Chelsea won't admit £30m mistake so soon – even with Aston Villa providing perfect get-out

11/12/2024 12:00 PM

Well, mark your bingo cards – who had 12th of November as the first time we see a transfer rumour linking Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall with a move away from Chelsea?

We'll be honest – we didn't think we'd see one until at least January or beyond. But it's taken just four months between the midfielder signing and the midfielder being linked with a move away by sources like CaughtOffside.

The reason we thought it would take longer than it has is simply because we thought he'd be playing more than he has. With more than 25% of the season played he's manged precisely 0 Premier League starts, and regularly doesn't even make the bench.

Until recently the Conference League was his domain – but last time out he didn't even make the team there either. A £30m signing that looked puzzling at the time looks even stranger now. The idea was that he was a player who knew Enzo Maresca's system and could slot in straight away. Instead he's not being used at all.

Chelsea won't want to admit £30m mistake right away

So perhaps we shouldn't be surprised by the transfer links, even if they are coming a little earlier than expected. The rumours claim that it's Unai Emery's Aston Villa who are keen on him, and to be fair we can see him really shining there.

However frankly we can't see any player moving on so quickly after joining simply because it would be such an admission of failure from the sporting directors on a move that looked silly to begin with and has since proved to be just that. Even the rumoured deal which would see a loan with an option to buy looks far fatched.

If Carney Chukwuemeka can't get in the team – what hope does KDH have? We reckon he will ride the bench for at least a year before he's quietly moved on.