Chelsea Transfer News: Post-Deadline Day Rumours and Roundup of January Deals

Despite manager Jose Mourinho insisting there would be next to no transfer activity at Stamford Bridge during this January transfer window, per BBC Sport, the Blues were one of the busiest sides on the continent on deadline day.

The signing of winger Juan Cuadrado from Fiorentina was finally completed, with Mohamed Salah going to Fiorentina on loan to sweeten the deal, per Sky Sports. Andre Schurrle was also sold to Wolfsburg with the clock ticking down, ending 18 months at Stamford Bridge.

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Elsewhere, defender Ryan Bertrand finalised a permanent move to Southampton, and as noted by SportingIntelligence, his sale meant the Blues actually turned over a profit in the January window:

Here’s a look at the deals conducted by the Premier League leaders throughout the course of the January window:

Incoming
Outgoing
Player	From	Fee
Juan Cuadrado	Fiorentina	£26.1 milion
Player	To	Fee
Fernando Torres	AC Milan	Undisclosed
Marko Marin	Anderlecht	Loan
Mark Schwarzer	Leicester City	Free
Todd Kane	Nottingham Forest	Loan
Nathaniel Chalobah	Reading	Loan
Tomas Kalas	Middlesbrough	Loan
John Swift	Swindon	Loan
Andre Schurrle	Wolfsburg	Undisclosed
Lewis Baker	Sheffield Wednesday	Loan
Alex Kiwomya	Barnsley	Loan
Mohamed Salah	Fiorentina	Loan
Stipe Perica	Udinese	Loan
Ryan Bertrand	Southampton	£10 million

Along with Manchester City’s capture of striker Wilfried Bony, Cuadrado represents the biggest signing of the entire transfer window.

The effervescent, versatile and wonderfully direct Colombian should give Chelsea a frightening new facet to their attacking forays, and as the player himself revealed, he’s very much looking forward to working under Mourinho, per Aaron Flanagan of the Daily Mirror:

"

This is a great club and honestly it is like a dream to join the Chelsea family and to know that the manager believes in me. I’m happy.

It is really going to be brilliant to work with one of the best coaches anywhere in the world. I’m very proud to be playing for him and I think he is going to help me grow into a better player.

"

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It’s not too difficult to see why Mourinho opted for Cuadrado. He’s not only a classy operator and a mazy dribbler, but his work rate is irrepressible, meaning that the former Fiorentina man’s attributes should see him fit seamlessly into the Chelsea setup.

Not everyone in the game is quite so sure it’s a worthwhile capture, though. Indeed, former Liverpool manager Phil Thompson has questioned exactly where he’ll fit into an already star-studded Chelsea team, per Jack Wilson of the Daily Star [sic]: "They've got Oscar and Eden Hazard - where's he going to play? ... He's so aggressive in how he plays the game. He will give them something different. I think he's a decent signing but I wonder where he will play. For me, he was one of stars of World Cup."

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Despite Thompson’s concerns, the answer seems to be pretty obvious. Cuadrado looks set to vie with Willian for a spot on the right of the midfield, and given the sale of Schurrle—who was typically the first deputy when filling in out wide, competition for places won’t be ridiculously fierce at Stamford Bridge for the remainder of the season.

Schurrle himself joined a superb club in Wolfsburg. They’re progressing wonderfully under the tutelage of manager Dieter Hecking—an emphatic indication of which was seen in their 4-1 hammering of Bayern Munich recently—and the German will flourish alongside creative talents like Kevin De Bruyne and Ivan Perisic.

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As noted by 101 Great Goals, the World Cup winner wasted no time getting involved in the club’s training sessions:

His sale for a reported fee of £22.5 million represents excellent business for Chelsea, and as noted by ESPN FC, Mourinho is a manager who always seems to get value for his players:

That surely applies for Bertrand, too, in another deal that both teams involved will be pleased with. The young left-back has settled into a groove since joining Southampton on loan, and he will be delighted to have extended his stay at the club. Chelsea, you suspect, would have been very happy to sell for a reported £10 million, per Hamish Mackay and Nick Harris of the Mail Online.

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Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe thinks Bertrand is an excellent capture for Saints:

While Chelsea have lost two squad players for the remainder of the season, the capture of Cuadrado should give this team some real impetus going into the second of half of what should be an enthralling campaign. His trailblazing forays down the right for the Blues will light up Stamford Bridge and offer this team a refreshed impetus against cohesive, diligent opposition.

There are some concerns, though. So far this season, Mourinho has scarcely deviated from a preferred group of players, and if he was to run into some injury problems—of which there is every chance with games mounting up—this squad could be short. On the contrary, keep everyone fit, and this team has a real shot of a trophy-laden finish to the campaign.