Chelsea are finalising a deal to sign 20-year-old forward Samuel Omorodion from Atletico Madrid for £35 million in what will be Chelsea’s ninth signing this summer.
Chelsea will sign Omorodion on a seven-year deal, continuing their trend of giving their young acquisitions exceptionally long contracts. This deal is being finalised, while the Blues are also still linked with Napoli striker Victor Osimhen, meaning they could add two more strikers to an already stacked forward line.
Omorodion was on loan at Deportivo Alaves last season from Atletico Madrid, where he started 22 league games and scored nine goals.
He is six feet and four inches tall, has a strong aerial presence, is aggressive in duels and can finish with both feet. He is, however, very raw and has not played many games at the top level.
Last season he was clocked as one of the quickest players in La Liga, reaching a top speed of 34.5 km/h. His speed, coupled with his strength and height, mean that he can run through defences and is difficult to stop once he gets going.
One of his weaknesses is that he struggles with build-up play. He has a loose first touch and generally is more reliant on service into him than creating things himself. His finishing also needs work, and there are obvious similarities between his game and that of his future team-mate Nicolas Jackson.
Chelsea will likely use him as an option off the bench initially, but given his physical attributes he will be a useful option coming on against tired defenders later on in games.
The deal means that Jackson is in a precarious position, especially if the deal for Osimhen goes through. Jackson started 31 league games last season and scored a respectable 14 goals but never looked fully convincing and was guilty of missing a lot of big chances.
Jackson himself is only 23, however, and it seems strange that rather than giving him the chance to develop as a regular starter, Chelsea have opted to sign Omorodion and are also looking at Osimhen.
If the Napoli striker was signed, he would instantly be the starter and Jackson would be relegated to a substitute role. But as the deal for Omorodion is worth £35 million, Chelsea will also want to use him regularly meaning it would be challenging to give all three the opportunity they require and expect.
On the surface, the deal seems to be another example of Chelsea signing a raw, unproven talent who needs a lot of work and time to develop and is symbolic of their bold transfer strategy under this ownership.
The Spaniard does, however, have talent and if nurtured correctly, the deal could pay off. But that has been said so often about Chelsea’s signings in recent times.
FEATURED IMAGE: Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images VIA ONE FOOTBALL
