What will Rogers bring to Alonso's Chelsea?
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Chelsea's £117m move for Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers was a genuine transfer window shock, but how did they do it and what does it mean for the rest of the squad?On Monday, Rogers returned from the United States, having featured for England at the World Cup, to undergo a medical in London and sign a six-year contract with an option for a further year.It had been widely expected that Rogers, who was Villa's most prized asset, would be available only for an English transfer record fee, but many expected Arsenal to be the frontrunners.However, Chelsea had been tracking Rogers for more than two years and had quietly made him their top attacking target. They moved quickly after England's semi-final defeat by Argentina out of his desire to focus on the World Cup.On Thursday, after the 2-1 loss, a combined effort involving the club's sporting directors, head coach Xabi Alonso and co-owner Behdad Eghbali helped secure a deal.
The deal was underpinned by the strong relationship between Chelsea co-owner Eghbali and Aston Villa owner Nassef Sawiris, with the agreement being finalised on Saturday afternoon, shortly before Rogers took to the field in England's bronze-medal victory over France.After the deal was agreed, Arsenal were offered the chance to match the bid but they informed Villa they were committed to their lower valuation and were willing to let him join Chelsea on those terms. He already knows Levi Colwill and Reece James through the England set-up, while Tosin Adarabioyo, Jamie Gittens, Romeo Lavia and Liam Delap all came through City's academy system.That English contingent forms a substantial part of the club's leadership group, alongside Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo.There is, however, the more important issue of football and where Rogers fits into the team, especially given Palmer is a similar type of player.Rogers was among the players selected by England manager Thomas Tuchel ahead of Palmer for this summer's World Cup, but their versatility means they can play either together or in each other's position.One source suggests Rogers will primarily play on the left, with Palmer operating centrally as a number 10.
In addition, they have five senior strikers - Joao Pedro, Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap, Emmanuel Emegha and Marc Guiu - on the books.It is clear that the squad needs trimming after last season's 10th-place finish, particularly given Chelsea can play a maximum of 51 matches if they reach both domestic cup finals.It's not just about keeping players happy - Chelsea must also sell players to keep the books balanced.The £117m fee represents a substantial outlay on top of the £47m spent to sign full-back Marco Palestra from Atalanta, as well as the potential arrivals of defenders Pep Chavarria from Rayo Vallecano and Maxence Lacroix from Crystal Palace.In addition, midfielder Valentin Barco is expected to join from Strasbourg, though Chelsea have yet to confirm the deal. It took a league-record £300m in player sales last season for Chelsea to comply with the Premier League's financial rules, which are due to move from a Financial Fair Play-based system to a squad cost ratio model this summer.Uefa, however, represents the biggest obstacle to Chelsea's continued spending after fining the club £26.7m for breaching its rules last summer, while Villa were also fined and are under the same scrutiny, which led to Rogers' sale.