Why Tiemoue Bakayoko’s loan move to AC Milan is the ideal situation for all parties involved
Chelsea had just won the Premier league under Antonio Conte and there was a sense of optimism among the fans going into the 2017/18 season. Only a week before the commencement of the season, Chelsea sold Nemanja Matic to Manchester United in a £40m deal. But Chelsea fans didn’t have to worry since Tiémoué Bakayoko had arrived from Monaco for the same amount.
On paper, it looked like a brilliant piece of business conducted by the Blues as Chelsea got a good return from the 28-year-old Serbian international and then invested that sum to sign a much younger midfielder in Bakayoko.
Incidentally, the player had just undergone a knee surgery and wasn’t available for pre-season. But when he finally did come into the Chelsea squad, he struggled to gel with the team. In his 24 starts for the London club in the Premier League, he managed to score merely 2 goals. But he was never brought in to score goals. He was in England to provide steel to Chelsea’s midfield and act as an able partner for N’Golo Kante.
Bakayoko often seemed nervous on the ball and failed to pick out the right pass at the right time for his team. This could be seen through his errors, 2 of which led directly to Chelsea conceding 2 goals. He played almost the same number of minutes in England as he had done during that impressive Ligue 1-winning campaign with Monaco, but his stats were quite poor with the Blues.
While he made 56 interceptions and 51 clearances for the French club, he could only manage 36 clearances and 37 interceptions for Chelsea. Add this to his shaky passing ability, and he became an easy target for the Chelsea fans. His first-half red card at Vicarage Road last season proved to be the final nail in the coffin for his Chelsea career. It was his error that led to Watford scoring the opener and his red card meant that the Blues were short of a player and were humiliated 4-2.
To solve the midfield crisis, Chelsea signed Ross Barkley from Everton in January but the England international was carrying injuries and made just 1 start in the Premier League. In the summer, Maurizio Sarri was appointed as the new manager and he brought in Jorginho.
The Brazil-born Italian was followed by World Cup runner-up Mateo Kovacic, on loan from Real Madrid. Doing so undoubtedly pushed Bakayoko further down the pecking order for Sarri. Furthermore, the presence of young English players like Barkley and Ruben Loftus-Cheek in the squad didn’t make it any easier for the Frenchman to get near the starting XI.
As reported by the Guardian, Bakayoko has completed the move to AC Milan on a season-long loan deal with an option to turn it into a permanent one next season for £35m.
Bakayoko is still just 23 years of age and if he can forget the poor season at Chelsea, he has all the potential to revive his career with the Italian giants. The deal is good for all three parties involved.
Firstly, Chelsea have cut their losses on a player that certainly couldn’t cope in England. Secondly, Bakayoko has received a great chance to get back to his best as he has time on his side. And finally, AC Milan have completed a great deal since the player should thrive in the slow-paced Serie A. The move will also allow them to monitor the player for a year before finalizing any deal for the former Ligue 1 champion.
