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Joao Felix says Chelsea is the best place to be

Reuters|Published

Chelsea FC head coach Enzo Maresca. Picture: EPA, JOHN G MABANGLO

CHELSEA have signed Portugal forward Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid on a seven-year deal, the Premier League club said on Wednesday.

Financial details were not disclosed, but English media reported that Chelsea paid around £46 million to secure the 24-year-old’s return to Stamford Bridge.

Felix impressed during his six-month loan spell at Chelsea in the 2022/23 season, scoring four goals in 20 appearances. He spent the last campaign on loan at Barcelona, scoring 10 goals in 44 games.

Atletico signed Felix from Benfica in 2019 for a club record fee of €126m. He scored 34 goals in 131 matches, and helped them win the La Liga title in 2021.

“It’s a chance for me to find a home,” Felix told Chelsea’s website.

“After two loans, Chelsea and Barca, I needed to stay permanently in one place. There’s no better place for me to be than Chelsea. I see a perfect place to shine.

“I felt really good when I was here, despite the results we had. I’m really happy to be back,” he added.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said Felix’s versatility was important.

“The good thing about Joao is that he can play in different positions. He can play inside, he can play as a (number) nine, he can play outside,” Maresca told reporters.

Meanwhile, England internationals Raheem Sterling and Ben Chilwell are training apart from Chelsea’s first team, Maresca said on Wednesday as British media reports linked them with moves away from the Premier League club.

Sterling and Chilwell, who missed Sunday’s 2-0 Premier League loss to champions Manchester City, may struggle to get playing time if they choose to remain at Chelsea, Maresca said.

“In this moment, they are training apart,” Maresca told reporters ahead of Thursday’s Europa Conference League play-off tie against Swiss side Servette.

“We have a big squad – for me, it’s impossible to give everyone minutes. So, if they’re looking for minutes, probably it is better to leave.”

Maresca said Sterling, who has played 59 league games for Chelsea since joining in 2022, was not the kind of winger he wanted.

“I’m not saying he’s not a good player, but I prefer different kinds of wingers,” the Italian said. “I spoke with Raheem before Manchester City. I said that he is going to struggle to get minutes with us. With (Chilwell), I said he is a lovely guy, but with his position, he’s going to struggle with us. It’s not brutal, it’s honest.

“It’s not a comfortable situation ... I think it is good to know that if you want to stay, you will struggle to get minutes. But in a few days or weeks, it can be a better situation because you move and you join a club where you will get more minutes.”

The manager said he did not meet Sterling after the match against City.

“In case I sit with Raheem, I will tell him exactly the same things that I already told him,” he said.

Maresca said captain Reece James will miss Thursday’s match due to a hamstring injury.

“We try to win every game we play. Against Man City, I don’t think the intention was to win the game, but we tried to win that game ... and tomorrow is a game that we will try to win, and hopefully we can win,” he added.

Chelsea will also visit Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Sunday.

Reuters

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