While Real Madrid have publicly maintained that the midfielder is not for sale and Guler himself has voiced a preference to fight for his place in Spain, the temptation of a guaranteed starting role under a manager who completely trusts him could heavily tilt the scales in Chelsea’s favor.
Arda Guler previously flourished under Xabi Alonso
The driving force behind the ambitious pursuit is incoming Chelsea head coach Xabi Alonso, who is eager to orchestrate a swift reunion with the 21-year-old playmaker, who flourished under the Spaniard.
Alonso was sacked from Santiago Bernabéu after a brief stint but has not been out of work for long, with Chelsea bringing him this summer, and he has reportedly identified Guler as his priority target.
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Shaking off the injury struggles of his early Madrid career, the dynamic playmaker enjoyed a productive campaign, racking up a brilliant four goals and 10 assists in 34 appearances across all competitions under Alonso.
In context, after Alonso’s departure, he only added two more goals and four assists to his goal contribution tally, finishing the season with six goals and 14 assists in 51 appearances.
Period
Appearances
Goals
Assists
Goal Contributions
G/A per Game
Under Alonso
34
4
10
14
0.41
Without Alonso
17
2
4
6
0.35
Total (Season)
51
6
14
20
0.39
Operating flawlessly as an inverted right winger and central advanced playmaker, Guler’s high-volume chance creation transformed him into one of the most dangerous young players in Europe, making Chelsea’s massive valuation a necessary price to pay.
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