Michy Batshuayi has belonged himself to Chelsea no matter where he moves

Although the Batman has never truly settled at Stamford Bridge, Michy Batshuayi’s superhero personality will always find a home with the Chelsea faithful.

Relatable characters are what connect the almost alien world of professional football to ordinary civilians, whose closest contact to these stars is through social media or via a television screen. Michy Batshuayi is one of the more humble and honest individuals in the sport, bridging that unsaleable gap between his world and ours. Only the other day, he replied to The Pride of London on Twitter with a kiss and prayer emoji.

It sounds simple enough to key in a few lines of code into your smartphone, yet the fact he took time to reply sets him apart from the often cold, robotic responses of an accounts media team. The conversation arose from Batshuayi aiming a humorous dig at Billy Gilmour for taking his shirt number, after the Belgian confirmed he would be re-signing for Crystal Palace on season long-loan.

After the announcement of his switch to Palace, the 26-year-old will have joined three different clubs since his move from Marseille in 2016. He has featured for Borussia Dortmund, Valencia and now twice with the Eagles as his attempt to baton down a spot with the Blues continues.

It is Batshuayi’s natural existence, in a world of mechanics and technology, that has enabled the Blues to embed him into their footballing family. This is testimony to his presence on and off the field, in spite of his inability to truly establish himself within the Blues’ set up.

Chelsea clearly did not buy him on personality alone. Before becoming a Blue, he’d netted 33 goals in 78 games for Marseille, including 23 during his final farewell in France. He was also part of Belgium’s European Championship squad that summer, scoring in the round of 16.

On this basis, the £33m shipped out for the shining striker seemed like good business for a Chelsea team that was undergoing its own refurbishing. Antonio Conte was entrusted with overcoming the horrors of 2015/16, acquiring the services of recently crowned Premier League winner N’Golo Kante, to take a big step in the right direction Conte also captured David Luiz and Marcos Alonso as part of his defensive overhaul, alongside the services of Batshuayi to support Diego Costa in attack. In fact, Batshuayi was the first signing of the Conte era.

And what better way to initiate yourself than to mock your latest FIFA rating card? Batshuayi, particularly upset wit his passing statistics having just racked up nine assists in Ligue 1, did just that. He became a pioneer for players to question an electronic version of themselves, standing him in good stead with Blues supporters.

Chelsea was tremendous, thanks to the Italian’s tinkering, and it was a campaign full of memorable moments. The record-equaling 13 consecutive league wins, a previously unachievable 30 victories, John Terry’s final swan song, an FA Cup final defeat and the infamous introduction of the 3-4-3.

Costa took all the goalscoring headlines, but the importance of Batshuayi cannot be overlooked. He was limited to a cameo role, starting just six games in 2016/17. However, it was his decisive goal in the 1-0 win against West Bromwich Albion that ultimately ensured the title would be returning to Stamford Bridge. Unforeseen, this would be the last time Chelsea was crowned English champions; Batshuayi’s legacy lives on.

Despite his definitive act, the number of limited starts he suffered would normally cause unrest between player and manager. Batshuayi showed no signs of causing a fuss and remained in southwest London until January after making just nine substitute appearances. Dortmund took a punt on the out of favor forward and was rewarded with a brace and an assist in his Bundesliga debut.

So much was his media presence, the official Bundesliga English Twitter account teased fans of his arrival with a homage to the Dark Night that Batshuayi often refers himself to. His stint in Germany was extremely efficient, netting nine in 14 games. Add the 12 he bagged for Chelsea that term, he managed 21 goals in 40 games in 2017/18, which in any strikers manual is an admirable tally. A certain Christian Pulisic was breaking through at BVB during this period and the pair formed a fine partnership, with Captain America assisting the Batman on three occasions.

Although it sounded like a match made in heaven (its badge literally has a bat above a shield), his success on the pitch did suffer at Valencia, scoring three goals in 23 matches. The Bat and the Eagles did hit it off, however, as the Belgian scored six goals in his 13 matches back in the English capital. Chelsea, meanwhile, was suffering under Maurizio Sarri—not necessarily in terms of results, but his attitude and demeanor to the public almost dragged the very being of the Blues. What they needed was an injection of life and love, a bounce that Batshuayi could certainly have brung if he weren’t spreading his wings across town.

2019/20 was perhaps the most difficult for the bright Belgian, used sparingly as a substitute by Frank Lampard throughout. The manager did praise his personality and positivity last November, yet these kind words did not mask the fact he was not apart of the new bosses’ immediate plans. Fast track to present day and Batshauyi was offered a one-year contract extension to coincide with his second Palace loan, keeping that endearing energy at the Bridge for a little while longer.

We have become so obsessed with data and figures, we often ignore the human element that is needed to keep the sport alive. Batshuayi will always be a Blue for this exact reason, and we cannot allow his flame to be blown out.