Why Chelsea must look to add Caglar Soyuncu to their defensive ranks
According to Metro, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has advised Chelsea to sign Caglar Soyuncu from Leicester City. He was of the opinion that Chelsea needed two more players to become title challengers. One of his choices for centre-back was Soyuncu and the other was Milan Skriniar. He also felt that another attacking midfielder was needed.
Profile
Soyuncu, 24, rose through the ranks of Bucaspor’s youth system in Turkey and joined Altinordu in the summer of 2014. After making 40 appearances for Altinordu in two seasons, he was signed by Freiburg, where he made 55 appearances before the Foxes snapped him up in 2018.
In his first season at King Power Stadium, he was the fourth-choice centre-back but Brendan Rodgers gave him a chance last season after the departure of Harry Maguire. He not only featured regularly last season but also became an influential member of the squad alongside Jonny Evans and helped Leicester to the fifth-place finish in the league standings.
Soyuncu started the new campaign on a similar note until he picked up an injury in October. The Turk is a regular in the national team with 30 appearances till date.
Soyuncu would be a fantastic addition to Chelsea
The youngster shot into limelight after he stepped up to fill Harry Maguire’s shoes and not let Leicester feel his absence. That is not an easy thing to do especially at that age. He has matured alongside Jonny Evans and is slowly starting to show leadership qualities.
Hasselbaink made no mistake in saying that Chelsea should go for someone like Soyuncu to be considered title challengers. He looks like a player Chelsea can use in a year’s time or so. With Thiago Silva already 36, he is not a long-term option at the club.
The club would be wise to follow up on Hasselbaink’s advice and pursue Soyuncu in the future. He has a lot of qualities that could well push the Blues to become genuine title challengers. With Kurt Zouma the only other favoured young centre-back in the team, it is very important that Chelsea sign someone like Soyuncu who is at the perfect age.
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Verdict
It would be very hard to prise Soyuncu away from Leicester though as we saw during Manchester United’s pursuit of Maguire. The Foxes are likely to demand a similar figure for him but Chelsea can rest assured that they would be getting a solid, no-nonsense defender who can develop even further.
