Chelsea’s latest squad-cleansing process has Armando Broja pegged as the next player possibly set to leave the club.
Reports from various media outlets claim that the Blues are looking to seize the opportunity of offloading the out-of-form striker.
West Ham, currently short of centre-forwards with Michail Antonio injured, are one of the many potential suitors. Wolverhampton Wanderers are also considering a move for the Albanian international, albeit on a loan deal. Fulham are another club keeping tabs on Chelsea’s stance.
Broja netted his first goal for Chelsea soon after committing his long-term future to his boyhood club, scoring in a 3-0 win over Wolves in 2022. It’s fair to say he’s struggled with injuries, game time and lack of goals, having only found the back of the net twice more since.
Praise from Poch
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino was waxing lyrical about his number nine as he thoroughly believed Broja has serious untapped potential.
“It was really important for him. I need to be honest, he needs to use this type of game to score and to feel the net and to improve. Improve not only in his fitness but his body language also. He needs to step up and to go forward and to move,” Pochettino said, following Broja’s promising display in the 4-0 win over Preston North End.
The 22-year-old scored a well-taken header to give the West Londoners a much-deserved lead, before quick goals from Thiago Silva, Raheem Sterling and Enzo Fernandez put the Championship side to the sword.
“The potential is amazing. We’re talking about one of the young strikers in England and in Europe with most potential. But the problem now is he needs to push himself, and we’re going to try to help him to realise that never it is enough,” added Pochettino.
Market trends for forwards
Broja’s breakthrough with the first team was cut agonizingly short when he suffered an ACL injury in a friendly against Aston Villa and was out for almost a year.
Strikers, generally, take their time gelling with a team after coming off a long layoff. And for a club undergoing the degree of transition as Chelsea is, it’s imperative for everyone to come together in an effort to become a European force once again.
As such, the market for forwards is rather sparse. Nicolas Jackson makes Chelsea tick and has the makings of an all-round striker in the making, but he’s far from prolific.
Perhaps, selling Broja to cash in on pure profit today, will present regret tomorrow as is the case of many academy players from the past who haven’t been allowed to properly develop amidst the club’s ever changing roster.
Tactical Talk
Broja is a different breed from Jackson; he has sharp feet in the box, as demonstrated by his ability to shift sides and cross as well as shoot.
The penalty he won with a faked shot in Chelsea’s frantic 4-4 draw with Manchester City is a representation of his calmness and technical ability in tight spaces.
It’s not even about who Chelsea would replace him with. Even the world’s best forwards won’t be able to match the tenacity and intelligence he possesses in the box.
Broja has the ability to blitz past defenses at full tilt, and with some fine-tuning, he’ll add a segment of quick decision-making into his skillset.
His loan spells at Southampton and Vitesse as a teenager speak volumes towards his maturity. All good things take time, and with a little leap of faith, Chelsea could unlock a maverick of a centre-forward. That is, if they have the patience to stick it out.
-Roy Akarshak
Twitter: @RoyAkarshak
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