Chelsea FC Transfer Rumors: Key Transfer Targets – Part 1
Radamel Falcao García Zárate
It was pretty heartbreaking for me watching Falcao struggle through games at Manchester United, especially when I remember the show he put up in Atletico Madrid’s 4-1 thrashing of Chelsea FC in the 2012 UEFA Super Cup at the stadium he would eventually call home. Was this the same guy that scored 3 sublime goals in that game?
The 29-year old Colombian international has been one of the most prolific goal-scorers to grace the shores of Europe since he signed for FC Porto in 2009. Despite not being all that tall for a striker at 5’10”, he is the complete package… good in the air and with both feet!
His goal-scoring statistics, when taken into context, would seem surreal if not for the exploits of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo… 72 goals in 87 games at FC Porto and 70 goals in 91 games at Atletico Madrid. He also scored 11 goals in 19 games at Monaco before the unfortunate ankle injury he sustained in a Coupe de France game against Monts d’Or Azergues Foot in January which effectively ruled him out for the rest of that season, as well as the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
With his recovery in July, he scored a further 2 goals in 3 games before he was secured on loan by Manchester United on transfer deadline day for 6 million pounds with the option of a permanent transfer and was placed on a massive 265,000 pounds weekly salary. His time at Old Trafford could be filed under “expensive disaster” as he could only manage 4 goals and 4 assists in his 29 games at the club.
But it wasn’t just his goals that dried up, as he was clearly suffering from the crisis of confidence Andre Villas-Boas had alluded to in his time at FC Porto during a barren spell in 2010-2011 season. He found it difficult to hold up play and even his predatory finishing deserted him, a situation that caused Louis Van Gaal to lose faith in him and drop him on the bench.
Despite his struggles at Man Utd, his goal-scoring form for the Colombian national team has largely remained intact, as he only recently broke the Colombian goal-scoring record in a friendly game against Costa Rica, scoring his 25th goal in 57 games, his 5th goal in 5 games in 2015 for Colombia. This clearly indicates that he still has what it takes to be an important signing for the right club and with Mourinho’s track record with strikers of his ilk, like Diego Milito, Samuel Eto’o, Benni McCarthy and more recently Diego Costa, Chelsea might just be that club!
While many would look at the Fernando Torres situation and worry that Falcao may turn out to be another expensive flop, he has indicated a willingness to take a massive wage drop to remain in England, with the terms of his signing being the major bone of contention as Chelsea want him on loan while Monaco are reportedly holding out for a 36 million pounds outright purchase.
Next: Christian Benteke