‘that is shocking…’: Former Belgian international slams Chelsea following €20m agreement

Chelsea have reportedly secured an agreement to sign goalkeeper Mike Penders from KRC Genk.

The 19-year-old goalkeeper has only just made it to the first team of the Belgian club and Chelsea have decided to splash out a substantial amount of money on him.

Former Belgian international Franky van der Elst believes that such investments are not good for football, and it was quite shocking that the Premier League club spent that kind of money on an experienced player.

He said to Het Nieuwsblad via HITC: “To read right after his first official match for Genk that he is on his way to Chelsea – and for such an amount – that is shocking. “(This sort of transfer activity is) unprecedented. Maybe even unheard of.”

“What Chelsea is doing now – buying, buying, buying and then hoping that one of the many transfers will pay off – I really do not think is good for football.

“Chelsea has seven or eight goalkeepers, right? They just paid €25 million euros for Filip Jorgensen, who is also a young goalkeeper three years older than Penders and has already played for Villarreal’s first team for a season.

“So he will definitely have priority in the near future.”

Spending huge sums of money on unproven talents can only inflate the market for other clubs. Chelsea have invested in Filip Jorgensen from Villarreal this summer as well. It seems that they were keen on signing multiple goalkeepers in one window.

Mike Penders is a future investment

Penders is highly rated across Europe and he has a bright future. It remains to be seen whether he can hold down a regular starting spot at the London club. He might not be ready for the Premier League immediately, but he has the tools to develop into a reliable performer for the Blues.

If he manages to fulfil his tremendous potential in the coming seasons, the €20 million investment would look like a master stroke.

Meanwhile, Chelsea have had two mediocre campaigns back-to-back and they will be desperate to bounce by strongly. They will want to secure Champions League qualification and they will look to do well in the domestic trophies as well. They need to plug the gaps in their squad this summer in order for that to happen, and it remains to be seen whether they can bring in the right reinforcements.

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