Marcelo Brozovic, Frenkie de Jong and Victorien Angban among recommended replacements, according to Football Whispers
Thursday 17 January 2019 07:52, UK
Chelsea have reportedly tabled an offer for Zenit St Petersburg's Leandro Paredes to replace Cesc Fabregas - but which other players would be an ideal fit?
The Spaniard signed for Theirry Henry's Monaco last week after nearly five years at Stamford Bridge, with Blues boss Maurizio Sarri eager to replace the playmaker in this January transfer window.
Reports suggest the club have submitted a bid for Argentine midfielder Paredes, while Cagliari youngster Nicolo Barella has also been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge.
The graphic below shows how Barella and Parades have performed in Serie A and the Russian Premier League, respectively - compared with Fabregas' stats over the last three campaigns.
The data suggests Parades would be the more suitable replacement, but we sourced three alternative targets using Football Whispers' personal data tool...
Name: Marcelo Brozovic
Club: Inter Milan
Age: 26
Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic is the most suitable replacement, according to the stats.
The 26-year-old starred for Croatia in their World Cup final defeat to France in Russia and has been linked with numerous powerhouse clubs during his three-year stint in Italy.
Brozovic has surpassed Fabregas' stats for dribbles, shots and goals, while recording very similar numbers across numerous passing and attacking metrics.
Name: Frenkie de Jong
Club: Ajax
Age: 21
Ajax youngster Frenkie de Jong has reportedly attracted interest from Manchester City, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain since graduating from the club's prestigious youth academy in 2016/17.
The 21-year-old has made more passes per game in the Eredivisie than Fabregas' average at Chelsea and comes close across a raft of stats - surpassing the Spaniard for dribbles, but falling short for creating chances.
Name: Victorien Angban
Club: Chelsea (on loan at Metz)
Age: 22
Sarri could promote one of his 41 loanees to replace Fabregas instead of raiding the market, with Football Whispers' data identifying 22-year-old Victorien Angban as having an almost identical playing style.
Like Fabreags, the Ivory Coast international currently plies his trade in France, with Ligue 2 side Metz, but has never played a top-flight game for the Blues - despite being on their books for seven years.
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