Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: A scattergun approach or shrewd operating?
It is no secret that Chelsea has been extensively active in recent transfer windows. The club has adopted a ‘youth-led’ transfer policy centred around accumulating the best young talent in the world, especially in the midfield. Chelsea have reached an agreement with Leicester City to sign midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall for £30 million.
Chelsea broke the British transfer record when they bought Enzo Fernandez for £105 million. They also acquired Romeo Lavia for £53 million and again shattered the British transfer record by purchasing Moises Caicedo for £115 million. This represents Chelsea’s strong commitment to a transfer strategy that they believe will enable them to compete once again at the highest level.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: Questioning the Strategy
Bearing this in mind, is it outrageous to perhaps say that adding yet another young Dewsbury-Hall, only being 25 himself, could be stock-piling and deemed as a ‘scatter-gun’ approach? There is no doubt that Dewsbury-Hall is a talented young midfielder, piling up a very respectable 12 goals and 14 assists under Enzo Maresca’s Leicester in a championship-winning campaign that saw them return to the Premier League after only one year.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall enjoyed success in Maresca’s possession-based style, which saw him predominantly act as an attacking eight. He made the most of his technical attributes, ability to navigate tight spaces, and success on the half turn, exploding up the pitch to either score or assist a teammate.
Necessity of Another Midfielder
There is no doubt Kiernan is a talented young player, but Chelsea already stacks that position, raising questions about his necessity. On the surface level, it perhaps looks as though he is not, but when delving a bit deeper, Chelsea’s pursuit of Dewsbury-Hall starts to come together. It is no secret that Chelsea are openly willing to listen to offers for Cobham graduate Connor Gallagher, with Tottenham’s Ange Postecoglu and Aston Villa’s Unai Emery being admirers of the England international.
Gallagher, who captained Chelsea for large portions of the season under Mauricio Pochettino, had a career season. Still, clearly, Chelsea’s hierarchy does not regard him in the same regard that other clubs do. This is where Dewsbury-Hall comes in.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall: as a Fit for Maresca’s System
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall offers a similar profile to Gallagher, the ability to carry and progress the ball, but with the added caveat that he was the star man of Enzo Maresca’s team at Leicester, who just so happens to be the new Chelsea manager.
Maresca views Dewsbury-Hall as a ‘perfect’ player for his system. With Chelsea’s slow and, quite frankly, worrying start to last season’s campaign under Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea may view Kiernan as the perfect player to help them kick-start their new era under Maresca. Coupling this with Chelsea’s concerns over PSR requirements, the acquisition of Dewsbury Hall begins to make much more sense.
Current Midfield Situation
Fernandez and Caicedo will be suspected of forming the core of Chelsea’s midfield in the upcoming campaign. However, an overreliance on them saw Chelsea’s £250 million midfield look nothing like the players they were for Brighton and Benfica at points. Both showed flashes and Caicedo, in particular, came into his own and looked like the man Chelsea paid a record transfer fee for towards the back end of the season.
Couple this with Romeo Lavia coming off the back of an injury written off-season, Carney Chukwumeka struggling for fitness throughout the season, Andrey Santos and Lesley Ugochukwu both still being young and requiring loans, and Dewsbury-Hall seeming to be almost ‘perfect’ fit for the attacking eight role in Enzo Maresca’s system.
When looking at it from afar, it could be seen that Chelsea lacks a formulated approach.
Financial and Tactical Considerations
However, Leicester is struggling with PSR requirements, helping Chelsea attain a fair and respectable deal while also acquiring profits on recent investments such as Cesare Casadei, who is already familiar with the club, having been on loan there last season.
Moreover, the genuine possibility of Dewsbury-Hall bouncing off the likes of Chelsea starman Cole Palmer will allow Chelsea to hit the ground running and chase their goal of returning to the Champions League for the first time under the Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly regime. It does seem that there is some actual strategy behind this move.
Conclusion
As always in football, nothing is ever certain, but Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall does provide a steady, talented young player already familiar with Enzo Maresca’s system. Dewsbury-Hall remains in line with the club’s vision of acquiring elite young talent while also bolstering the squad. The club is competing on four fronts this season, with the Club World Cup being a vital chance for Chelsea to secure silverware, a competition they have themselves discussed how seriously they are taking.
So, is the pursuit scattergun? I would argue not, but is it shrewd? As always in football, and especially Chelsea in recent years, it remains to be seen.
Conclusion
As always in football, nothing is ever certain, but Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall does provide a steady, talented young player already familiar with Enzo Maresca’s system.
Dewsbury-Hall remains in line with the club’s vision of acquiring elite young talent while also bolstering the squad. The club is competing on four fronts this season, with the Club World Cup being a vital chance for Chelsea to secure silverware, a competition they have themselves discussed how seriously they are taking.
So, is the pursuit scattergun? I would argue not, but is it shrewd? As always in football, and especially Chelsea in recent years, it remains to be seen.
