Neymar, Ronaldinho & eight players who almost joined Chelsea
Cameron Smith
- Updated: 16 Nov 2021 11:46 CST
- 6 min read
Since Roman Abramovich's takeover of Chelsea, the Blues have become a serious force in world football - both on the pitch, and financially.
With the weight of their owner's cash, the club have managed to elevate themselves from top four challengers, to one of the best teams in Europe. The signings made during that time have no doubt helped massively, with the likes of Didier Drogba and Petr Cech two examples of extremely successful transfers.
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While the club are one of the richest in the world, there have been some occasions where they've been unable to seal a transfer due to some external factors.
Here at FootballTransfers, we've compiled a list of eight players who almost signed for Chelsea.
Neymar
We start with Paris Saint-Germain superstar, and the current world record transfer, Neymar Jr.
The Brazilian winger left his homeland for Barcelona in 2013, but a move to Chelsea beforehand was also on the cards.
Back in 2010, the Blues were ahead of the curve when it came to the Santos youngster, and were keen on arranging a deal.
Reports from The Telegraph suggest Chelsea were close to signing Neymar for between £20-25 million, but a move never materialised.
Speaking to AS in 2020, Neymar's former agent, Wagner Ribeiro, revealed that he rejected a move to Chelsea in favour of staying in Brazil. Ribeiro said this: "There were many calls for him. I received an official offer from Chelsea the day Neymar debuted with the Brazilian team in 2010.
"They made an offer, we studied it, but in the end we didn’t decide anything. On that occasion, we transferred it to Neymar’s father and the player himself."
Neymar ended up staying at Santos for a little while longer before Barcelona eventually came calling. A 'what if' story for Chelsea.
Ronaldinho
Another Brazilian magician that Chelsea missed out on, Ronaldinho was a Barcelona player in 2007 when the Blues started sniffing around.
They viewed the superstar as the missing piece of the puzzle that had lost the title to Manchester United the previous season.
Jose Mourinho was keen on a move, and Abramovich desperately wanted a deal to be agreed. The Russian reportedly even met up with Ronaldinho's agent, but Barcelona weren't interested in letting one of their prized assets go.
A world record fee would've been needed to sign the Brazilian, as his release clause was £85m, but Abramovich was willing to pay it. However, the player told El Mundo: "Not Chelsea or Milan. I want to stay at Barcelona, that is my wish," at the time, and nothing changed.
He ended up leaving Barcelona for AC Milan the following year.
Steven Gerrard
Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard couldn't work for England, but they were on the verge of being club teammates in 2005. Simply put, Mourinho wanted Gerrard, and Gerrard wanted to join Chelsea; the move seemed destined to be finalised.
The Liverpool captain was fresh from winning the 2005 Champions League, but a new challenge was appealing, and joining the reigning Premier League champions certainly attracted Gerrard.
He handed in a transfer request to Liverpool, saying in a statement: "This has been the hardest decision I have ever had to make.
“I fully intended to sign a new contract after the Champions League final, but the events of the past five to six weeks have changed all that.”
However, his father eventually persuaded him to stay at his boyhood club, and Gerrard did a U-turn on Chelsea. He failed to ever win a Premier League title, however, while Chelsea continued their dominance of English football.
Chelsea ended up signing Michael Essien instead - not a bad alternative.
Sergio Aguero
Sergio Aguero is a Premier League legend, but he could've been bagging the goals in a different shade of blue if things had gone slightly differently.
In 2009, Aguero had helped Atletico Madrid to triumph in the Europa League, beating Fulham in the final, and his form had caught the attention of Europe's biggest clubs, not least Chelsea.
The Blues then set about pursuing the Argentine, and it seemed a move could be on the cards. A fee was even agreed between the clubs, but the deal it hit a snagging point in regards to Aguero's wage demands. The player wanted more than Carlo Ancelotti's side were willing to offer, and talks stalled.
They eventually broke down entirely, and Aguero ended up joining Manchester City two years later, and the rest is history.
Robinho
The first big money signing of the Sheikh Mansour era at Man City may have been a different one entirely if Chelsea had managed to seal the deal for Robinho.
Even the player thought he was joining Chelsea when he arrived in England, and images of his Blues shirt were even released on the club's website.
Chelsea's chief executive at the time, Peter Kenyon, travelled to Madrid to agree a deal, but the Blues' £26m offer was turned down as Los Blancos were holding out for £32m.
Man City then swooped, and the Brazilian ended up as the first big-name addition of Mansour's time at the club.
Dani Alves
Another move for a Brazilian that was so close to completion was Chelsea's pursuit of Dani Alves.
Plying his trade at Sevilla at the time, Alves was effectively announced as a Chelsea player in August 2007, with news outlets revealing that terms and a fee had been agreed, and he was heading for Stamford Bridge in a £21.5m deal.
The full-back wanted to leave Sevilla, and the club granted his wish, but at the last minute, the proposed move to Chelsea fell through, and Alves went on to join Barcelona instead.
Even Alves thought he'd joined Chelsea, but Barcelona's late interest prevented it from happening.
David Silva
David Silva was a huge admirer of Chelsea during his Valencia days, and in 2010, he so-nearly joined the club.
Speaking to The Daily Star, Silva said this of the West London club: "Chelsea have established themselves as one of the best clubs in Europe over the last five years.
"They might not have the history of Real Madrid or Milan but they are creating their own history now. There is no reason why in the future Chelsea can't be as decorated as Real Madrid.
"Chelsea probably have, along with Barcelona, the best squad in football and if any player joins Chelsea he knows he is going to win things. In players like John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba they have players who would get into any team in the world and it would be a pleasure to play with them.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Chelsea would be a great club to play for – and a club where I could fulfil my ambition of league titles and the European Cup. The Premier League is still the place to be, no other league in the world has six or seven Champions League quality teams."
However, Chelsea decided to go for Yossi Benayoun instead, and Silva joined Man City instead, winning 14 trophies at The Etihad.
Andrea Pirlo
Just like Maurizio Sarri with Jorginho, Carlo Ancelotti was desperate to be reunited with his former AC Milan player Andrea Pirlo at Chelsea.
Chelsea reportedly submitted a bid for Pirlo that was rejected by the club, and the player is said to have been comtemplating handing in a transfer request to finalise the move.
In 2014 Pirlo even admitted that he was close to joining the Blues back in 2009, but a deal never materialised.
