Salah came under Chelsea’s radar after scoring against them in the Europa League semi-finals in 2013, and his goals in both fixtures against Chelsea in the 2014 Champions League group stage ensured that he caught the eye of Mourinho and it made way for his move to London. But he had a torrid time in his time under Mourinho after he managed only 19 appearances in his time with Chelsea.
Also, Read – 5 Liverpool rejects who are on fire this season
Salah was sent out on loan to Fiorentina and Roma in the following seasons and impressed in his time in the Serie A. The 24-year-old’s efforts were rightfully rewarded when he earned a permanent move to Roma this year after a successful loan spell last season in which he scored 15 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions.
Roma are currently second in the league, four points away from leaders Juventus, and Salah has been instrumental in the run, scoring 8 goals and registering 4 assists so far this season.
#3 Romelu Lukaku
Romelu Lukaku joined Chelsea as the ‘big’ solution to their problems in front of goal. The striker was quick to draw comparisons with the club’s most successful striker, Didier Drogba mainly due to his stature and a brilliant eye for goal to go with his strength and prowess in the air. The Belgian joined Chelsea in 2011, aged 18, for a fee reported to be around £20m after impressing everyone at RSC Anderlecht.
Lukaku became a household name in Belgium when he was top scorer in the domestic league in the 2009-2010 season, aged 16. Chelsea manager Andres Vilas Boas was quick to pounce upon the striker and signed him up as a long-term replacement for Drogba. However, the Belgian did not manage to score a single competitive goal for Chelsea and was always down the pecking order with the likes of Drogba, Torres, Sturridge and Kalou preferred over him.
Lukaku impressed everyone in his loan spell at West Brom where he got regular playing time in the 2012-13 season. He made 35 league appearances and scored 17 goals that year including a hat trick in Sir Alex Ferguson’s 1,500th and final league game in charge of Manchester United. Chelsea sent him out on loan again in the next season and he followed up his great goal scoring form at Everton that earned him a permanent move to Goodison park in 2014-15.
The 23-year-old has managed to earn the plaudits ever since his arrival at Everton and has been one of the most consistent strikers in the league scoring over 20 goals across all competitions in the last two seasons. Lukaku has managed to score 7 goals, including a hattrick, and has registered 3 assists for Everton this season and has been linked with a few of Europe’s biggest clubs.
#4 Filipe Luis
Filipe Luis followed his former teammate Diego Costa’s footsteps to Chelsea but the move did not work out in the way both parties wanted it to. Luis spent a single season with Chelsea after making his move from Atletico Madrid for a fee of £15.8m. The Brazilian was instrumental in Atletico’s road to being La Liga champions and also helped them reach the Champions League final in 2014.
The 31-year-old joined the Madrid giants from Deportivo La Coruna in 2010-11 and has made over 225 appearances for the club till date. He has won the La Liga, Copa Del Rey and the Europa League during his tenure in Spain and his success meant that Chelsea came knocking for his signature.
Luis’ Chelsea career was short lived and he made only 15 league appearances in his time at Stamford Bridge under Jose Mourinho. However, he made enough appearances in order to get a premier league medal and also won the league cup with Chelsea that season. The Brazilian could have been a solid replacement for Ashley Cole but Cesar Azpilicueta reverting to a left-back position and putting in consistent performances meant that he was restricted to the bench for a majority of the season.
Luis has made 18 appearances for Atletico this season in all competitions and has been solid at the back picking up two man of the match awards too.
#5 Ryan Bertrand
One of the brightest young players to come through Chelsea’s youth academy, Ryan Bertrand made his first appearance for the first team in the 2010-11 season. Bertrand was a regular in the youth levels for Chelsea and England and quickly made an impression among the fans and was regarded as one of their most exciting youth prospects.
Bertrand’s breakthrough season was 2011-12 where he managed to make 38 appearances across all competitions and also played a huge part in Chelsea’s Champions League final triumph over Bayern Munich in that year. However, he was not included in Chelsea’s plans in the coming seasons especially after the signing of the likes of Filipe Luis and Baba Rahman. He was sent out on loan to Aston Villa and later secured a £10m move to Southampton where he found his purple patch.
The 27-year-old is currently in his third season with the Saints and has already racked up 77 appearances for the club and scoring 3 goals in the process. Bertrand has played nine league games so far this season and has a little less than 800 minutes of playing time under his belt. His goal against Arsenal in the League Cup ensured that Southampton go through to the semi-finals.
