Chelsea have had a howler with Lampard signing whose value has plunged £37m
The grass is green, the sky is blue, and Chelsea remain inconsistent.
Mauricio Pochettino's side have been one of the most entertaining teams to watch this season, although it might not be for the right reasons.
It's impossible to know which version of the team will show up under the Argentine this year, as in one game, they might put in a brilliant performance away to the Premier League champions, and then a few weeks later, they might struggle to a 2-2 draw away to Brentford.
Now, there are clearly some talented youngsters in this Blues squad, such as Cole Palmer, Malo Gusto and Enzo Fernández, but there are also too many players who simply aren't of the level required.
One of those stars who might not be good enough was a Frank Lampard signing, and he has seen his value crater in the years since he joined the club.
Ben Chilwell's value when he signed for Chelsea
Yes, the player in question is England international and, at points this season, Chelsea captain Ben Chilwell. The talented left-back was, at one stage, and not long ago at that, one of the most sought-after full-backs in English football.
His performances for Leicester City between the 2017/18 season – when he became a first-team regular after making 24 league appearances – and 2019/20 were genuinely quite impressive, as he managed to average a match rating of 6.94 in the league across that period, per WhoScored.
So, with the club just coming off of two transfer windows in which they didn't spend a penny, the Blues opted to drop £50m on the then-23-year-old and signed him up to a five-year deal.
There was a lot of pressure on the Milton Keynes-born defender to step up and justify the price tag in his first year in west London, and where some players might wilt under said pressure, Chilwell thrived.
The former Foxes ace made 42 appearances for the club, scored four goals, provided seven assists and played a crucial role in the club's Champions League glory.
Appearances
42
Goals
4
Assists
7
Goal Involvements per Match
0.26
At this point, it looked like this was a move that would work out, and Chelsea had a left-back who could play a key role in the team for up to the next decade.
However, it has since panned out very differently.
Ben Chilwell's valuation in 2024
Unfortunately, as Chelsea fans will be well aware, the 2020/21 season remains Chilwell's most successful in Blue.
The 5 foot 11 left-back's second year in the capital was a disaster as he suffered a cruciate ligament tear in late November that ruled him out for the rest of the season, leaving him with just 13 appearances, three goals and one assist to his name.
2020/21
2
84
7
2021/22
1
178
45
2022/23
2
117
20
2023/24
2
108
18
Total
7
487
90
The 2022/23 campaign brought more injury as a hamstring problem saw him miss 15 games for club and country, and while he did manage to make 30 appearances, he only scored two goals and provided three assists.
Finally, this season has been another one dominated by injuries as another problem with his hamstring saw him miss 17 games for the club, and as things stand, he's made 18 appearances, in which he has registered a single assist.
In fact, Chilwell's most notable moment of the season so far is probably his altercation with Liverpool youngster Conor Bradley in the League Cup final last month, for which he was labelled "pathetic" by football writer Joel Rabinowitz.
Even playing further up the pitch as a winger or wing-back this season has failed to rejuvenate the 27-year-old, with the Standard's Dom Smith giving him a 5/10 for his display against Brentford at the weekend, which he described as a 'pretty anonymous display.'
With these persistent injuries and downturn in form, a player who cost £50m only three and a half years ago has recently been valued at just €15m by the CIES Football Observatory, which comes to about £13m or £37m less than what Lampard paid for him.
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ByJack Salveson Holmes Mar 1, 2024
Ultimately, the signing of Chilwell is starting to look like a mistake on the part of Chelsea, as the combination of his consistent injury problems and poor form has seen what was once a valuable asset deteriorate into almost nothing.