Chelsea must finally sell the £38m player their London rivals want to sign

After one of their worst defensive campaigns in recent history last season, conceding 63 goals in 38 games, there appears to be a slight improvement in their form. Chelsea Under new management, Enzo Maresca.

Last season, the Blues suffered a defeat 14.6 shots per game on average (Seventh highest in the department). So far this campaign, only Chelsea He conceded 11.1 shots per game (fifth least).

Despite conceding fewer shots per game, the Blues still conceded 23 goals in their first 19 games, showing that there is still plenty of room for improvement by tweaking personnel within their system.

The Premier League team wants to sign the Chelsea defender

according to Reports from reporter Graeme BaileyWest Ham United are interested in signing Axel Disasi from Chelsea. The report also stated that the Blues would be open to allowing the centre-back to leave, due to the arrival of Tosin Adarabioyo in the summer on a free transfer.

Chelsea signed Disasi from Monaco for A A fee of £38.8m in 2023Since then, the Frenchman has continued to make it 59 games with the BluesHe scored five goals and provided two assists.

The 26-year-old defender performed at his best under Mauricio Pochettino last season, playing with a slightly deeper defensive line, and was able to defend more often in his own penalty area, winning aerial duels and shooting balls.

However, since Maresca's arrival, the responsibility and role of the centre-backs has changed, which has had a negative impact on Disasi's form, in particular losing the ball in a horrific manner in Ipswich's second goal last weekend. It was a moment described by one Chelsea podcaster and content creator An “embarrassing” one..

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How does Disasi compare to Wesley Fofana

Wesley Fofana started the season very strongly with Chelsea. He participated in 12 matchesHe contributed to three clean sheets, with a total of 1,017 minutes played.

The 24-year-old is the perfect figure for the task set by Maresca, with defenders pressing man-to-man, looking to be aggressive and then having to recover greater distances quickly.

Since the Frenchman suffered a hamstring injury, Maresca has struggled to find the right balance in his defence, experimenting with Benoit Badiashelli as a right-sided defender (despite being left-footed), and using Malo Gusteau as a right-back, becoming a right-sided centre-back. An on-ball defender, Disasi is then also used in this role.

The main difference between Disasi and Fofana when analyzing their use in this role for Maresca's team is their ability to win duels away from their penalty area, often tracking down players in midfield areas.

The former Leicester defender is capable of doing this, using his physical attributes, making plenty of ball recoveries, winning aerial duels by attacking them with a goal, and getting in front of his man to make interceptions.

Disasi, on the other hand, is often a bit flatter and doesn't have the same agility and pace as Fofana to stay with his man. The 26-year-old also doesn't have the same ability to carry the ball forward when opposition teams drop, which is another reason Maresca likes the latter due to his ability to keep the team out of deep areas.

Now is clearly the right time for Chelsea to sign Disasi, as they look to replace him with a profile better suited to the way Maresca wants his team to play, whether that be in the transfer market, or promoting and giving more minutes to academy graduate, Josh. Acheampong.

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