Chelsea may have missed out on Edson Alvarez in the summer transfer window and signed Denis Zakaria on a temporary basis instead, but the Blues midfield issues are not yet solved. Jorginho and N'Golo Kante remain out of contract in the summer while Graham Potter, and Thomas Tuchel before him, has struggled to come up with a combination that ticks all the boxes in the centre of the park.
The club's late move for Alvarez in August may have came out of the blue, but the west London side had tracked the Ajax midfielder for some time. However, there was little will for the Dutch side to do business without being able to find a replacement, despite a £43million bid.
The Mexican midfielder was keen on the move but was unable to convince his club to allow it. He told ESPNnl: “I am very disappointed about it. But I am convinced that one day a big club will come. We never expected Chelsea to put in another bid at the end of August. It was a difficult situation. Ajax couldn't do anything”.
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Whether Chelsea will be willing to make another move for the midfielder in January remains to be seen, but the Ajax star's place at the Qatar World Cup provides the perfect opportunity for some in depth scouting. As such, football.london watched Alvarez's outing for Mexico in their opening World Cup match against Poland and assessed his performance:
0-15
Alvarez positioned himself at the base of midfield and in the opening minutes earned an early free kick when he had his foot taken away from him while looking to carry the ball forward. Was unafraid to come very deep to collect the ball from the defence to get the ball moving, and would facilitate exchanges between the central defenders as Mexico's full backs pushed high up the pitch.
The midfielder was unafraid to put pressure on star striker Robert Lewandowski and put in an impressive tackle on the Barcelona forward.
15-30
Was required to quickly retreat in the 17th minute and added to his side's numbers across the backline as Poland broke. Drove forwards with the ball to help relieve pressure in Mexico's third before dropping off a simple pass to his left and finding his position once again.
In the 20th minute, Alvarez showed the South American side's reliance on him to build play from the centre as he was afforded a great deal of space to send the ball out wide. Shortly afterwards showed his tenacity to provide cover on both sides of the pitch when Mexico are required to defend.
In the 24th minute looked to release Hector Herrera but slightly overhit the ball on the left.
30-45
Once again found himself playing the ball out to the right as Poland stayed deeped and allowed the 25-year-old time in possession.
45-60
At the start of the second period, the midfielder again did not hesitate to filter between Mexico's central defenders when his side were in possession of the ball. However, Alvarez found himself under more pressure defensively as Poland looked to provide more threat than they did in the opening half.
Alvarez continued to show his ability to tidy up loose balls if not always the most accurate distribution afterwards as the Mexican lost the ball in the build up to Poland earning a penalty.
60-75
The midfielder saw his attempt at goal saved in the 62nd minute after his shot was deflected by Henry Martin.
Swept up possession in the 66th minute but had the composure to just stand on the ball to allow play to develop before moving the ball on.
75-90
Alvarez remained a calm presence on the pitch, if not always the most involved as the Aztecs looked to break the deadlock. Played a deep role as Poland provided their own threat as stoppage time waged on and continued to demand the ball from his teammates even when in very close proximity.
Verdict
It was a disciplined outing from Alvarez who appeared to have a very defined role at the base of midfield and did not often foray further up the pitch, instead looking to be build play from the centre. The Ajax star regularly looked to utilise the ball out wide
Most notable perhaps was his defensive position as the Mexicans were able to nearly completely stifle Robert Lewandowski. Though, Poland's attacking ambition was not always enthusiastic in the opening period. It's a role the Blues have lacked in recent times however as Jorginho can often get left flat-footed in the transition and his central midfield partners are better when given the freedom to roam forwards.
Ultimately showed some strong positional sense and was unafraid to make a challenge or sweep up the ball. His passing instints looked wide, something Chelsea could perhaps benefit from given the quality of their own full-backs, but no doubt the midfielder would have preferred to have been more accurate.
Having being at the centre of Mexico's build up play for most of the game, that waned as the game got closer to its finale. None of his teammates made more interceptions and he remained only behind defenders Cesar Montes and Hector Moreno in passing volume.
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