Ideal Matic Back Up? Chelsea To £15m To Sign "New Makélélé"

Chelsea has been told by Marseille that they must pay £15million for French international Giannelli Imbula [DailyMail]. The holding midfielder has been compared to Nemanja Matić, and Chelsea is in need of a quality backup for their star midfielder. Chelsea is not the same without Matić, as we saw against Newcastle earlier in the season when Chelsea lost 2-1.

John Obi Mikel has had health problems throughout the season, and hasn’t impressed when he has gotten a chance in the first team. Ramires has done well this season, but he is not a typical holding midfielder. Chelsea will most likely do away with Mikel this summer, and if rumors about sending Ramires to Camp Nou are indeed true, then Mourinho’s main focus this summer should be signing a holding midfielder.

Chelsea has also been linked to Southampton’s Morgan Schneiderlin, for a fee around £25million. Schneiderlin is a more traditional holding midfielder, but lacks the physical attributes of Imbula. Imbula is also only 22 years old, giving him plenty of time to adapt to the Premier League and learn while playing behind Matić. Imbula is a rare talent, and Mourinho realized it two years ago when he attempted to sign Imbula for just a meager fee of £1million, £14million cheaper than what he is worth today. The only reason Imbula didn’t sign for Chelsea in the summer of 2013, is because he didn’t want to sign a 5 year-deal, he wanted to keep his options open in case he did not like Chelsea. Now, Imbula might be more willing to sign a 5 year deal, because he is 22 years old.

Imbula is a highly rated player, and leads the French top flight winning 98 of his 113 take on’s, and also winning 57% of his duels this season, ridiculously high numbers. Matić on the other hand has won just 51% of his duels, and only 47 of his 58 take on’s, staggering lower than the Frenchman. If Fàbregas moves up to take Oscar’s role next season, then Imbula could play alongside Matić, which would be a very strong and physical midfield.

Imbula could certainly push Mourinho’s squad deeper into the Champions League next season, which they desperately need after disappointing in this year’s competition.