IT’S A JOAOK: Carragher slams Felix’s decision to join Chelsea
According to reports in the UK, Joao Felix was in London on Tuesday to seal a £46m move from Atletico Madrid to Chelsea.
And with an already-overcrowded squad, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher can’t understand why the Portuguese ace would return to the club he played for on loan last year.
Looking to get the likes of Raheem Sterling and Romelu Lukaku off their books, coach Enzo Maresca has already welcomed nine new senior players to Chelsea in the off-season.
The signature of 24-year-old Felix will bring that tally to 10.
And Carragher simply can’t stand it, saying on Sky Sports: “If I was a player, I would look at that Chelsea project, why would you sign? The only reason why you would sign is because someone might say, your agent might say ‘we’re getting a seven- year deal on big money – that’s guaranteed money for seven years’.
“You know what I’d say, back yourself as a player. Sign a four-year deal at a proper club, and back yourself to do well, and then when you are due for a renewal, your money goes up anyway.
“I don’t understand why players are signing seven-year deals.”
He adds: “What I’m saying is great football teams need competition, but every football team I played in there was seven or eight players who knew they were playing every week, and then you’ve got six or seven players who are fighting for three positions, and then you’ve got another six or seven players in a squad who know they are squad players.
“That is a healthy squad. What else you’ve got right now? And you’re asking, where’s Felix? Is he going to play?
“You know what I want to ask you, where’s he going to get changed at the training ground? I’m deadly serious. Where are these people? If you’ve got 40 players, how are you all in one session? How are you putting a training session on?”
The Blues travel to Wolves this weekend, after losing to Manchester City 2-0 in their Premier League season opener.