Roman Abramovich is out to prove a point. It all began with the arrival of Eden Hazard and the second revolution at Stamford Bridge is showing no signs of slowing down. It reports are true, Chelsea could well be having another Brazilian in the ranks. The Internacional midfielder Oscar has been linked with Chelsea for a couple of weeks now. It was thought that Tottenham – read that as Andre Villas-Boas – were interested in securing his services, but we have stolen the march on our London neighbours.
The Internacional has today confirmed that Chelsea FC have made a bid of around £25 million for the 20-year-old, which would see him become the expensive Brazilian ever.
“I want the transfer of Oscar to be the biggest transfer deal ever in Brazilian football. And the Chelsea offer isn’t that far from that.”
said the Internacional chief Giovanni Luigi. His arrival will take the club’s spending beyond the £50 million mark for the summer. It could well reach the £100 million mark if Chelsea persist with the Brazilian attacker Hulk – a deal that I believe will not happen in the end.
It is quite a praise for a player who has only a handful of international appearances to his name. Further, he has really had one good season out of his four seasons as a pro.
Oscar will have to work extremely hard and make tremendous progress if he is to do well in England. BBC World Football pundit Tim Vickery often explains the difference in style between both regions. In Brazil, there is more space and time on the pitch. In England, you get neither of them. It will be a sea change for the young man.
“Oscar is really really talented and in the long-term you could see him as a replacement for Luka Modric”
said Tim Vickery, a few weeks back, when he was linked with Tottenham. Chelsea will be hoping that they conclude the deal for Oscar before the end of the 2012 pre-season tour of the USA.
