FanPost

Transfer 2014-15: From a War Zone to West London - Ukrainian and Ukraine based stars

Please note: I do not want to get into the politics of the current series of events in the Ukraine. It is a complex situation and while I do have a limited understanding of what is going on, I am not an expert on situation, and I am only interested in a discussion of the footballers whom Chelsea could sign from the Ukraine. I understand that the two issues - football and politics/war can never be completely divorced, I ask that any discussion on this FanPost be kept to the football. Having said all that, I wish the best for the people of the Ukraine, whatever the best may be.

I chose to write on Ukrainian and Ukraine based players today (as opposed to looking at players from the Netherlands/Belgium as I had planned) due to some reporting that Arsenal and Fiorentina are looking at signing two of Shaktar Brazilian stars - Douglas Costa and Fernando Lucas Martins respectively (and there's also speculation that Newcastle United are interested in taking Shaktar's Argentinian striker Facundo Ferreyra on loan for the season).

I have long been a fan of the Hirnyky (Shaktar's local nickname - the miners), they sign up the best talent in the country and then try to do the same from Brazil and they have been successful at home and in Europe because of it. Look at the Brazilians first, the stars of the Shaktar senior team; my personal favourite Alex Texieira, Douglas Costa, Luiz Adriano, Bernard, Fernando Lucas Martins, Taison, Wellington Nem and Fred. All of whom are fine players particularly Alex Texieira, Bernard and Fernando Lucas (but Wellington Nem, Taison, Douglas Costa, Fred and Luiz Adriano are all potential Chelsea quality too [the only one I wouldn’t chase are Ilsinho, Marlos, Ismaily and Dentinho]).

OK, on Alex Teixeira I'm biased, I've been a fan since the 2009 U20 World Cup, when we did apparently look at signing him (I struggled to find a reference other than this one - yes it's from News of the World and I know that means it doesn't really bear considering, but considering I'm searching for a 5 year old piece of transfer speculation it'll have to do). One of Shakhtar's older generation of Brazilians still at the club, the 24 year old Teixeira has over the past 12 months made good on the early promise he showed when first breaking through at Vasco (http://www.just-football.com/2013/07/under-20-world-cup-class-of-2009-reviewed/ here he’s noted as one of the few success stories of the big talents at the 2009 U20 World Cup, Giuliano is another in the ‘success’ category). Teixeira would be costly but has performed strongly in the Champions League over the past two years and is one of the most versatile midfielders around, playing in the No. 10 role, wide positions and central midfield on a regular basis. With searing pace off the mark and strong technique, Teixeira adds impetus to attacks with his surging runs from midfield and has improved greatly on the timing of his bursts into the box over the past two seasons. He destroyed Man Utd last season in the Champions League and Moyes seriously considered moving him to Man Utd then, he failed to sign Teixeira, as with Pogba, we should make good on Man Utd’s mistake, he’s better than Willian and would replace him in the team (eventually first I’d offload Mohammed Salah).

Douglas Costa was once referred to by Sir Alex Ferguson as ‘probably the best young player in South America’ and he has frequently been compared with Ronaldinho, though the comparisons with the latter were unavoidable and inevitable as Costa was making his way at Gremio prior to signing for Shaktar, that had launched Ronaldinho’s illustrious career. He would be a red devil now but for Gremio’s refusal to approve a trial at Man Utd and eventually Ferguson decided to look elsewhere. Arsenal are now interested in signingnhim and whilst I don't think he would walk into the Chelsea squad, remember Willian was at Shaktar before Anzhi and he wasn’t necessarily a starter ahead of Douglas Costa (and trolling Arsenal for Douglas Costa ala our trolling of Spurs for Willian would be great).

Wellington Nem, voted the best newcomer of the 2011 Campeonato Brasileiro season, a tricky player on the ball, known as the ‘Messi de Xerém’. He’d be good to send to Vitesse for a season and see how he goes, if he lives up to his Brazilian nickname, he’d be worth bringing to Chelsea, if he doesn’t we could still probably recoup his transfer fee sending him back to Brazil where he has the great reputation.

Bernard is the only one of Shaktar’s magnificent seven to be turning out for Brazil at the World Cup (ex-Shaktar lads Fernandinho and Willian excluded of course). A diminutive attacker with barrel loads of skill has previously been linked to Chelsea (along with Alex Texieira, Douglas Costa and Taison), the key problem for Chelsea on Bernard is the Juan Mata factor, and a diminutive playmaker who doesn’t really defend much is not really an option in a Jose Mourinho Chelsea. However, sign him as an impact player off the bench and I can see lots of value (what I can’t see is who he replaces outside of Mohammed Salah (whose position I’ve already forfeit for Julian Draxler, Florian Thauvin, Alex Teixeira…etc).

Fred is yet another impressive Brazilian attacking midfielder in the Shaktar set up, who adds the versatility of being able to play as a central or defensive midfielder as well. Blessed with creativity and an eye for goal, Fred has all the attributes required for a modern day offensive midfielder. Not my first choice from Shaktar, but give him a few years to develop there and he’ll be another one to watch.

Taison was pretty close to a Chelsea move before moving to Shaktar, we don’t need this primarily left winger, but to be fair that’s never stopped us signing a player before and compared to some we’ve signed on that score in the past, he wouldn’t be the worst. Luiz Adriano, 25 goals in the Ukrainian Premier League last season, 6ft tall, 27 years old but for some reason he’s not a striker we’ve been linked to yet. He’s never going to be great and will probably not play for the national team much if ever (though that could change if he was to get a run here), but he scores goals and we need that. Fernando Lucas Martins is an impressive box-to-box midfielder who scored a few caps for the Selecao prior to his move to the Ukraine, Fiorentina will have a great signing on their hands if they can land him.

Shaktar also has an impressive youth academy which provide a large portion of the Ukraine's youth national teams players. Players like; midfielders Viktor Kovalenko, Vyacheslav Tankovsky, Vladlen Yurchenko, Volodymyr Grachev, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Oleksandr Pikholyonok and Beka Vachiberadze, or strikers Andriy Boryachuk, Oleksandr Zubkov, Artur Miranyan, Denys Bezborodko or Andriy Kapelyan have all represented Ukraine at a variety of youth levels. The out and out star of the Shaktar academy is left wing back Eduard Sobol. Sobol is the same age as Luke Shaw and though not quite at Shaw’s level yet, he is showing promise and his skills could be polished at the Chelsea finishing school of Cobham, Vitesse/the Championship.

Apart from the Hirnyky boys, there are several other players we should be watching closely from Ukraine. Dynamo Kyiv has several players worth looking at; youth defender Bogdan Mykhaylychenko, youth striker Rostyslav Taranukha, powerful winger and target of a lot of recent transfer speculation (including speculation about a potential move to Chelsea) Andriy Yarmolenko and Austrian star centre back Aleksandar Dragović.

The main man to consider here is Andriy Yarmolenko. Used primarily as a winger, Yarmolenko is a hugely versatile player who can also be deployed as a striker, a support striker or a trequartista if necessary. He’s a bog lad with lots of talent, the heir to Andriy Shevchenko for Ukraine and possibly Mourinho’s chance to make good the Shevchenko signing, eight years hence. Tall, strong, a great runner and a goal scorer, he has already won 39 senior caps for Ukraine, in which he has a healthy record of 15 goals and the same 39 games this season for Dynamo Kyiv with 21 goals and 8 assists. The new ‘Eastern Wind’ has but one real weakness for us, Yarmolenko has never played for a club outside of his native Ukraine in his career to date. Andriy Yarmolenko would be a good signing, particularly at the really quite low fee being bandied about at the moment (and I have a hunch that he’s a player who would have the potential to shine under Mourinho, he’s got more than a little Arjen Robben about him [albeit a less talented but also bigger, tougher, younger Arjen Robben]).

Again I've mentioned a bucket load of players, if I were to choose but a few it would be Eduard Sobol, Fernando Lucas and Alex Teixeira (but there are plenty of attackers to choose from, Yarmolenko for example could be a good forward to go with Costa and Drogba should Lukaku be sold).

This FanPost was contributed by a member of the community and was not subject to any sort of approval process. It does not necessarily reflect the opinions held by the editors of this site.

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