Chelsea Transfer News: Radja Nainggolan Confirms Contact with Blues
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AS Roma star Radja Nainggolan has confirmed Chelsea have contacted his club regarding a summer transfer, but the Belgian won’t talk to the Blues until the two teams can come to an agreement.
Speaking to Het Laatste Nieuws Nina (h/t Goal’s Stefan Coerts), he also admitted he would find it difficult to leave Italy at this stage of his career:
There has been contact between Roma and Chelsea.
But I will not get involved so long as there is no agreement between the clubs.
Chelsea are keen to strengthen their squad and Conte is a manager who wanted to sign me before. Chelsea are a big club.
But the transfer is not a done deal so long as there is no signed contract on the table. And it would not be easy to leave Italy after 11 years.
Nainggolan is currently preparing for the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament with Belgium.
The 28-year-old joined the Giallorossi on a permanent basis in the summer of 2015 after spending a year on loan in the Italian capital. Per WhoScored.com, he contributed six goals in Serie A last season.
Nainggolan isn’t known for his statistical output, however. The Belgian is a tenacious tackler and superb distributor in midfield, sharing a lot of similarities with former Juventus star and current Bayern Munich midfielder Arturo Vidal.
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Vidal was a favourite of new Chelsea manager Antonio Conte, a blue-collar midfielder himself during his playing days. Conte has always built his teams around energetic midfielders who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty, and Nainggolan fits that role like a glove.
Here’s a look at some of his highlights:
Nainggolan is the type of player fans can’t help but love due to his energy and high work rate, but he has more technical ability than the average workhorse midfielder. While he’s a bit of a late bloomer, he has comfortably held his own as a member of Belgium’s talented national team, and he might even keep Tottenham Hotspur star Mousa Dembele on the bench this summer.
He has spent the bulk of his senior career on the Italian peninsula and seems perfectly happy in Rome, so even if the two clubs come to an agreement, the move would be far from a guarantee.
But via ESPN FC’s David Amoyal, the fact he talks about the Blues more openly with the Belgian media is a good sign:
A combination of Nainggolan and Nemanja Matic in midfield could be devastating in the Premier League, and with youngster Ruben Loftus-Cheek set for a bigger role as well, the Blues’ midfield unit would be a major strength heading into the 2016-17 campaign if the Belgian arrived.
For Roma, Kevin Strootman would be a natural replacement, providing his persistent injury struggles are finally a thing of the past.
Nainggolan’s exit would also have an impact on some of Roma’s other stars, like Miralem Pjanic, Kostas Manolas and Antonio Rudiger, who the Giallorossi will be less tempted to part with after already selling a fan-favourite.
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