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Chelsea can help Joao Felix transform into his idol Kaka after the 23-year-old scored his first Premier League goal last month following his arrival from Atletico Madrid on loan. Former Blues owner Roman Abramovich attempted to sign Kaka during his days at the Stamford Bridge helm – but the Brazilian was ultimately unwilling to make the move to the Premier League.
At the start of this year, Chelsea snapped up Felix until the end of the season as manager Graham Potter looked to address his side’s woeful scoring record. But the Portugal striker is still adapting to life in England, with his only strike coming in his side’s 1-1 Premier League draw with West Ham at the London Stadium.
Felix was never a prolific goalscorer at Atletico but still managed to bag 34 goals in 131 appearances for the club. And it was his all-round contribution in the opposition half that made him stand out as one of the best youngsters in Europe when Madrid signed him from Benfica in 2019.
One of Felix’s biggest strengths is his movement and ability to find space. He often demands the ball in deep areas to help his team progress up the pitch. And his finishing is excellent as well.
Those traits are redolent of some of the characteristics Kaka exhibited during his heyday. The former Brazil international would find pockets of space before providing the creative spark his teams were looking for. And it is no surprise the ace was regarded as one of the best attacking players in the history of the game.
According to The Times, Abramovich tried to sign Kaka in 2009 while he was negotiating a move from AC Milan to Real Madrid. Chelsea were willing to pay £73million to land the player before offering him a salary of £10m per year after tax. But the star eventually agreed to move to the Bernabeu Stadium, where he stayed for four campaigns.
Back in 2019 when the excitement around Felix was intensifying, Spanish publication Marca asked the youngster who his idol was. And he replied: “Kaka.” Felix now has the opportunity to have the Chelsea career Kaka might otherwise have had if his decision-making had been different all those years ago – and the Blues would certainly benefit.
Ahead of Chelsea’s Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night, Felix defended Potter, who has come under fire for his team’s poor performances. And the player also refused to rule out a permanent move to London.
“The fault is of course about us and the coach but not even the players have to take all the fault and the coach has to take all the fault,” Felix said. “It’s between us. We have to be together and we are. We have an amazing group, the coach is with us, we are with the coach, so that’s perfect.
“The situation will change for sure. If I want to stay or not, the future nobody knows. I am here and the club is so big, it’s amazing. Everyone behind the club is so good so I am happy to be here.” Now Chelsea will be looking to keep him and turn him into a player capable of routinely impacting matches like Kaka could.
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