Chelsea had a very busy transfer window last summer but were unable to sign all of their targets.
Chelsea were interested in Porto’s Samu Aghehowa and Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, who is currently on loan at Galatasaray. However, their deal for the former while he was still at Atletico Madrid collapsed, while they could never agree personal terms with the latter.
Osimhen could still end up joining Chelsea, John Obi Mikel recently suggested. But the Blues look to have moved on for now.
Another player the club have seemingly cooled their interest in is Feyenoord’s Quilindschy Hartman.
Knee injury stopped Quilindschy Hartman from joining Chelsea
Chelsea were keen to bring Hartman to Stamford Bridge last year to strengthen the left-back position.
However, the 23-year-old has confirmed that the serious knee injury he sustained ended his hopes of a dream move to the Blues.
Speaking to Voetbal International in a recent interview, Hartman said: “Are you unlucky when you have become champion with Feyenoord, played in the Champions League, the quarter-finals of the Europa League and made it to the Dutch national team?
“It’s true that Chelsea wanted me, but of course that didn’t happen because of my knee. Too bad, emotionally it would have been a club for me, but it’s not like I’m still losing sleep over it. Things go as they go and playing for Feyenoord is never a punishment.”
Instead of Hartman, Chelsea would go on to sign Renato Veiga from Basel to provide cover for Marc Cucurella. Veiga, though, who picked up an injury on Wednesday, joined Juventus on loan last month after a lack of game time in west London.
Why Quilindschy Hartman could have been a good signing for Chelsea
It is a shame that Hartman got injured and required surgery. He could have been a nice addition to this Chelsea squad, especially when you consider their lack of left-back options right now.
The Dutchman was also playing quite well before his injury. For example, according to WhoScored, Hartman was making 1.7 tackles per game in the Eredivisie last term. Only two Feyenoord players had better averages.
His average of 1.1 interceptions was the joint-second highest in Feyenoord’s squad as well, while an average of 1.4 key passes from the left-back position cannot be overlooked, too.
Chelsea need to sign a new left-back if Veiga wants to play in central defence or does not want to come back. Veiga is thriving at the heart of Juventus’ backline so may not be keen to return to west London. The Hartman option, though, still appears to be off the table.
