Todd Boehly has made a habit of signing young players at Chelsea and allowing them to remain at their clubs on loan. It sees those players join a year older, but without paying for that experience.
Currently in the Chelsea squad, Andrey Santos remained at Vasco da Gama before his Strasbourg loan. Mamadou Sarr remained at Strasbourg, and Estevao stayed put with Palmeiras until last summer.
Kendry Paez is at River Plate, but he went back to Independiente del Valle after signing for Chelsea. Geovany Quenda is at Sporting, Mike Penders remained at Genk after signing, and the list goes on.
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It is a tactic Boehly has used regularly. Signing players very young for a fixed fee, and then sending them back on loan to gain a year’s experience. Had they been bought after the loan, it would have cost more.
Todd Boehly plans to use Chelsea tactic again on Ruud Nijstad
Take Penders, for example. Chelsea spent ÂŁ17m on Penders, but the Belgian is easily worth north of ÂŁ30m after returning to Genk and a season in France. Boehly gets criticism, but it is a clever and legal tactic.
Now, Chelsea are planning on doing the same thing with FC Twente’s Ruud Nijstad. Still only 18, the U19 Netherlands star has broken into Twente’s side and played 19 times this season. Chelsea are interested.
Ajax v FC Twente - Dutch Eredivisie
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There are a handful of big clubs interested, but TwenteInsite detail Chelsea’s interest more than the other clubs, explaining the Blues have a plan in place for the left-footed centre-back: Boehly’s loan tactic.
Indeed, Chelsea want to sign Nijstad now and send him back on loan to Twente for the 2026-27 season. It would see Chelsea sign a rookie defender, trust their scouts, and hope the loan increases Nijstad’s value.
The Chelsea plan doesn’t always work, just ask Kendry Paez
Chelsea, though, are not the only side interested. Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and AS Roma are all keeping tabs on Nijstad, with the latter signing plenty of Dutch players in recent years, such as Donyell Malen.
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Nijstad has a decision to make. While Chelsea’s plan makes sense to Chelsea, it is difficult to see a path into the Chelsea side as things stand. Chelsea have 10 senior options at centre-back, including loanees.
But a reshuffle is expected this summer, and perhaps, after a couple of loans, Nijstad could be the next gem signed for a bargain-ish fee. He has certainly been showing the potential for that in the Netherlands.
Another issue with the plan is that the loan doesn’t work. Just ask Paez, struggling to start under Rosenior at Strasbourg and suffering multiple injuries at River Plate. Nijstad has a big decision to make.
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