Playing for 90
Fansided

Watford set to use new Premier League money to sign Chelsea star

By Rucker Haringey

LEICESTER, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 07: Marc Albrighton of Leicester City and Nathan Ake of Watford compete for the ball during the Barclays Premier League match between Leicester City and Watford at The King Power Stadium on November 7, 2015 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images)
LEICESTER, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 07: Marc Albrighton of Leicester City and Nathan Ake of Watford compete for the ball during the Barclays Premier League match between Leicester City and Watford at The King Power Stadium on November 7, 2015 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Tony Marshall/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Watford wants to striker a permanent deal with Chelsea for left back Nathan Ake

The new Premier League television deal is going to allow Watford to spend money like never before. One of the first things the Hornets want to do with their new-found cash is find a way to hold on to current loan star Nathan Ake.

Ake is currently on loan from Chelsea, but Watford manager Quique Sanchez Flores wants to find a way to keep the talented youngster in his starting 11 next season. His first choice would be to buy Ake from Chelsea outright, but he is open to another year-long loan if a permanent deal can’t be struck.

More from Playing for 90

The 21-year-old Dutch starlet came to Watford and seized the starting left back spot from Greek international Jose Holebas. He’s been the club’s second highest player per Whoscored.com with an average player rating of 7.2 in 19 total appearances. He’s a big reason Watford aren’t in any danger of relegation at the moment.

The Mirror reports that a fee of approximately three million pounds would be enough to pry him away from Chelsea. I believe letting Ake go for that price would be a huge mistake by Roman Abramovich and the Chelsea brass. They are sure to be very active in the transfer market this summer, but there’s no reason for them to spend big on a left back when they have a perfectly good alternative already.

The Blues have played Cesar Azpilicueta as their left back for most of the season despite the fact that he’s right-footed. He’s clearly more comfortable on the right side, but he’s filled in admirably on the left. As of late, Guus Hiddink has gone with youngster Kenedy in spurts. He is a more natural left-sided player, but lacks the Premier League experience that Ake already possesses.

Even if the higher-ups at Chelsea don’t regard Ake as a potential star, there’s surely a place for him in the squad. He’d be a high-quality backup for whatever left-back they might install as a starter. They’d be foolish to let him go for the paltry sum of three million pounds.

At the very least, they should sound out other Premier League clubs to see what they might be willing to pay for Ake. I strongly suspect that another club would blow a Watford offer of three million pounds out of the water. It’s not difficult at all to imagine a top-four Premier League club making an offer in excess of ten million pounds for the Chelsea starlet.

Related Story: 5 players Chelsea must upgrade to secure Champions League football again

If Watford are able to sign Ake for just three million pounds it may prove to be the signing of the transfer season. Chelsea would be well served to either keep the player, or hold out for a much better offer.

Home/Chelsea FC