Five reasons why Ross Barkley is a good signing for Chelsea

Chelsea are closing in on their first signing of 2018, a £15 million deal for Ross Barkley. Here are five reasons this is the right move for the Blues’ winter transfer window.

After nearly signing him this summer, Chelsea may finally get their man in Ross Barkley. Sam Allardyce seemed resigned to Barkley leaving Everton, and Barkley supposedly has completed his medical at Stamford Bridge. The last time that happened, Barkley backed out at the last minute. This time, however, all parties appear ready to close the deal. How will this benefit Chelsea?

1. Chelsea need a goal-scoring midfielder

Since Frank Lampard, Chelsea have been crying out for a goal-scoring midfielder. Someone who can arrive late in the box, and help the attackers out by contributing 10+ goals a season. Presuming that Conte sees Barkley as an attacking midfielder, either as one of the three forwards in a 3-4-3 or one of the three central midfielders in a 3-5-2, Barkley is at Stamford Bridge to score goals.

Chelsea’s current central midfielders – N’Golo Kante, Cesc Fabregas, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Danny Drinkwater – have scored just five goals between them so far in the Premier League. Top scorers Alvaro Morata, Eden Hazard and Marcos Alonso have netted over half of Chelsea’s league goals. The rest of the squad needs to do more.

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Although far from prolific, Barkley scored five goals and eight assists in 32 appearances last season. The season before he managed eight goals and eight assists. Chelsea will be hoping for similar, if not improved, figures at Stamford Bridge.

2. Add to the homegrown / English roster

One of the major positives of the Barkley transfer is that he is English, and therefore counts as a homegrown player. If Antonio Conte and the Chelsea board want to increase the squad size, either in January or in the summer, homegrown players will be crucial. Each Premier League side is limited to having 17 non-homegrown players in their squad at the beginning of the season. If a manager wants to have two or more players for each position, they need to fill in the gaps with homegrown talent.

Many reports suggest Roman Abramovich desperately wants to install an English core into the Chelsea team going forward. This would partly explain the strange singing of Danny Drinkwater for £30 million on deadline day last summer. Ross Barkley will make it three Englishman in the squad, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Tammy Abraham possibly adding to that at the end of the season.

3. £15 million is a bargain

A fifth of a Romelu Lukaku. Just under half of an Andy Carroll. Comfortably less than a Baba Rahman. £15m doesn’t get you much these days, so the price of Barkley looks a bargain on paper.

Yes, his contract was up in the summer, but buying a player who you could immediately sell for more when they walk through the door is good business. Especially when the Blues were close to signing the midfielder for double that price just a few months ago. With such a comparatively low figure, it’s a relatively risk-free move from the Chelsea board.

4. Flexibility

One of Barkley’s likely appeals was his ability to play in several positions. In the past he figured predominately in a No. 10 position for Everton. He is a powerful runner on the ball, able to drive his team forward through muscle rather than finesse most of the time.

He also featured deeper for Everton in a midfield three and, on rarer occasions, as one of the two deep-lying midfielders. With Chelsea favouring a 3-5-2 in bigger games this season, Barkley could be paired in a midfield three, alongside Kante and one of Fabregas / Bakayoko / Drinkwater.

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Bakayoko has shown that he is able to get into goal scoring positions as the box-to-box midfielder in this formation, but has not had the composure to finish his chances. Antonio Conte must be hoping Ross Barkley can provide a better presence in front of goal.

5. Point to prove

Once dubbed The Next Wayne Rooney™, Ross Barkley arrives with a point to prove. He endured a disappointing end to last campaign and injury has meant he has yet to kick a ball this season. There’s no doubt that the potential is there for him to be a great player. On his day, he can be unplayable. Hopefully Antonio Conte can help him realize that potential.

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Only time will tell if the move makes sense, for both club and player. What do you think of the Barkley transfer? Let us know!