‘I feel good playing here’: Joao Felix hints he may STAY at Chelsea – despite no option to buy beyond his loan spell – as the £80m forward talks of the ‘freedom’ offered to him by Graham Potter
- Joao Felix arrived at Chelsea on loan from Atletico Madrid in January
- The 23-year-old scored his first goal for the club earlier this month
- He has now hinted he would be happy to stay at Stamford Bridge
Joao Felix has suggested he may stay at Chelsea past the end of his loan spell as he enjoys the ‘freedom’ offered to him at Stamford Bridge.
Felix arrived in West London in a £11 million loan deal from Atletico Madrid in January and has had a mixed start to his time at the club.
He was sent off on his debut against Fulham and missed three games with the resulting ban, but has looked bright since returning to the side and scored his first goal for the club against West Ham earlier this month.
Speaking to Eleven Portugal, Felix said: ‘The position I play, and the way we play at Chelsea is different to Atletico. Clearly I have more freedom to put my football into practice, to be at my best to help the team.’
‘I feel good playing here. It’s just a matter of getting results and it will be perfect.’
Joao Felix has hinted he may stay at Chelsea past the end of his loan spell at the club
He praised the ‘freedom’ given to him by Graham Potter despite a poor run of recent results for the Blues
The Blues have won just once in seven games since Felix’s debut. They have dropped to 10th in the league and face an uphill battle in the Champions League after losing the first leg of their last 16 clash 1-0 to Borussia Dortmund.
Meanwhile, Atletico sit fourth in La Liga without the 23-year-old. He had a difficult relationship with manager Diego Simeone in Madrid, and reports in the Evening Standard suggest Chelsea will be allowed to sign the forward permanently if Atleti can recoup £80m of £113m they paid for him in 2019.
Chelsea travel to Tottenham on Sunday in a game that could be vital for Potter after the club’s worrying recent form. Despite processing an abundance of attacking talent after their £300m splurge, the Blues are struggling to score goals and lost to Southampton in their last game.
Spurs have struggled for consistency this season but currently sit fourth after beating West Ham 2-0 in their last game.
Speaking ahead of Sunday, the Chelsea boss said: ‘[We need] a strong performance. We need three points. It’s a game we’re looking forward too. Training and response been really good.
‘We’ve spoken about it with individuals and as a group as to how to attack against Tottenham. They are a team that don’t give much away, defend deep, we’ll have to think about that.’
Felix scored his first goal for the club earlier this month but Chelsea have won just once since his arrival and were beaten by Southampton last week
It is believed that Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid would let Felix go for the right fee