Whenever we get back to some degree of normality after the coronavirus pandemic, Sassuolo midfielder Jeremie Boga could return to former club Chelsea, as the Ivory Coast man has a buyback clause.
Chelsea Considering Buyback Of Sassuolo Winger Jeremie Boga
Buying Back Boga
According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea want to bring the French-born Ivorian back to Stamford Bridge, and it wouldn’t break the bank. In the summer of 2018, Chelsea sold Boga to Serie A’s Sassuolo for $3.3 million (£2.5 million), but smartly inserted a buyback clause. Now, the Blues want to exercise that option for £12.8 million.
Boga, 23, has attracted interest from several teams throughout Europe this year after a successful year. In 24 Serie A matches, he has tallied eight goals and four assists for the mid-table club. His standout performances have also caught the eye of Napoli, who ready to shell out closer to £20 million for his services.
Past Chelsea Career
Why would Chelsea want to bring him back if they sold him just two years ago? Wasn’t he, for lack of a better expression, not good enough?
In fairness to Boga, he had pretty stiff competition while at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea bought him in 2009 and immediately put him in the academy with the hopes of him developing into a first-team player.
But that didn’t quite pan out as planned. About the situation, Boga told the Athletic recently, “When I was there, it was Willian, [Eden] Hazard, Pedro. When Jose Mourinho was there, it was [Mohamed] Salah. There were a lot of good wingers. For me, it has always been if I can’t play, then I will try to go on loan or try to go somewhere to improve, then maybe come back one day.”
It seems that the day of return has finally arrived, although not along the path he had imagined. He went on three unsuccessful loans in three years, the first with Rennes back in France in 2015/16. After, he tried his luck in Spain with Granada then finally, with Birmingham City. That is when Chelsea sold him to the Italian side and seemingly gave up on him.
Is Chelsea’s Interest Genuine?
Chelsea already have ample wide men, so why bring him back? Frank Lampard already has a lot of wingers in his squad – Christian Pulisic, Mason Mount, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Willian and Pedro, but the latter two could leave in the summer. There’s also the incoming Hakim Ziyech, plus possibly Jadon Sancho, which is why they’ll buy Boga, before immediately turning him around for a profit.
In the same way Real Madrid “bought back” Alvaro Morata from Juventus (although he did spend the next year back with Madrid) before selling him on to Chelsea for a profit, the Blues will likely do the same.
There’s no spot for Boga and while he’s had a good year, it’s hard to see him leapfrogging most of the names already at Chelsea. Chelsea will look to buy him back and resell at a profit.
Boga may have dreams of one day returning to and starring at Stamford Bridge, but he likely won’t see those come true.
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