Chelsea Transfer News: Radamel Falcao and Filipe Luis Rumours Confirmed

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has admitted he is willing to hand Radamel Falcao a second crack at the Premier League.

The Colombian forward endured a turbulent season on loan at Manchester United from Monaco in 2014-15, with the Red Devils deciding not to extend his stay at Old Trafford.

But despite scoring a meagre four Premier League goals last season, per WhoScored.com, Mourinho doesn’t seem put off and is relishing the prospect of rekindling a fire in El Tigre.

“If I can help Falcao reach his level again, I will do it,” said the Blues boss on DirecTV Sports (h/t Matt Lawless of the MailOnline). “It hurts me that people in England think that the real Falcao is the one we saw at Manchester United.”

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Last season Falcao was a shadow of the player who had terrorised defences in Spain, including Mourinho’s Real Madrid, during a stunning spell with Atletico.

Perhaps it’s with those memories in mind that the Portuguese could be willing to take a chance on a player who is one of the best goalscorers of this generation.

Here’s a reminder of what Falcao can do at full tilt:

But Mourinho's pragmatic nature usually steers him clear of gambles in the transfer market, and despite Falcao’s quality, this is a transfer that would fall into that bracket.

A season-long loan may seem relatively risk-free, but the Colombian’s lucrative salary is well documented. Indeed, Betway note here just how costly an acquisition the 29-year-old was for United:

Stylistically, it’s not the right match either. While Falcao is a player who could potentially thrive off the service of Eden Hazard, Oscar and Cesc Fabregas, Mourinho loves barrel-chested, battering-ram strikers; players who will unsettle defences with physicality and provide a foil for those aforementioned intricate talents.

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That’s just not Falcao’s modus operandi, and as such, given Mourinho's propensity for deploying a one-striker system, it’d be easy to see him sitting out plenty of the campaign on the bench, with former Atletico team-mate Diego Costa leading the line.

For a player who needs regular football to rediscover his spark, that’s a worry.

Diego Simeone Wants Filipe Luis Reunion

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Only a year after selling left-back Filipe Luis to Chelsea, Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has admitted he’s keen on bringing the player back to the Vicente Calderon.

“He's a player we're very fond of and he knows us well and gave so much to the team,” said Simeone, who spoke candidly about transfer plans with AS (h/t Daniel Prescott of the MailOnline). “I hope this one comes off.”

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Luis struggled for playing time in a disappointing debut season at Stamford Bridge. Mourinho opted for Cesar Azpilicueta in the left-back slot for the majority of the campaign, and the Spaniard’s diligent performances in this area of the field made him a tough man to dislodge.

But as Jack Lang of the Daily Mirror notes, the former Rojiblancos star is a class act:

The Brazil international was synonymous with Atletico’s ascension to the top of La Liga and in their charge to the Champions League final in the 2013-14 season. He’s an unrelentingly industrious operator on the left flank, with his vertical surges giving Simeone’s side a critical balance in both defensive and offensive areas.

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To see him leave the club would certainly be a shame, but as noted by Bleacher Report’s Andy Brassell, it could a busy summer in terms of outgoings at Stamford Bridge:

Luis would be a tremendous option for Chelsea if he was given the time to nail down a spot in the first team, and although he was a peripheral figure last season, he should be getting more minutes in 2015-16.

If Atletico do come calling, the prospect of a return to familiar surroundings and a manager who will definitely play him would be tempting.

But Luis should back his talent and stick around at Stamford Bridge for another year yet; expect the Brazilian to show exactly why Chelsea were so keen on getting him on board last summer in the coming months.