Darren Bent believes that Chelsea fans are right to be skeptical about a move for ‘talented’ star Joao Felix.
The Atletico Madrid star is being linked with a return to Stamford Bridge as part of a bid to push through Conor Gallagher‘s move to the Spanish giants.
It comes after Samu Omorodion’s move to Chelsea collapsed, with Atletico keen to recoup some funds to bankroll their move for Gallagher and Julian Alvarez, who joined from Man City on Monday.
Felix is a familiar face to fans at Stamford Bridge having joined the club on a half-season loan deal in January 2023.
In 20 appearances for the club, the forward scored four goals before returning to the Wanda Metropolitana.
He then spent last term on loan with Barcelona where he scored 10 times and offered six assists.
The link comes as something of a surprise following Pedro Neto’s £51.4million Stamford Bridge switch, with fans wondering how Enzo Maresca will fit such talent into one team.
Asked if Chelsea’s fans will be excited or worried by the amount of transfer activity, Bent told Drive: “A little bit of both.
“I think with Pedro Neto, fans will think ‘yes!’.
“With Joao Felix, his debut last time was against Fulham and he got sent off but he looked really good before that.
“I like Joao Felix, I think he’s such a talented footballer but for whatever reason, there always seems to be something missing.
“But I watched him in the Euros against Georgia and he had some nice touches but when you need to score a goal or create something, it’s not there.
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“Chelsea fans will be looking at it and thinking, ‘do we really want him back?’
“Who would you rather play as number 10, him or Cole Palmer? It’s not even close.”
Maresca has a plethora of attacking options with the potential signing of Felix joining Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall who also joined Chelsea this summer.
Add those stars into the mix with Cole Palmer, Raheem Sterling, Mykhaylo Mudryk and Noni Madueke – you start to see where Maresca could have his work cut out.
But according to Darren Bent, the only thing that the new Chelsea boss must focus on is getting off to a good start.
“Enzo Maresca has got to get it right early,” Bent said.
“I think that’s what he’s got to do – he’s got to pick a team who he fancies and just go with it.
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“If they start to get results then the rest will take care of itself because at least you have a base.
“I felt that with Poch last season, he was trying different teams, different systems, different players – he has to go bang, this is my best XI.
“If they get smashed 5-0 by Man City then it’s different, but if they put in a positive performance or result then at least he’s got a base to work off.
“Once Poch got the team that he wanted you started to see good results.”
Chelsea start their season with a home clash against Man City on Saturday afternoon.