Could Club Brugge midfielder Alexander Stankovic join Liam Rosenior at Chelsea in the transfer window? | Iconic Media / Getty Imagesplaceholder image
Could Club Brugge midfielder Alexander Stankovic join Liam Rosenior at Chelsea in the transfer window? | Iconic Media / Getty Images | Iconic Media / Getty Images
Liam Rosenior’s first transfer window at Stamford Bridge was low-key - but they have at least one exciting target lined up for the summer.
Liam Rosenior is the ninth manager to take the helm at Stamford Bridge since Chelsea last won a domestic trophy and their seventh permanent appointment in that spell, yet early results don’t immediately suggest that he will be the man to end that drought.
Six wins out of seven in the Premier League and Champions League have been offset by a tough 4-2 aggregate defeat in the semi-finals of the EFL Cup and the Rosenior appears to be bound by the same player selection shackles that eventually drove Enzo Maresca to rebel.
Yet the club continue to possess an almost unrivalled pull in the transfer market aided now by their acquisition of RC Strasbourg, and illustrated by yet another summer of heavy spending. Chelsea fought off tough competition from the Premier League and abroad to sign the likes of Liam Delap, Joao Pedro, Jamie Bittens, Estevao and Jorrel Hato, despite an average Premier League finish of seventh across the previous three seasons.
And they could be set to land another potential future starlet following TEAMtalk’s report that The Blues lead Arsenal and the rest of the Premier League in the race to sign 20-year-old Club Brugge midfielder Aleksandar Stankovic.
Chelsea battling London rivals and Manchester United for Stankovic
If that name sounds familiar then it’s for a good reason - Aleksander’s father is Serbian legend Dejan Stankovic, who racked up 103 caps for The Eagles and was a Serie A stalwart for over a decade.
Dejan made almost 400 appearances in Italy’s top flight for Inter Milan and was an integral part of six title-winnings sides as well as winning the 2009/10 Champions League and 14 other trophies - so Aleksander has some legacy to live up to, and if he can have even half the success of his father then he’ll have enjoyed some career. That potential has already drawn the interest of several of the best sides in the Premier League, with London looking like Stankovic’s most likely destination.
“Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs and United have been regular visitors to see Stankovic,” a source supposedly told TEAMtalk. “He is a real class act. Not dissimilar to a young Declan Rice – that’s the comparison for me. You can see he’s inherited his class from his father. This kid is a major talent.”
Inter have a buy-back clause reportedly worth €23 million (£20m) which is £11m more than they sold him for last summer, so any deal for the Serbian starlet would have to go through the Nerrazzurri, who would likely be pleased to reverse the loss they made in the sale to Club Brugge and turn a quick profit.
Why the ‘next Declan Rice’ could be just what Chelsea need
A rather attacking defensive midfielder (with the caveat that he plays for one of the best clubs in the Belgian Pro League), Stankovic isn’t afraid to take on the goal and has netted six times so far this campaign including twice in the Champions League.
His four league goals have come from an expected goals (xG) tally of just 2.43, underlining his finishing ability when required, though that shouldn’t come as a surprise given his father’s impressive versatility.
Only time could tell whether Chelsea would make of use of that themselves or look to profit from Stankovic and buy more talented 20-year-olds, but if the Serbian can continue the trajectory of his development from Club Brugge then he’ll be useful in either role.
He’d certainly fit the Chelsea template - young, talented, with room to develop and to be sold for a profit if required somewhere down the line. He also matches a key need, with midfield depth an absolute necessity for the club this summer if they’re to build a squad capable of competing in both the Premier League and in Europe. If he really can be their answer to Rice, then he could prove to be an especially shrewd signing.
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