Former Arsenal superstar Paul Merson has reportedly slammed Chelsea’s decision to keep a hold of midfielder Mateo Kovacic this summer transfer window.
Chelsea has endured a transfer bam which means that the Blues cannot sign any player at the club for the next two transfer windows and Frank Lampard has a tough job to handle after succeeding Maurizio Sarri.
However, despite the transfer ban, Chelsea was able to keep Mateo Kovacic at the club and sign him on a permanent deal after the Croatian spent last season on loan at Stamford Bridge from Real Madrid. Kovacic racked up 32 Premier League appearances but failed to score a goal or notch up an assist for the West London outfit and Paul Merson is quite stunned by the club’s decision to keep him at Stamford Bridge.
The 51-year old formed international blasted Chelsea for keeping Kovacic at the club and stated that the only reason he remained at Chelsea was that they weren’t allowed to bring in any more players into Stamford Bridge.
Merson told Sky Sports, “Do you think (Matteo) Kovacic would have signed for Chelsea without there being a transfer embargo? I don’t think he scored a goal and they’ve paid upwards of £40m. They’ve signed him because they need another body, surely? It’s not all about this year, it’s a three-year contract, and as a Chelsea fan, it feels like a good opportunity to steadily, steadily bring these players through. One at a time, not bringing a four or five and then suddenly Chelsea are a mid-table team.’
