After lifting the Club World Cup trophy proudly aloft over the summer, Chelsea will be hungry for more success this upcoming campaign as the Premier League finally gets back underway.
A home clash with Crystal Palace starts the season for Enzo Maresca’s men, before the contests with London-based foes continue to come thick and fast, as a short trip to West Ham United then pops up on the calendar, followed by Fulham coming to Stamford Bridge.
It will be intriguing to see what position Chelsea hold after this bumper list of August fixtures, as the Blues also prepare to splash the cash, ahead of September’s looming transfer deadline.
Chelsea still interested in “exceptional” star
The Blues have been busy this summer, and for the most part, so far, these new signings have shone.
João Pedro instantly mde his presence known out at the Club World Cup with three goals from three games, having completed a £60m move from Brighton and Hove Albion just in time for him to strut his stuff in America.
He could soon be joined by ex-Seagulls teammate Carlos Baleba, with reports suggesting that Chelsea – alongside a litany of other Premier League sides – are chasing after the services of the standout South Coast performer.
Away from Baleba, the Blues are also persisting with the signature of another midfielder in the form Xavi Simons.
Football journalist Ben Jacobs, when speaking to The Football Terrace Xtra, has come out to say that Simons wants a move to West London, with Pedro no doubt licking his lips, too, at the prospect of linking up with the exciting Dutchman in attack.
Jacobs stated: “I’m still expecting Chelsea to bid. Maybe they want to get Christopher Nkunku out and resolve Nicolas Jackson’s future as well but there remains a realistic chance that Xavi Simons is a Chelsea player between now and the end of the window. Negotiations are a little more complicated compared to the talks between Manchester United and Chelsea for Alejandro Garnacho.”
Why Simons could be bad news for Fernandez
A move for the “exceptional” Simons – as he’s been previously dubbed by Christoph Freund – could be bad news for Enzo Fernandez.
Why? Well, it could lead to the 24-year-old moving back to a holding position centrally.
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Fernandez in West London.
His mega £107m price tag was always going to feel like a burden on his shoulders, leading to an opening run of 18 games during his first season in the Premier League that saw just two paltry assists being registered.
However, since Maresca’s entry on the scene, the once shackled Fernandez has been a key performer from the middle of the park as more of an attacking-minded presence, something seen in his stunning assist count of 14 last season.
Yet, this electric side to his game, which saw 13 big chances created by the ex-Benfica midfielder in the Premier League across the 2024/25 campaign, could be shackled by the emergence of Xavi Simons, notably when you consider his own blistering displays in the Bundesliga when lining up as a number ten.
|
Simons for Leipzig by position |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Position played |
Games |
Goals |
Assists |
|
LW |
39 |
10 |
11 |
|
RW |
17 |
5 |
5 |
|
AM |
17 |
6 |
7 |
|
LM |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
SS |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
Sourced by Transfermarkt |
|||
Staggeringly, from just 17 career games in the number ten spot for Leipzig, Simons has managed to collect an explosive 13 goal contributions, with an equally red-hot spell at PSV Eindhoven – before this move to Germany – also seeing him amass a ridiculous 15 goal contributions in this position from the same number of limited contests. On that evidence, it’s hardly a surprise that he’s been described as “one of the best 10s in the world” in the words of one data analyst.
It’s a no-brainer, therefore, for Maresca to place more of his trust in Simons to do a job from an attacking position, over hoping Fernandez can deliver, with the 22-year-old even being lauded as “one of the best youngsters in Europe” by The Athletic’s Alex Barker when regularly ripping up the German top division.
In an ideal reality, Maresca will be able to get the optimum out of both midfielders in the same XI.
If he can, Chelsea will feel they’re in a great position to be a force to be reckoned with, heading into what the 2025/26 season could throw up.
