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The January transfer window has never been the ideal time for the clubs to conduct their transfer business. Majority of the clubs don't prefer to sell their best players mid-season, forcing the interested parties to pay way over the odds in order to get their targets. Moreover, players usually fail to hit the ground running at their new clubs as it takes them time to adapt to their new surroundings and get used to their new teammates when they come in during mid-season.
Chelsea were hit by a two-window transfer ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) last summer. However, they will be free to sign players in January after their ban was reduced to half. Frank Lampard will be looking to bolster his squad in the winter transfer window in order to improve their chances of finishing inside the top-four and compete in the UEFA Champions League, if they manage to qualify for the knockout stages.
However, their record in the winter transfer window hasn't been great in recent years as most of their mid-season arrivals failed to live up to their billing. Here are three of the worst signings made by the Blues in the January transfer window.
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#3 Juan Cuadrado
Juan Cuadrado completed his move to Chelsea from Fiorentina back in 2015 for a reported fee of around £26 million. The Colombian seemed like a sensational signing at that time and was expected to flourish under Jose Mourinho's counter-attacking style at Stamford Bridge. The winger had everything in his locker- frightening pace, goals and creativity, and the fans just couldn't wait to watch him play.
However, Cuadrado never settled at his new club and the standard of his performances on the pitch dropped week after week. He managed just 4 starts for the Blues that entire season and was loaned to Juventus in August, just 6 months after his arrival in London. After his two-year loan spell in Turin, he completed a permanent move to the Bianconeri back in 2017 for a reported fee of £17 million.
#2 Mohamed Salah
After being extremely impressed by Mohamed Salah's performance for Basel against Chelsea in the Champions League, Jose Mourinho brought the explosive winger to Stamford Bridge in the January transfer window of 2014 for a reported fee of £11 million. Given his age and his price, the Egyptian seemed like a very smart acquisition by Chelsea at that time. He made a solid start to his life at his new club and produced a string of good performances coming off the bench and even scored in a 6-0 routing of Arsenal on what was Arsene Wenger's 100th match in charge of the Gunners.
Sadly though, he failed to continue his form and was barely used by Mourinho the following season. Salah made just 3 appearances for the Blues that season before moving to Florentina on loan in January, one year after his arrival in London and was sold to AS Roma in 2016. The Egyptian has made a return to the Premier League with Liverpool and has rejuvenated his career, transforming into one of the best attacking players in world football.
Also read: 5 Summer signings who have disappointed in the Premier League
#1 Fernando Torres
Fernando Torres was one of the most deadly strikers in the Premier League when Chelsea splashed a club-record £50 million on him in January of 2011. The forward scored 85 goals in 102 appearances for Liverpool before moving to Stamford Bridge and being a Premier League proven player, there were no doubts that he going to settle in quickly at his new club. However, the forward failed to hit the ground running at his new club and had to wait 3 months before scoring his first goal for the Blues.
The Spaniard did show glimpses of his former self on a number of occasions, however, he failed to showcase the same hunger and desire in front of goal that he had at his former club. Torres managed just 20 goals in 110 appearances for Chelsea before moving to AC Milan on loan in 2014. Torres failed to live up the expectation and price-tag, and till date, he is regarded as one of the worst signings in Premier League history.
