Would Hulk Be a Good Transfer for Jose Mourinho's Chelsea?

“If I said there wasn’t anything in it, I would be lying," said  Zenit St. Petersburg and Brazil striker Hulk when asked about rumors linking him to Chelsea, as per The Daily Telegraph. "But that is not for now. At the moment, I am 100 per cent [sic] focused on Brazil and I hope to be a Confederations Cup winner with my country. Other matters will have to wait until afterwards.”

Despite his words to the contrary, let's hope the rumors linking Hulk with a move to West London are just that.

As the Telegraph adds in its report on the Hulk-Chelsea rumors, the Brazilian cost Zenit £50 million last summer. And much like the Blues' very own record signing, Fernando Torres, he hasn't exactly delivered on that investment.

His debut season in Russia saw him score a mere seven goals in 18 league matches, with a further two coming in the Europa League. Sure, he had his problems settling into life outside Portugal—where he had been a success with Porto—but nine goals was a far cry from what many had expected as Zenit finished the campaign as runners-up to CSKA Moscow.

The price for Hulk's services alone—reportedly £35 million—would far out reach his worth, let alone the wages he would command. Besides, what he would bring Jose Mourinho's Chelsea outfit that they do not already have?

Mourinho has long been celebrated for his pragmatic approach to management and especially his transfers, so it's somewhat of a surprise to see the Blues heavily linked with a player of Hulk's ilk. He just doesn't quite fit the mould.

To begin with, he's damaged goods and if ever a club needed reason to avoid signing a player, that is it.

A year in Russia has only served to give Hulk a reputation akin to that of a footballing mercenary. When the Blues chased him for successive transfer windows, they were unable to lure him to the Premier League. Instead, it was the mega bucks deal that Zenit were offering last summer that eventually turned his head.

With all due respect to Russian football, it's not the first port of call for players seeking trophies and acclaim. Yet for Hulk, it seemed so.

Chelsea have been here before, first with Andre Villas-Boas and now, it seems, Mourinho. They were shunned in the past, so what would be different in 2013?

Well, Hulk himself knows he made a considerable error in judgement by moving to Russia. It was widely documented throughout 2012-13 that he had grown disillusioned (via Metro). It's why his form has been a shade of what we saw in the past and he is now using the Blues as a means to escape a nightmare created by his own decisions. Only he'll be swapping one considerable contract for another.

Even with the character flaws aside, Chelsea have better players in his position. He can play a role through the middle as the main striker, although Hulk is much more effective out wide, cutting inside defenders and seizing on opportunities when defenders cannot pick him up.

The Blues have Eden Hazard and Juan Mata to do that. They're exceptional talents, too, while Oscar, Victor Moses, Ramires and Frank Lampard, to a degree, are all capable themselves of providing attacking support.

Despite the deal hitting a snag, The Sun also reports the Blues are expecting to add Andre Schurrle to their ranks in the coming days, thus adding more strength to their positions behind the front man. Do the maths and suddenly the Blues have an embarrassment of riches.

No, what Chelsea need is an out and out striker to complement what they already have. For all the criticism leveled at him, Torres appears to be breaking free of the shackles his own mega transfer fee put on him, while Demba Ba provides a more direct approach, as he has already shown in a Chelsea shirt.

Romelu Lukaku remains a raw talent, despite his 17 goals on loan at West Bromwich Albion. However, with his Dider Drogba-esque approach, one suspects Mourinho already has a plan for utilizing him.

Really now, £35 million? For Hulk? The likes Stevan Jovetic of Fiorentina would come for far less and with none of the baggage Hulk brings, either. Heck, if Chelsea are willing to spend cash to the amount reported around Hulk, there's a certain Robert Lewandowski whose club may be tempted to accept such an offer.

Looking through Chelsea's most expensive signings of the past decade, the £30 million splashed out for Andriy Shevchenko seemed good business at the time. We all know how that turned out.