Romano: star midfielder could be “key player” next season for Maresca | OneFootball

The January transfer window is closed and Chelsea’s sporting directors are taking one hell of a beating from fans disappointed by their efforts.

The team was crying out for a few tweaks, but instead most of the action involved selling or loaning out fringe players from the squad. Nobody was added to change the first team picture beyond Trevoh Chalobah, and even he just had his loan to Crystal Palace terminated.

In response to the criticism, the club have released their briefs to the masses, trying to make their big picture plan clear in order to reduce the grumbles about a missed chance to strengthen the team.

Fabrizio Romano is king of the briefs, as always, and he focuses on the positives, saying Chelsea are “already planning for next season.”

The club see Andrey Santos as “a key player for Enzo Maresca.” The midfielder, currently on loan at sister club Strasbourg, will be “part of the team from June.”

Chelsea leave Santos on loan to help Strasbourg

Andrey Santos in Strasbourg training.

Well that’s all well and good. But instead of looking ahead to next season, could they not think a little bit more about THIS season? We’ve got a team in desperate need of solid central midfield cover, and a central midfielder on our books who would be perfect for it. So why not just recall him?

The reason is obvious – they want to make sure they don’t hurt Strasbourg’s season. It turns out that co-ownership is a two way street.

If Moises Caicedo goes down injured tomorrow and Chelsea miss out on the Champions League football, that will seem a very short sighted decision indeed. The best way to plan for next season is to ensure success in this season, surely.