“Here we goes”: Romano announces Chelsea’s £24 million acquisition of a player identified by Arsenal as a potential “future Patrick Vieira” last year.
Arsenal had a phenomenal summer on the transfer front, acquiring three prominent players.
In recent weeks, Kai Havertz, Jurrien Timber, and Declan Rice have strengthened the Gunners’ roster.
The Gunners will be hoping Rice can emulate Patrick Vieira’s exploits in the midfield.
A erstwhile Arsenal target who has been compared to the legendary Vieira is on the verge of joining Chelsea.
Last year, L’Equipe reported that Arsenal was monitoring midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu of Rennes.
Arsenal was reportedly very interested in the youngster at the time and viewed him as a “future Patrick Vieira.”
Indeed, Ugochukwu stated that the former Arsenal captain served as a “inspiration” to him.
“It’s an advantage being tall and powerful,” he told The Athletic.
“People like Vieira inspire me a lot because of what he did for Arsenal.
“It’s something that I want to do during my career.
“To live like that and for people to say, ‘Lesley was that kind of player’.”
Overall, he sounds like an ideal candidate for Arsenal. However, he is destined for West London.
Saturday, Fabrizio Romano tweeted “here we go” regarding the transfer of Ugochukwu to Chelsea.
The Italian added that the Blues would secure him to a long-term contract for approximately £24 million.
Our opinion
You have to question why Arsenal did not pursue Ugochukwu more aggressively.
He is a youthful, incredibly talented midfielder with his entire career still ahead of him.
Ugochukwu has been compared to Vieira and cited him as an inspiration for his accomplishments at N5.
In addition to their other recruits, Arsenal could have easily afforded him for just £24 million.
In this circumstance, Arsenal’s loss is Chelsea’s gain.
We can only hope it does not haunt the North Londoners in future derbies between the two clubs.
“Here we goes”: Romano announces Chelsea’s £24 million acquisition of a player identified by Arsenal as a potential “future Patrick Vieira” last year.
