Chelsea’s dynamic revamp of not only their coaching staff but also their players seems to be hitting the high gears. With rumours of Antonio Conte taking up the Chelsea job in the summer; it could be a sign of things to come, especially with a host of Serie A stars now being linked with the club.
While Arturo Vidal was the first player linked with a move to the Blue half of London, it seems a more rational player linked with a move away is Roma’s Radja Nainggolan. The 27-year-old combative midfielder has been one of the few players who have starred for Roma in the past few years, though there are a few questions about his consistency and temperament, working under Conte should dispel all those issues.
Chelsea need someone to freshen up their midfield, that has been spoken about quite a bit regarding the form of Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic this season but the need to get someone in as soon as possible has to be the first priority for the Blues.
Vidal would not be the easiest transfer to pull off since he would cost a substantial amount to get to from Bayern Munich, who are in a better position, at least in terms of challenging for Europe and League titles than the English team.
Nainggolan would slot in perfectly in the team and the combative element that he brings into the team would be a requirement for Chelsea. The Belgian has always had a great work ethic but more than that he gives a lot of bite, in the correct manner, to the team.
Radja is primed in playing a tough and defensive brand of football thanks to his time with Piacenza, Cagliari and now Roma. He has over 300 appearances in various levels of Italian football and this would help him immensely in the English game.
The Belgian is known to play a defensive role for Roma though he can play a little further up as a box-to-box midfielder as well. His strengths aren’t just limited to the defensive side of the game; Nainggolan is great at providing that through ball to an attacker as well.
He would be seen as an attacking upgrade to Nemanja Matic, ideally, he should be paired with the Serbian in the heart of the midfield for Chelsea with Cesc Fabregas or Oscar playing just behind the striker.
Nainggolan can also play on the left side of midfield but his contribution to the game would greatly be reduced. Nainggolan might be looking for a new challenge and in all certainly Roma cannot break the hold that Juventus have on the Serie A title. A move to Chelsea would give him just that and who knows with Antonio Conte at the head, he could end up winning a lot more than just the Premier League.