Romeo Lavia: Do Chelsea Need the Midfielder After Gary Neville’s Comment?

• Gary Neville has hit out at Chelsea for signing midfielder Romeo Lavia
• The Blues signed him and Moises Caicedo after a battle with Liverpool
• The Belgian midfielder has played 32 minutes this season due to injury

Football pundits always have a lot to say about Chelsea, and recently, it has been about money, what should and shouldn't be done since Todd Boehly took over as the club’s owner.

The consortium, led by the American billionaire and backed by assets management firm Clearlake Capital, took over the club after Roman Abramovich was forced to sell two years ago.

They have nearly erased all traces of the Russian oligarch's influence on the club, aiming to redefine its identity and establish a new ideology that is completely distinct.

Transfer battle for Caicedo and Lavia

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One of the highlights of their on-pitch activities so far was going into a £173 million transfer battle against Liverpool for the signings of midfielders Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, which they won.

The battle between Liverpool and Chelsea should not have happened – the Blues' priority was Caicedo, while the Reds’ was Lavia. The Merseyside club spent weeks unwilling to meet Southampton’s valuation for their player.

They announced to the world they had the funds and were only lowballing the relegated club when Brighton accepted the Reds’ offer of £111mil for Caicedo.

The Ecuadorian’s insistence on going to Stamford Bridge put the Londoners back in play and signed him for £115mil - a British record transfer fee.

The attention turned to Lavia, who at that time wasn't Chelsea's priority, but through the influence of director Joe Shields, who knew the player from Southampton and Manchester City, legend Eden Hazard and Caicedo, as noted by The Athletic, Boehly's team won again.

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The Belgian, unfortunately, has dealt with injuries and has played only 32 minutes this season, coming off the bench in the second half of the 2-1 win over Crystal Palace in December. He suffered a setback and has not featured since.

Neville slams Chelsea for signing Lavia

British pundit Gary Neville has hit out at the Blues hierarchy for the signing of Lavia for £58mil, whom he claimed was an unnecessary recruitment.

“They [Chelsea] went and bought Enzo, Caicedo and then through their ego went & bought Lavia on the final day of the transfer window for £54m & then they have to sell Gallagher? They didn’t need Lavia, he’s not even played a game for them anyway,” he said on The Overlap Podcast.

This comment begs the question of whether the signing was necessary or not.

Do Chelsea need Lavia?

It is easy to claim he was unnecessary because he has unfortunately been injured, with the team begging for quality and numbers in his position, but it is a statement that lacks depth.

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For five years between 2018 and 2023, the club's midfield core was Jorginho, N’golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic – all three left the club for Arsenal, Al-Ittihad and Man City, respectively, in 2023.

Their replacements were a priority for the club, and Enzo Fernandez, Caicedo and Lavia are understood inside the club to be their trio for years to come.

The club also witnessed the departures of midfielders Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, making it five senior stars in that position to leave in 2023.

It again asks the question: was Lavia's singing unnecessary?

Lesley Ugochukwu, Cesare Casadei, and Andrey Santos were recruited, but none were seen as immediate first-team players but rather future signings despite being in the same age group as Lavia.

Santos spent the first half of the season on loan at Nottingham Forest and is at BlueCo’s second club, RC Strasbourg, for the second half. Casadei was recalled from Leicester City loan in January, while the initial plan for Ugochukwu was a Strasbourg loan, but stayed after Santos left temporarily.

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Lavia was not an overnight signing for Chelsea. Per Sky Sports, the Blues had a £50mil fee rejected by Southampton on the deadline day of the 2022 summer window, two months after he moved to the south coast from City's academy.

Per Metro UK, Neville, who has turned to the critic of Caicedo and Lavia today, wanted his former club, Manchester United, to join the battle and sign both, describing the fee for both as “only £170mil”.

He is one of the English football punditry lead voices against Boehly’s spending, describing the team as a “billion dollar bottle job” after their Carabao Cup final loss to Liverpool.

The 20-year-old was a necessary addition to the team at West London, and his unfortunate issues with injuries do not make him any less.

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Sports Brief analysed Chelsea players with most games missed due to injury this season after Christopher Nkunku suffered a setback during the Carabao Cup final.

Wesley Fofana has yet to feature at all this season after suffering an ACL injury during pre-season training, while Lavia has only 32 minutes in his tank.