Chelsea lose FORTUNE after January transfer disaster

Carlo Garganese

Updated: 2 Mar 2025 08:41 GMT
4 min read

Chelsea look set to miss out on a big sale this summer as Milan are unlikely to sign Joao Felix permanently.

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Gazzetta dello Sport reports that it is almost certain that Felix will return to Chelsea at the end of the season when his loan expires.

The former wonderkid was aiming to kickstart his career at Milan after failed spells at Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Chelsea but after a bright debut his loan move has since been a disaster.

Felix completed a Deadline Day loan transfer to Milan on February 3, with no option to buy.

The 25-year-old made a bright start at San Siro by scoring a delightful dink on his debut in the Coppa Italia win over Roma.

There was immediate excitement in Milan at the prospect of Felix finally fulfilling his potential in Italy.

He has since started six matches in a row without scoring or assisting and he has been widely panned in the media and by supporters for his performances.

Last week, Milan fell to a shock elimination in the Champions League playoffs at the hands of a decimated Feyenoord team missing 10 players through injury.

Meanwhile, Milan are struggling to qualify for next season's Champions League as they are eight points off the top four.

Felix had hoped to stay at Milan permanently, while Chelsea were hoping for a big sale to pay back the €52 million they invested in him from Atletico Madrid last summer.

Chelsea are now going to miss out on a lot of money given Felix's struggles at Milan.

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Why Chelsea offloaded Felix

Chelsea decided to offload Felix in January after a disappointing season at Stamford Bridge.

The 25-year-old joined Chelsea from Atletico Madrid for a whopping €52 million in August, with the Blues only agreeing a deal in order to ensure Conor Gallagher moved in the opposite direction.

However, Felix mustered three Premier League starts, amid competition from Cole Palmer and Christopher Nkunku.

As a result both player and club decided that a move away in January would be the best solution.

The Rossoneri were in the market for a left-sided attacker who can also play in a front two, and moved for Felix after a transfer for their first target Marcus Rashford fell through.

© IMAGO - Joao Felix scored on his Milan debut

Joao Felix career

Felix burst onto the scene as a teenager with Benfica and was considered as one of the most exciting youngsters in world football.

This led to Atletico Madrid splashing out €126 million for Felix in 2019, which made him the fourth most expensive player of all time.

However, Felix struggled badly at Atletico to live up to his price tag. He didn’t benefit from Diego Simeone’s defensive style of play, and slowly fell out of favour. He managed just 34 goals in 131 games for the club.

He was loaned out to Chelsea and Barcelona in successive seasons, where he struggled to impress.

Despite this, Chelsea still decided to bring him back permanently last summer.

Once again, though, Felix failed to make the grade and managed one goal in 20 Premier League appearances.

He has won a Portuguese Primeira Liga, Spanish La Liga and a UEFA Nations League during his career.

He has been capped 45 times by Portugal, scoring nine goals.