Frank Lampard has not hidden his admiration for Leicester City left-back Ben Chilwell and is keen on bringing the England International to the Bridge.
The Englishman has been a star performer for Leicester City. He has been on Chelsea’s radar as Lampard continues to bolster his squad for the forthcoming season.
However, the Foxes have slapped a hefty £80 million price tag on the defender, a fee equaling Harry Maguire’s record move to Manchester United.
Lately, Chilwell has come under heavy criticism from both Leicester and Chelsea supporters, and his defensive frailty has been the major talking point.
How much of an upgrade is Chilwell
Chelsea’s Marcos Alonso has been deemed not good enough, mainly for his poor defending, crossing and excessive loss of possession.
However, a statistical analysis shows Chilwell and Alonso are similar, and the latter might be the better player.
Attacking Contributions
Despite playing 11 league games less than Chilwell, Marcos Alonso has a similar attacking contribution for the Blues.
In 16 appearances, the Chelsea full-back has scored four goals and provided two assists. Chilwell has scored three goals and provided three assists in 27 appearances.
Alonso has a 23% crossing accuracy while making 2.4 inaccurate crosses per game, better than Chilwell, who makes 3.1 inaccurate crosses per game with an 18% accuracy.
Defensive Contributions
A similar defensive statistics show Marcos Alonso is also identical to Ben Chilwell in terms of individual defensive contributions.
While Chilwell makes 0.2 blocks, 1.6 tackles, 1.1 interceptions and two clearances, he loses possession 21 times per game.
Marcos Alonso averages 0.2 blocks, 1.5 tackles, 1.1 interceptions and 1.4 clearances while losing possession 15 times per game.
They both win 0.2 possessions in the final third and are dribbled past 1.1 times per game.
Better Alternatives
Chelsea, reluctant to splash the cash on the £80 million Leicester star, has turned their sight on 27-year-old Ajax Nicolas Tagliafico.
The Argentine has already stated his intent to leave the Johan Cruyff Arena, and a fee of £20 million appears to be a steal in securing his services.
Making 2.6 tackles, 1.7 interceptions and 2.1 clearances per game, Tagliafico statistically bests both Alonso and Chilwell defensively.
His five goals and five assists this season also shows the Argentine poses attacking threats, and can be a force going forward for the Blues.
While Chelsea might have to break the bank to secure the services of Ben Chilwell, a cheaper, more experienced, all-round full-back might finally bring their left-back quest to an end.
