What does the Impending move of André Schürrle mean for Chelsea?

German forward André Schürrle, 22, has been linked to a move to Stamford Bridge for more than a year by now. But, according to multiple reports, Chelsea have finally agreed terms with Bayer Leverkusen officials for a £20 million transfer. It had been understood that the German club’s officials were invited for a VIP seat at last Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final match between Chelsea & Man City at Wembley. The deal was not made official or announced on the websites of both clubs as of yet but, reports say the two club officials will meet this Friday in London to conclude the deal and make Schürrle the first Chelsea signing for summer 2013. Although Chelsea have not yet agreed personal terms with the player’s representatives, it is understood that Schürrle’s contract will see him earn £90,000-a-week.

This move looks to be very promising for the club and the player has all the talent & capabilities to prove himself in the premier league. He has been very influential for Bayer during the last two seasons and he is the first player to score 15 BundesLiga goals in a season at just 20 years old since Jurgun Klinssman did it in the same age in his playing days. And Schürrle is very tall and has good physique for his age. On top of that, he is very fast and agile that he has often been used as a winger for his club and in the matches he has played in for the German national team.

In August 2009, Schürrle made his Bundesliga debut in a 2–2 draw against Bayer Leverkusen on the opening day of the 2009–10 campaign. The following month, on 19 September 2009, Schürrle scored his first two league goals in a 3–2 away win against VfL Bochum before signing a professional contract with the club later in the week. In September 2010, Mainz announced that Schürrle had signed a five-year contract with Bayer Leverkusen, and would join the club at the end of the 2010–11 season. The transfer fee agreed between the two clubs was believed to be in the region of £6.5 million. He finished a brilliant second season with Mainz, scoring 15 goals in 34 Bundesliga matches, a club record, surpassing the previous record held by Mohamed Zidan, who scored 14 goals in the 2006–07 season. Also, helping Mainz to finish fifth in the league and qualify for the UEFA Europa League.

He then went on to score on his debut match for Leverkusen in a German Cup tie against SG Dynamo Dresden. He had to wait until mid-October to open his Bundesliga account for his club, against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Schürrle registered his first European goal in the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League in a home win over Valencia CF. He finished the 2011–12 season, only scoring six league goals, with pundits citing the primary reason for his inconsistency was that he was being played out wide, rather than playing mainly as a forward as he did for Mainz the previous season.

When it comes to his international career, Schürrle received his first call up to the senior team on November 2010. He made his debut in a friendly against Sweden, appearing as a substitute in the 79th minute. Then, On 29 May 2011, Schürrle scored his first goal for the senior team, during a friendly against Uruguay in a 2–1 win.

So, since the deal seems to be concluded almost, I will give you a list of what this move will mean for the club & what new this exciting young prodigy will bring to our squad:

A much needed depth in the attacking department of our squad

The main thing Chelsea have been lacking this season is that there was a shortage of talent depth in the squad. And considering that we would participate in 8 tournaments in the 2012/13 season, the club should have kept players like Michael Essien & Raul Miereles at the club and also should have signed two or three more players in the attacking 3rd area of the pitch. And Torres was the only Center Forward player we had available until January of 2013( I didn’t mention Sturridge cause I consider him to be a supporting striker or winger rather than a lone striker upfront). And for that reason, we have already missed out on 7 trophies out of EIGHT available at the start of the season. Although we signed very talented, young players for a combined fee of £80 million, the squad clearly needed to be strengthen more than that last summer. I am not saying the players available aren’t good enough, but, fatigue is a big issue at a top club like Chelsea when you have too many competitions to fight for & failure is not an option no matter what. We have played more than 135 matches this season in minimum, which already is a record number of games in our club’s history. And we hope Schürrle will be the beginning of many players that would be signed this summer. We still need one top striker and other replacements for players leaving this summer, like Malouda, Ferrera…etc. When it comes to Schrülle specifically, he will add depth to the attacking 3 midfielders behind the striker. His best position would be in the right midfield and sometimes in center forward. But, He would have to compete with Victor Moses as the Nigerian had been performing so well after he was signed by the club for £9 million last summer.

Versatility

One of the things I mentioned already is that Schürrle is capable of playing as a forward( his natural position he started out at Mainz) or as a winger. He has been played out wide for match of his time at Bayer, as the German club had bigger center forwards like Stephan Kiessling. But, he has been performing so well and have delivered goals & assists for the team from wide position. And that’s what he will be bringing to the squad here at Chelsea. And It would be very key for the manager to rotate the attacking players available in order to keep them fresh & ready to play many games through out the season at their top level.

Quality

When I meant by ‘Depth in the squad’, I didn’t mean getting just a decent player available in the market at that moment. I like the logic of ‘Quality over Quantity’. A perfect example for that would be Marko Marin. Don’t get me wrong, I like the player, but it had been clear that he was not yet ready for a physical demanding league like the EPL last summer when we signed him. But, still he is young and one for the future. But, i an saying it would have really helped his development if he had been loaned to other BundesLiga club(or maybe Werden Bremen themselves) or in a smaller team in the EPL. But, when it comes to Schürrle, he has a quality that we need & considering he is still 22, he will immensely develop in the coming years at the club. So, let’s hope the deal will be concluded as the rumors suggested and the player would thrive at Chelsea as we, the fans, expect him too.

what do you think of this impending transfer and about the player? Are you excited with the move? Leave your opinions & comments below. Thanks for reading & KTBFFH!!!