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Alexandre Pato is an ideal loan for Chelsea

By Rucker Haringey

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - JULY 05: Alexandre Pato (R) of Sao Paulo fights for the ball with Wellington Silva of Fluminense, during a match between Sao Paulo v Fluminense of Brasileirao Series A 2015 at Morumbi Stadium on July 05, 2015 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Miguel Schincariol/Getty Images)
SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - JULY 05: Alexandre Pato (R) of Sao Paulo fights for the ball with Wellington Silva of Fluminense, during a match between Sao Paulo v Fluminense of Brasileirao Series A 2015 at Morumbi Stadium on July 05, 2015 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Miguel Schincariol/Getty Images) /
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Chelsea is close to completing an ideal loan move for Alexandre Pato

The thought of a Premier League team purchasing Alexandre Pato made me cringe. However, the thought of Chelsea making a loan move for the Brazilian attacker strikes me as a shrewd piece of business.

It seems that after months of tedious speculation, Pato is finally going to find a Premier League home. The Independent reports that the club is close to an agreement with Corinthians to bring him in on loan. This follows months of rumors linking Pato to every big club in England.

The prospect of purchasing Pato was always accompanied by a bevy of red flags. He exploded onto the scene at AC Milan as a youth, but injuries derailed his career. He’d retreated home to Brazil and had rediscovered his goal-scoring touch, but what conclusions could you really draw from his domination of weak competition?

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Then there was the obvious desperation of his representatives to get him a move to the Premier League. It was clear that they wanted their client in England to receive a big pay-day no matter what club agreed to take him on. It was desperate enough to make you wonder if there was something about Pato that they knew about, and English clubs did not.

Those are all valid concerns if you’re contemplating purchasing a player, but the risk/reward equation shifts dramatically when you’re talking about a loan. That’s why Chelsea is making a brilliant move to take Pato on loan, whereas a decision to purchase the Brazilian would have been very poor business.

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With a six-month loan, Chelsea get the opportunity to observe Pato closely. They will be able to evaluate not only his physical capabilities, but also his mental health. They will have a front row seat to see whether or not he’s a player they want to bring in for the long-haul.

If he does play well and check out in all physical and mental regards, you can bet that they’ll find the money necessary to make the move permanent after the loan is up. In fact, it won’t surprise me a bit if there’s a specific purchase clause included in the loan agreement. Even if there isn’t, Chelsea won’t be outbid if they fall in love with Pato.

If he doesn’t perform well or they identify some sort of flaw they can’t live with, then Chelsea are only out six months worth of salary. That’s just a drop in the bucket of the ocean of resources the club has available. They won’t sweat his wages for a moment.

Credit Chelsea for seeing the way to bring Alexandre Pato into the fold with the least amount of risk possible. While buying him would have been reckless, bringing him in on loan is brilliant.

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