Hernan Crespo has lauded Enzo Fernandez as Chelsea's next Claude Makelele and Frank Lampard. The 22-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge throughout the January transfer window after impressing for Argentina at the World Cup in Qatar.
The Blues hierarchy held extensive talks with Benfica on deadline day in order to complete the signing of Fernandez, who was identified as a primary target in late December, football.london understands. He signed an eight-and-a-half-year contract, becoming the most expensive player in the west Londoners' history.
Despite controversy regarding the Argentine's price tag, Todd Boehly has been reassured that his money is well spent. Speaking to the Daily Mail, Crespo insisted that Fernandez can become 'one of the best midfielders in history'.
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The former Chelsea star said: "He [Fernandez] is [Claude] Makelele plus [Frank] Lampard. If you need him in the Makelele position he can play very well.
"This guy can also smell the goal, good shot from outside the box so if you need him behind the striker, Lampard or [Michael] Essien, he can do it. As a manager, having a player that can play in lots of positions, it’s really important in football today.
"He can do everything as a midfielder. He can be one of the best midfielders in history."
Fernandez followed Mykhailo Mudryk, Joao Felix, Noni Madueke, David Datro and Andrey Santos to Cobham last month, with Malo Gusto arriving in the summer. With so many new players at Graham Potter's disposal, the Chelsea boss will be hoping that the Argentine can fulfil Crespo's expectations against West Ham.
Speaking ahead of the Hammers' clash with the Blues, David Moyes revealed that he discussed Fernandez's availability with Benfica boss Roger Schmidt prior to the January transfer window. And, it did not take long for the West Ham head coach to establish he was not interested in signing him with the midfielder's price-tag substantial.
Moyes said: "I knew about him when he was at Benfica. We didn't know about him quite so much when got over. But I spoke to the Benfica manager about him in November who'd given him incredible praise about how good of a player he was. So I knew he was on the radar. And obviously, the World Cup highlighted what his capabilities were.
"We try to give the players the information we can about the opposition. But the players aren't daft. They'll have watched the World Cup, seen recent Premier League games. But it's quite difficult with Chelsea because they have got so many new players in."
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