Chelsea Opinion: Blues should sign Bruno Guimaraes if transfer ban is lifted
According to the Metro, Chelsea have been credited with an interest in Atlético Paranaense midfielder Bruno Guimarães, with reports claiming that the Blues had sent a scout to watch the 21-year-old defensive midfielder in Paranaense’s 3-0 victory over Boca Juniors in the Copa Libertadores.
The same report claims that the Blues are continuing to monitor potential targets as they hope their two-window transfer ban will be overturned or delayed by FIFA’s Appeal Committee on April 11.
Chelsea, however, are not the only club to have expressed an interest in Guimaraes, with the Metro claiming that AC Milan, Napoli, Lille and Shakhtar Donetsk are all keeping close tabs on the youngster’s progress.
Guimaraes, who has a release clause of €40million in his contract, has caught the eye with his consistently impressive performances at the base of Paranaense’s midfield in the Brazilian top flight. The youngster accumulated a goal and an assist from 32 appearances last term, helping his club to a 7th-place finish in the league.
Standing at 6ft. with a well-built frame, Guimaraes is essentially a defensive midfielder by trade who excels with his technical abilities and flawless passing.
Blessed with a good range of passing and a bagful to trickery, the 21-year-old is adept at moving the ball around in the middle of the park to keep things ticking, whilst also using his dribbling skills to create his own space and work the channels.
Noted for his good understanding of the game, the Brazilian is a cool and composed customer in the midfield who combines his sharpness, anticipation and tireless work-rate to cut out the attacks with crucial tackles and interceptions.
The youngster averaged 46.1 passes per game with an accuracy percentage of 91.3 in the Brazilian league last season, including 3 successful long balls. Furthermore, his numbers of 1.5 tackles, 1 interception, 0.7 key passes and 1.1 dribbles per game show that he is a promising young deep midfielder in the making.
To put things into perspective, Chelsea have every reason to dip into the transfer window for technically-gifted holding midfielders, with Sarri at the helm of affairs.
Any chances of signing Guimaraes would rest on FIFA’s decision in relation to the transfer ban but the Blues should look to snap him up if things go in their favour.
Given that the defensive midfield position holds the key to the implementation of Maurizio Sarri’s ‘Sarri Ball’ philosophy, Chelsea should look to invest in quality central midfielders in the summer if the Italian stays beyond the end of the current season.
Jorginho has done a fair job as the midfield pivot but the Italian has come under criticism at times for his lacklustre performances, which might have something to do with the amount of workload he has been forced to shoulder due to the lack of viable alternatives. Cesc Fabregas’ departure has depleted Chelsea’s squad depth and Danny Drinkwater apparently has no future under Sarri.
The release clause is pretty daunting but the Blues should not hesitate to trigger that and lure him to Stamford Bridge in the summer.
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Even if the move materializes, it would be unrealistic to imagine the Brazilian playing a key role for the Blues in the Premier League next season, but Sarri might have a real gem in his hands if he is able to extract the best out of the youngster.
