The sensational Chelsea and Benfica swap deal which could turbocharge both club’s title aspirations - opinion
Joao Felix is expected to leave Chelsea just 12 months after securing his return to Stamford Bridge
It has now been nearly a year since Chelsea announced their decision to re-sign striker Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid for a fee in the region of £45m. The 24-year-old, who had scored four goals in 20 appearances during an underwhelming loan spell in west London in 2023, arrived on the same day that the club decided to cash in on academy graduate Conor Gallagher, leaving many intrigued at how they’d try and implement the former Golden Boy winner into their system.
In truth, they never really did find a home for Felix in the team, despite offering the Portuguese international an incredible seven-year-contract, which still has another six years to run at Stamford Bridge. Felix played 20 matches in total during the first half of the season, scoring seven times, including on his debut against Wolves while providing one assist. On the surface, these numbers are hardly terrible, but it’s worth factoring in that he failed to score again in the Premier League after his debut and only started three league matches with his remaining appearances coming from the bench.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca never really saw Felix as a striker and rarely if ever utilised him in his preferred position as a No.10, with his only league starts coming on the left-wing and only against the newly-promoted teams. Felix requested a transfer in January and got his wish on Deadline Day when he completed a loan move to AC Milan which cost the Italian side a reported £5m. The deal was instigated by super agent Jorge Mendes, who was also the agent of then AC Milan boss Sergio Conceicao.
What next for Joao Felix?
The move to AC Milan never really worked out for both parties, with Joao Felix struggling to adjust to the demands of life in the San Siro. He managed just three goals and one assist in 21 matches and was part of a team which plummeted to eighth position - their worst finish since 2014/15 marking a huge fall from grace after regaining the Italian title as recently as 2022. Felix said in February that he’d be open to joining AC Milan on a permanent basis but just a month into his deal in March, Fabrizio Romano confirmed that the club were having doubts on whether to keep the player beyond his initial loan spell.
Sergio Conceicao, who helped engineer the transfer, was sacked at the end of the season, and it appears hugely unlikely that AC Milan will pursue a permanent deal for the player under the stewardship of Massimo Allegri.
It leaves Felix’s career at Chelsea in limbo. He’s likely to be behind the likes of Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap and Joao Pedro in the striker role along with stars such as Cole Palmer and Christopher Nkunku in the No.10 position. The Blues have also added Jamie Gittens and Brazilian starlet Estêvão in the wide areas, meaning with Pedro Neto also on the books, it’s hard to see Felix even making the matchday squad at this stage.
Felix, who once cost Atletico Madrid a club-record £113m, is entering an important stage of his career, where he should in truth be playing his best football. He desperately need game time to get his career back on track in the run-up to the World Cup in North America and has recently been linked with a move back to Benfica, where he first burst onto the scene as a teenager. However, it’s understood his reported valuation of £40m could be an issue, according to A Bola, with the capital club only wanting to pay just over half of that figure.
How Chelsea could benefit from Joao Felix’s departure
Chelsea recently lifted their second major honour in the space of three months after being crowned winner of the inaugural Club World Cup following the format change. It follows on from their resounding Conference League final triumph over Real Betis and means the Blues have now lifted every trophy they can possibly win in the professional game.
However, Chelsea are still yet to mount a serious challenge for the Premier League title in the Todd Boehly era while they are also yet to win domestic silverware or compete in the latter stages of the Champions League.
The west London side have all the makings of a great team but one of the key areas they still need to work on is their defensive record. In recent months, they’ve been linked with a move for numerous centre backs, with one of the most prominent being Benfica’s Antonio Silva.
Silva, aged only 21, is a fantastic ball-playing defender that has already racked up 140 appearances for Benfica while winning 17 caps for the Portuguese national team. He won the league title in 2023 and has also won the Taça da Liga (equivalent to the League Cup) and Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (equivalent to the Community Shield).
The youngster has already played plenty of Champions League football and is renowned for his excellent leadership after already establishing himself as vice captain at Benfica. He’s believed to have an £87m release clause, but reports from O Jogo suggest the club could listen to offers of around £42m, with Manchester United also being linked.
With Felix being surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge and wanted by Benfica, it would make perfect sense to use him as a makeweight in the Silva deal to help them secure the services of a highly-rated young defender for a cut-price fee. Central defence is one of Chelsea’s weaknesses and a new addition in that area could boost their title hopes.