Dean Saunders suggests he may have got it all wrong with Chelsea’s Joao Felix.
The talkSPORT pundit has shared that he was immediately impressed by Joao Felix when he first arrived at Chelsea.
The 23-year-old attacker, who joined the Blues on loan from Atletico Madrid in January, has quickly become one of the brightest and most creative individuals at Stamford Bridge.
However, Saunders now has his doubts about the Portugal international:
He told talkSPORT: “When Joao Felix turned up, I thought he’s a player. Straight away, you look at him and think he’s a player. But is he turning into a bit of a flatter to deceive player? He’s got to start banging [goals in].”
The Saunders criticism came in the aftermath of Chelsea’s 2-0 defeat against Real Madrid last night.
Frank Lampard’s side were beaten 2-0 in the first leg of a Champions League quarter-final tie, leaving them with a mountain to climb in next week’s second leg.
Felix, who was substituted off in the second-half, couldn’t really leave his impact on the European fixture.
The forward wasted a golden opportunity to score against Madrid when his shot inside the box was saved by Thibaut Courtois.
It’s now two goals in 13 Chelsea appearances for Felix since his mid-season arrival, which is a return he should be quite disappointed with.
He threatens to be the match-winner for the Blues in most games, but he’s just not bringing the end product that this team desperately needs right now.
Journalist Simon Phillips recently reported on his Substack that Chelsea are planning for next season with Felix in their team.
But we’re seriously hesitant about the €100million (£88million) price tag, as quoted by Marca, it could cost to sign him permanently.
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