Barcelona 4:0 Chelsea; How Barcelona Completely Wiped the Floor With Chelsea in the Transfer Market

Barcelona 4:0 Chelsea; How Barcelona Completely Wiped the Floor With Chelsea in the Transfer Market

Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:07 PM
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  • Chelsea would have a summer transfer window to forget after losing four of its topmost transfer targets to Barcelona
  • Raphinha, Lewandowski, Jules Kounde and Ousmane Dembele all ended up snubbing the Blues for the Catalan giants
  • And there is the 'small matter' of Chelsea losing Andres Christensen to the La Liga giants in this summer's transfer window

The summer transfer window has always had subplots akin to a well-scripted Hollywood blockbuster and this window has not been any different.

From the known to the unpredictable, less fancied deals to shell-shocking transfers, this year's summer transfer window will go down in the history of the sport as the most drama-packed window of all time.

Playing the lead character roles are Premier League outfit Chelsea and La Liga giants FC Barcelona in the ensuing window.

Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kounde, Ousmane Dembele, Raphinha, Chelsea, Barcelona
Barcelona whisked away four of Chelsea's primary targets in a single transfer window. Photo credit: @FCBarcelona
Source: Twitter

The aforementioned European giants, with identical transfer wishlists, have been engrossed in a tussle for players.

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With the Abramovich era coming to an end following the successful takeover of the Todd Boehly-led consortium, fans of Chelsea envisaged an onslaught by the bottomless pockets of their new American business tycoon owner.

The Blues were supposed to have bullied any club bar Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City in 'Rambo' style however, the Premier League club have been humbled by Barcelona's shrewdness led by president Juan Laporta and Sporting Director Mateu Alemany.

The pair have successfully snapped four top targets out of the hands of Chelsea with minimum fuss amid a period where the Blaugrana has been branded 'broke'.

SportsBrief takes a look at how Barcelona landed four devastating punches on Chelsea in the transfer window, leaving the Premier League side dazed.

Raphinha

The Brazilian attacker had agreed on a deal in principle to join Barcelona earlier this year but it was Chelsea who met the valuation of Leeds United for their prized asset.

After several weeks of negotiations, it appeared the Blues would have their way, however, the allure of Barcelona and the chance of fulfilling a childhood dream ensured the 25-year-old ended up in Spain.

Ousmane Dembele

Another transfer target for Thomas Tuchel, who had previously worked with the German tactician at Borussia Dortmund.

The French winger's contract was running out and with Barcelona short on cash, the Blues were in pole position to equalize the loss of Raphinha.

Call it loyalty or disregard for Chelsea - Dembele surprisingly opted to extend his stay at the Camp Nou with reduced wages instead of moving to England with better 'working conditions.'

Robert Lewandowski

Another transfer miss that is still fresh on the minds of Chelsea will be their inability to sign Robert Lewandowski.

The Polish goal machine made it clear his time with Bayern Munich was over back in June. With Chelsea going through the Lukaku heartbreak, the most 'sportingly intelligent' move was to replace the Belgian with Lewy.

But once again, Barcelona had the charm of a handsome prince to lure their 'princess' from Chelsea despite Bayern playing hardball.

Jules Kounde

Now, this will seem like a stab in the dark for most followers of Chelsea. The Frenchman had been on Tuchel's wishlist since last season and appeared they were finally going to steal a march on Barcelona.

The level of confidence was so high the hashtag #KoundeIsBlue was created in anticipation of the arrival of Kounde.

But transfer market specialist, Fabrizio Romano dealt the fanbase of Chelsea a massive blow when he announced Barcelona had agreed to a deal with Kounde with his famous tagline - Here we go.

Painful or sheer joy depending on the side of the divide you belong but whatever the case it has been a resounding victory for Barcelona over Chelsea before the start of the season.

This will surely deepen the rivalry between Chelsea and Barcelona and what an interesting tie it will be when the two are paired in the UEFA Champions League.

Barcelona drops Kounde transfer hint

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that Spanish giants FC Barcelona are on the verge of announcing French defender Jules Kounde as their new player.

Kounde has expressed his desire in joining the Catalan club next season despite Chelsea already agreeing on a deal with Sevilla.

In a video posted on Twitter, as sighted by Sports Brief, a shirt with Kounde's name on it became briefly available in Barcelona's online store.

Authors
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe photo
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe is a Ligue 1, Bundesliga, and La Liga editor with five-year experience. He previously worked with Sports Corna and 360SportsGH.
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