William Carvalho Could Be Set For A Move To Chelsea

In what has become a normal transfer speculation in the past two seasons, the Premier League has once again been placed on high alert as top clubs in England such as Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United have once again been linked with one of Sporting Lisbon’s most valuable players in the mould William Carvalho.

The Portuguese Midfielder is built like a tank and is regarded as the next big thing in the defensive midfield position. A mainstay in the Lisbon side for a couple of years now despite his age, the 22 year old is not short on admirers.

One pertinent question that most Chelsea fans seem to be asking is; is he really needed? Does the powerfully built midfielder fill a void within the team at all?

Let’s take a more in-depth look at the youngster’s qualities and then decide if Chelsea really needs his services;

With at least 5 Premier League clubs reportedly keen, Sporting acted to secure 100 percent of the player’s ownership from his previous third party owners.

William stands just shy of 6’2” tall and makes good use of his imposing frame to play the holding midfielder role- arguably the most important position in modern football to near perfection.

As with all good players, William seems to have more time on the ball than everyone else on the pitch … this is despite being stationed in the thick of the midfield action. No matter how fast or how skillful the adversary is, when coming up against William, it is the Sporting man that invariably emerges with the ball.

His composure and superb positioning, means he is rarely under pressure. The youngster isn’t afraid to utilize his physical prowess when need be, as several bruised opponents can attest to weight of one of his crunching tackles.

If the above description seems overly familiar as a Blues supporter, that’s probably because every single defensive attribute listed above can apply seamlessly to the Serbian Nemanja Matic, the difference being that the towering Serbian can do all that, and much more.

Carvalho’s distribution is frequently wayward and lacks the ambition that a good pass from deep should have, as he prefers the sideways pass to a more vertical approach. This type of play does not help Sporting’s set up, where practically all the attacking is channeled down the wings.

Now if this latest description also sounds very familiar, that’s because it is reminiscent of the Nigerian John Mikel Obi. The Nigerian is an equally competent defensive player with underwhelming attacking capabilities.

It does seem a bit ill advised to spend 37million pounds attempting to purchase a player who is only a slight upgrade on Mikel. Although even this is up for debate, as Mikel has tested himself amongst the best and is much more experienced.

So the question is, if the Sporting midfielder isn’t going to break into the first team and is sure to be behind Fabregas and Matic in the pecking order, then why pay so much money for a back up when the Nigerian can at least play that role without too many major hiccups?

So to finally answer the question, the Blues do not in any way need William Carvalho, although I am fairly certain he may do wonders for Arsenal.