Bacary Sagna last night gave some interesting quotes in a discussion about the French national team.
Les Bleus are working out who their team for the Euros should be, and Sagna ended up talking about Monaco midfielder Youssouf Fofana, who he reckons would be a perfect signing for Chelsea:
“I actually think he would be a perfect fit for Chelsea. Chelsea are lacking a player like him in the middle of the park – they need some more strength in the middle of the pitch, because there were times last season where they were getting overrun. They were exposed. Fofana would bring that security and a real physical presence to their midfield,” the former Arsenal player said when discussing Didier Deschamps’ team.
Bacary Sagna: "I actually think he [Youssouf Fofana] would be a perfect fit for Chelsea. Chelsea are lacking a player like him in the middle of the park – they need some more strength in the middle of the pitch, because there were times last season where they were getting… pic.twitter.com/yBz6uImFih
— Vince™ (@Blue_Footy) June 4, 2024
A good solution which just can’t be applied
It’s certainly not a take we disagree with. The midfield, for all its qualities in its component parts, certainly lacks a really giant physically dominant central player who can make up for a lack of size elsewhere. We’re pretty confident Sagna is right, and that Fofana would be a great fit.
The problem is that we’ve spent so heavily on Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo that they simply HAVE to play as part of the first choice XI. As a pair, they showed pretty clearly this season that they don’t work well.
Could adding Fofana be the secret third ingredient which balances them out? Maybe, but then you’re left wondering what you do with Conor Gallagher, Romeo Lavia and Lesley Ugochukwu. It also means you’re playing a 433. Which means just one attacking player from a long list of options to go alongside Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson.
As much as Fofana might be the player Chelsea need right now, last summer saw them simply too much in players we’ve barely seen in action yet.
