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Chelsea
By Barnaby Lane
Posted on 11 May 2025, 22:43
Chelsea lining up move for "mature" teenage defender in case they miss out on Dean Huijsen - Chelsea
Dean Huijsen. (AFC Bournemouth/Getty)
Afteradifficultseasonmarkedbyinjuriesandinconsistency,Chelseaarelookingtoreinforcetheirdefencethissummer—andBournemouth’sDeanHuijsenhasreportedlyemergedastheirtoptarget.
AccordingtoTheIndependent,theBluesarepreparedtotriggertheSpanishcentre-back’s £50millionreleaseclausetobringhimtoStamfordBridge.Ifsigned,Huijsenwouldprovidemuch-neededcompetitionforthelikesofWesleyFofana,LeviColwill,andBenoîtBadiashile—threedefenderswhohaveeachstruggledwithfitnessissues and forminrecentmonths.
Huijsen,whohasalsodrawninterestfromRealMadridandLiverpool,remainedtight-lippedwhenaskedabouthisfutureduringaninterviewlastmonth.
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“I’mverycalm.Idon’treallyfocusonit.Nowisnotthetime.I’mjustfocusedonfinishingtheseasonwell,”the20-year-oldtoldSkySports,asreportedbyEverything Chelsea.
Headdedthathisfather,whoalsoservesashisagent,ishandlingalltransfer-relatedmatters:“Mydadismyagent,hefixeseverything.Idon’treadanything,Idon’tthinkaboutittoomuch.I’mjustfocusingonmyfootballandworkinghard.”
Whenpressedabouthisreportedreleaseclause,Huijsenkeptitbrief:“I’mjustfocusedonmakinghistoryatthisclub.”
ChelseaEyeHatoasBackupOption
Soccer player.
Jorrel Hato. (Andre Weening/BSR Agency/Getty Images)
WhileChelseaappeartobeleadingtheraceforHuijsen,theyhaveidentifiedapromisingalternativeshouldthedealfallthrough.AccordingtotransferinsiderFabrizioRomano,theclubisalsotrackingAjaxstarletJorrelHato.
“ChelseaandotherclubsarewaitingforDeanHuijsen’sdecision,”Romano said in his latest podcast. “ChelseaandLiverpoolalsohaveJorrelHatoontheirlistiftheydon’tgetHuijsen.”
Despitebeingjust19,Hatohasalreadyestablishedhimselfasafirst-teamregularatAjax,making48appearancesthisseason—mostlyatleft-back—andcontributingthreegoalsandsixassistsacrossallcompetitions.
KevinLux,Transfermarkt’scontentmanagerfortheNetherlands, hasspokenhighlyofHato’sdevelopmentandmaturity:“Hisphysiqueisyearsaheadofhim.Healsohasalotoftechnicalabilityinhisgame,aqualitythatmakesyouverypopularinDutchfootballasadefender.”
Luxcontinued: “Hecandribble,pass,andseethegamefromthedefensiveline.Apartfromthat,hestillshowsthetalentofagreatdefender.”
WhileacknowledgingthatHatoisnotyetthefinishedproduct,Luxnotedhisleadershipqualitiesandhighceiling:“Therearestillsomeflawsandmistakesinhisgame,butthat’snotunusualconsideringhisage.Healsoisabornleader,provenbythefactthathealreadywascaptainatAjaxyouthlevelsonseveraloccasions.Hehasallthequalitiesofapotentialworld-classdefender.”
He alsocomparedHatotoArsenal’sJurrienTimber:“HatoisverycomparablewithTimber.Strongindefence,goodvisionandgoodpassing.Helikestobuildattacksfromthedefensiveline.”
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