Chelsea Transfer News: 5 Reasons to Be Excited About Kevin De Bruyne

Early this morning it was reported Chelsea had made their third signing of this winter transfer window, bringing in 20-year-old Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne from Genk.

The attacking midfielder had been rumored to be on Andre Villas-Boas’ radar throughout much of January and even some speculating there was an eye on him back to last summer.

The terms of the deal are not yet finalized, but it is suggested that the fee will figure around £7 million for the player and he will finish out the rest of this season on loan back at Genk.

He is currently undergoing a medical in with Chelsea and barring any unforeseen barriers the deal should be completed sometime later tonight.

Here are five reasons to be excited about the signing.

The Terms of the Deal

At only £7 million, this is really a no-brainer of a deal. De Bruyne is not the kind of player that can go out and win a title all on his own. He does not really have the ability or even play the kind of game where the axis of a match can be turned by him simply being on the ball.

But for the price he is rumored to be bought for, it figures as somewhat of a low-risk, high-reward move. It is always a big transition for any player to move from their smaller native league to the highest ranks of the EPL. Some are able to translate their success at home over to England, others come up short. At this price, should the unfortunate happen and the latter become true, it would not be an enormous determent to Chelsea funds.

On that same note, the loan back to his current club Genk was the best thing they could have done for the player, his teammates and the team itself.

Bringing a 20-year-old directly into the heat of a team that is under much scrutiny and not performing at the level they should be is a vicious way to introduce him to this level of the game. He most likely would not be able to do much and more than likely would find him on the bench much like Josh McEachran did, only stymieing his growth.

In regards to McEachran, the loan works in his favor as well. The two play the same position and, unless the formation is changed, there is likely only one spot for the both of them. Many want to see McEachran become the new Terry, a player Blues' fans can be proud of as not only a great player, but a product of the club’s youth academy.

If De Bruyne were to be placed with the first team now, he would have an advantage of training with them and though he may not play much, he might develop chemistry along the way. It is better that both play right now (McEachran is on loan at Swansea City) and then come into the summer camps vying for the spot with one another.

Finally, by loaning out De Bruyne, Villas-Boas keeps himself and the club from becoming embroiled in any more pressure to play certain players. There has already been plenty of calls from everyone expressing their discontent with the midfield and that Lampard has perhaps seen his day come and go. By leaving the midfield Villas-Boas has intact, he will not get the added pressure of outside forces breathing down his neck to play certain players simply because of the poor form of the current make-up.

Style of Play

I have been cautiously pessimistic about the philosophy Villas-Boas is attempting to instill into his players. I believe this kind of scattered formation with a downhill attacking mentality will never work in this league, simply due to the all-around quality of the midfielders. But at the same time it requires a certain type of player to make it feasible, types that Chelsea do not currently have.

Juan Mata was the first signing Villas-Boas made that was particularly for the purposes of his own view of the game. However, it is easy to take a player who has the ability to do nearly all facets of the game well and ask him to play this style or another.

De Bruyne represents a more pure-kind signing.

Yes he can dribble, pass and shoot—all the things you want your attacking midfielder/winger to do. But it is more in his initial instinct when he gets the ball that makes him valuable.

Just watch the video above, it seems every time he touches the ball he looks forward to move the team instantly down the field. It is not always a clear counter, but he makes it one by putting his head down and moving the ball up field.

I will cautiously compare him to Christiano Ronaldo, as the way he plays the ball off to his teammates and continues his runs right through are reminiscent of the superstar. He also takes long touches in the open field, just pushing the ball and eating up real estate to force defenders to make quick decisions which De Bruyne capitalizes on. If he had a bit more speed, this comparison might hold a little more weight.

The Youth Movement Continues

Good clubs with proud traditions all follow the same trend: build through youth and once that youth matures, keep some and sell others. It is the best way to keep yourself competitive and always growing. Chelsea do not follow this model if for no other reason than they are a “new” club in terms of a successful history and don’t have decades of trophies to fall back on. And while their academy is improving, it is nowhere near the level of its rivals.

It is no mystery that Chelsea is an older team. Whether or not the likes of Lampard, Drogba and Terry are still able to turn in the same kind of performances they did five years ago is open for debate. But what is certain is that all of them, and more, are in the twilight of their careers and do not have much time left at this level.

De Bruyne joins a list at the club that is coming ever closer to outnumbering the established veterans that made Stamford Bridge renowned. Of Villas-Boas’ nine signings in charge of Chelsea, only two have been older than 23 years old (Gary Cahill, 26 and Raul Meireles, 28) bringing a total to the club of 13 first-team players who are 26 years old or younger.

When Villas-Boas’ first came to the club, it was implied that it was a move for the future. He was expected to rejuvenate the talent pool and bring mostly raw youth players who can be molded to fit his style of play. He has lived up to this billing and De Bruyne is another name to add to that prediction.

Knows How to Win

It is often misjudged the importance of a player who purely knows how to win. So much stock is placed in talent and ability. The mental game, that wherewithal to be able to understand what it takes to play under pressure, is often sidelined.

De Bruyne, at age 20 has more trophies in which he's played a major role in than any of the other Chelsea transfers made in the last three windows (with the exception of Meireles who has eight years on him). I understand it is only three, and perhaps not as prestigious as Mata and Torres’ World Cup, but then again neither of them figured very prominently in that title.

Odds are that without De Bruyne, Genk wins no such trophies last season and his name does not become one of the hot up and coming stars in Europe. Obviously the Belgian league is not the same quality as the Premier League, but he did get some Champions League experience this season.

In the four matches De Bruyne started he played commendably, given the fact that that they were clearly out-matched, earning three draws at home. But it was clear to see that he was the focal point of their offense and at even such a young age was taking on the role of leader and playmaker.

While Mata remains the most talented player on the team and it will more than likely be that way as long as he is in a Blue uniform, De Bruyne could become that incisive player that can make the single move necessary to get the win.

Lampard has never been the fastest, most skilled or strongest player on the team, but he has always been the player the club looks to for the win because he knows what it takes to come out on top. Expect De Bruyne to become this player in the future.

Why Not Be Excited?

If you’re a Chelsea fan this has not been your ideal system. Yes you were expecting some slack in the line as the club transitions to a new style of play and of course there would be some contentious moments between the old guard and new front. But I doubt any Chelsea fans, or any watchers of the league would expect the Blues to be battling it out for the fourth and final Champions League spot.

But that is the way this season has been. We have held our heads low these past few months. Some have continued to push for naive sense of optimism, reevaluating the schedule every time Chelsea drop a point to a side they weren’t expected to. Trying to figure how they mathematically can still win the title.

Others have conceded the fat of this year and moved on. Time to oust the old they say and focus on the next season. Drop those who will be gone for the summer and use this time as sort of an extended preseason.

I cannot say one is more right than the other (well actually I can, but that is for a different article), but what I can say is that sports are a linear development. And while the future that lies before the club is unclear, it remains at least blurred to the point that we recognize its existence without fully understanding what it will become.

But we do now know Kevin De Bruyne will be a part of it.

There is little reason to bark down on the De Bruyne transfer. You could be nit-picky and suggest that he does not have the speed to play in the Premier League or his success is only due to the lower level of play in Belgium. But what would be the point? You know no better than I do what will come of his time at Stamford Bridge.

For all the reasons I mentioned above we should be encouraged by this move, but even more so we should just be excited to know that there is a future to begin with. It does no good to sit here today and pessimistically attempt to define that future before it happens. If it remains unclear, then why not imagine it full of hope for the young Belgian and Chelsea as a whole?