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Chelsea signing Jorrel Hato shares the one area of his game he really needs to improve

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Chelsea have made several exciting new signings this summer, including Jorrel Hato.

The Blues completed a deal to sign Jorrel Hato, 19, from Dutch giants Ajax earlier this month.

Hato, who can play left-back or centre-half, cost Chelsea around £37m (BBC). Finally, there will be adequate cover and competition in the squad for Marc Cucurella at left-back because he desperately needed support last season.

Even though Hato is still a teenager, he played 111 senior games for Ajax before completing his move to the Premier League for the first time in his career.

Bayer Leverkusen manager Erik ten Hag predicts a bright future for Hato at Chelsea because he rates the young defender very highly.

Jorrel Hato defending for Chelsea against Bayer Leverkusen's Nathan Tella in a pre-season friendly.
Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images

Jorrel Hato aiming to improve his one-on-one defending

Hato has developed into quite a complete defender with plenty of versatility, but the young talent is rightfully still looking to get better.

Chelsea supporters may be intrigued to hear their summer signing highlight his desire to improve his one-on-one defending.

When asked what he can now improve in his game, Hato told De Telegraaf: “Last year, the emphasis was already on one-on-one defending, and that kept improving. But now I’m playing against even better players every week. So I have to reach a higher level. But that actually applies to all aspects.”

It is claimed that Tottenham made a late enquiry for Hato before he completed his move to Chelsea, and we’re delighted he’s now at Stamford Bridge.

Not only does he look the part on the football pitch, but he’s also saying all the right things. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink rates Chelsea signing Hato, claiming that the talented Netherlands international keeps getting better.

Jorrel Hato playing for Chelsea against Bayer Leverkusen in a pre-season friendly.
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images

Jorrel Hato statistics in first two Chelsea appearances

Last week, Hato played his first minutes in Chelsea colours during pre-season friendlies at Stamford Bridge, and hopefully he’ll soon make his official club debut.

We’ve taken a look at the left-back’s statistics from his two Blues appearances:

Minutes playedAccurate passesChances createdTackles wonGround duels wonFouls committedMatch rating
4523/26 (88%)12/2 (100%)2/2 (100%)06.9
Jorrel Hato during Chelsea vs Bayer Leverkusen via FOTMOB
Minutes playedAccurate passesChances createdTackles wonGround duels wonFouls committedMatch rating
184/4 (100%)01/1 (100%)1/3 (33%)06.0
Jorrel Hato during Chelsea vs AC Milan via FOTMOB

While we do expect him to play second fiddle to Cucurella at the start of the season, we’ve got no doubt he’ll get his opportunities to impress. He’s got an incredibly high ceiling, too!

The early signs are that Hato could turn out to be a really shrewd bit of business from Chelsea.