Chelsea set to join Manchester United in Joao Felix race

According to Spanish news outlet, Marca as quoted by Football. London, Manchester United have been handed a blow in their pursuit of signing Atletico Madrid star Joao Felix with Chelsea also set to join the race.

Chelsea are not the only club other than Man United who are interested in the Portuguese forward, with Bayern Munich and PSG also very keen on considering the out-of-favour Atletico man. Felix has not really been having a great time in Madrid.

Felix joined Atletico Madrid from Benfica in 2019 as a prodigiously talented teenager and his time in the Spanish capital has been mixed at best. It just feels like Diego Simeone’s style of play doesn’t suit Felix and that he needs to be in a team that plays much more with the ball.

After starting a string of games at the beginning of the season, Felix fell out with the Argentinian manager and has since then been consigned to the bench with the odd appearance here and there for the talented forward.

At his best, Felix is simply sensational and has a bag of tricks under his belt. However, the former Benfica man needs a little bit more trust from his manager and a team that suits his style of play to really show what he is capable of.

Felix has a contract with Atletico Madrid until 2026 (Transfermarkt) but it seems extremely unlikely that he will remain at the club for so long. The Portuguese forward deserves to play for a better club and he has his options.

The Portuguese replacement?

Manchester United just saw one Portuguese forward leave their ranks after a mutual agreement on the termination of his contract and the Red Devils could actually go about replacing Cristiano Ronaldo with his counterpart.

The Red Devils might want to sign a forward to fill the void left by Ronaldo. Erik ten Hag does have Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford but a signing like Felix could immediately make Man United a much better team.

At 23, Felix has his entire career ahead of him. However, he is no longer just a talented youngster and is at the age where he needs to start living up to the hype. It does look like a move away from Atletico will do him the world of good.

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If Man United want Felix, he will definitely not come cheap. However, the Portuguese forward has the potential to succeed and it will not be a bad decision to invest in him, for the present and the future. It remains to be seen how this one goes.