Chelsea’s loan army is one of the wonders of the football world and it is very hard to keep up with all of the comings and goings associated with the club. The January window saw a number of loan departures to Serie A and one player in particular reportedly has one foot out the door with a price being set for a permanent move as well.
Defender Renato Veiga has been on loan at Juventus since January and has had an up and down experience there. It has been much more positive than fellow loanee Joao Felix though, and Veiga has been a regular member of the starting XI for Juventus after returning from injury in early March.
One of the main reasons Veiga pushed for a move away from Chelsea is that he was being played at fullback and he prefers to play at centerback. He believed that was the best way to get into the Portugal national team side and Juve has granted that wish, usually playing him at the center of a back three.
Juve are interested in making his move permanent but the Italian giants are being especially cheap about the whole thing. They seem to be operating on a lower financial level than some of the other clubs in Italy but the bottom line is they don’t want to shell out a ton of money for Veiga’s services.
Chelsea have reportedly set the price for Veiga at €20 million which is not much at all these days for a full international. Veiga is only 21 but has made 4 appearances for Portugal and more than 65 senior appearances across Chelsea, Juve, Basel, and Augsburg since 2023.
The Blues purchased Veiga only a year ago in July 2024 for €14 million so selling him for €20 would represent a slight profit but not enough to make a dent in the purchase of a world class striker or right winger. Veiga also makes “only” £25k a week and was only on Chelsea’s books for the first half of the season so his wages won’t cut much into the profit either.
The question however is why Chelsea are so gung-ho about selling him in the first place. It’s not like Chelsea have an embarrassment of riches at centerback and they are in dire need of a true presence in the middle of the defense. This is not to say that Veiga is the answer there for the long term or that he is world class, but he is a talented youngster that could develop into something special.
Veiga could also just be another player his transfer fee was so low and this profit is so small it may be worth holding on to him just to find out. Chelsea’s staff know better than we do but given how good he has been at Juventus at centerback maybe he is worth another look in Chelsea blue before they make the move permanent.