Chelsea plan to sign £100m-rated Portugal international next summer, if he can continue current form

Harry Watkinson

Chelsea believe that they can make Joao Felix’s loan move from Atletico Madrid permanent at the end of the season, according to reports.

The Blues have already discussed a potential deal with the Rojiblancos, who may be keen to cash in when the transfer window opens next summer.

Graham Potter is thought to have been impressed by Felix’s recent performances, so he would like to bring him to Stamford Bridge on a long-term basis.

The Portugal international arrived at Chelsea last month after an alleged falling out with Atletico manager Diego Simeone.

His Premier League career got off to a shaky start, as he was shown a red card against Fulham, which ruled him out of his next three matches.

This came as a major disappointment to Blues fans, as he had put in an impressive performance up until that point.

However, Felix made an empathetic comeback with a goal against West Ham on Saturday and Potter will hope that he can continue to find the net for the remainder of the season.

The 23-year-old’s current deal is a straight loan, with no option to buy in his contract. But, according to journalist Ben Jacobs, Chelsea already have a plan to make his stay permanent at the end of the season.

As per his report, the Blues allegedly held discussions with Atletico over a ‘post-loan plan’ for Felix when they agreed on his January loan move.

As a result, the club are supposedly ‘confident’ that they can sign the Portuguese attacker if he can continue to show his quality in the Premier League.

From Felix’s point of view, he is unlikely to want to return to Spain if he enjoys his football in London, especially given the rift between him and Simeone.

It is believed that a fee of over £100m may be required for Chelsea to retain his services, but club owner Todd Boehly has already shown that he isn’t afraid to spend mammoth sums on new players.

Chelsea have already brought in the likes of Enzo Fernandez (£107m) and Mykhaylo Mudryk (£88.5m) this season, as Potter aims to build a team that can dominate in the future.

Felix certainly has the quality to play a key role for the Blues for years to come.

After joining Atletico in 2019, the attacker scored 34 goals and made 18 assists in 131 appearances, giving him an impressive average of 0.4 goal contributions per game.

Felix is still a relatively young player too, so he has the potential to get even better as he acclimatises to the Premier League.

But, considering his hefty price tag, he will have to score a few more goals this season for Chelsea to justify signing him permanently.

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