Chelsea is well versed in loans from a certain perspective. A player is sent away with the hope of developing. Sometimes the player is sent away with the hope that they will do well enough to make a permanent deal happen. Rarely is Chelsea on the other side of that equation.
When Saul Niguez arrived, he filled a spot that Chelsea had left vacant with little risk. Even still, hope has turned to chances running out. At worst, Saul was supposed to fill the hole left by Billy Gilmour and Conor Gallagher going on loan. Somehow, the at worst has become worse than that.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek and arguably Ross Barkley, two players that were supposed to be sold (or at least loaned again) over the summer, have pulled ahead of Saul on the depth chart. The minimum Saul had to be was a serviceable fourth choice midfield option but it has taken just 146 minutes to more or less remove that notion.
Saul put in one of the worst Chelsea performances in recent memory before being pulled off at halftime against Aston Villa. In the EFL Cup against the same opponent, he did slightly better but was still far off what he was expected to be. His remaining minutes came as a substitute against Malmo when the game was already over in all but name.
This isn’t just yelling into the void either. It has become abundantly clear that Tuchel has little room for Saul right now. Yes, it helps that Loftus-Cheek has returned to his old self but even Barkley getting in over Saul is a very telling prospect. It is expected that Saul will start in the EFL Cup against Southampton because, if he doesn’t, it’s extremely hard to see where or when he’ll start at all.
It’s hard to tell where it has all gone wrong. Yes, Saul’s form dipped towards the end of his time at Atletico Madrid. But this very season he played more minutes for Atletico Madrid than he has for Chelsea and he actually looked very good. When he came to Chelsea on loan it was with half an understanding that his time at Atletico was up, but his performances this season seemed to indicate this was a bit of a coup for the Blues. If Saul had looked anything like he did in those three matches for Atletico in his three matches for Chelsea, this conversation wouldn’t be happening.
It’s early days but it is already incredibly hard to see where Saul’s minutes will come from unless he has a truly massive performance against Southampton. Even then, it would take something special to find a spot over Loftus-Cheek, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, and N’Golo Kante in their current forms. Then there is the case of Gallagher on loan who has been doing so well that actually signing Saul seems like a decent memory from deadline day hysteria. Gilmour, if recalled, may even find himself ahead of Saul unless things change.
Sometimes, clubs get signings wrong. Chelsea fans should be well aware of that. Saul still has time to turn it around but as things stand, the hope that came with his loan signing is virtually gone with few chances to turn it around apparent.