London Evening Standard has reported that Chelsea are looking to reward Victor Moses with a contract renewal and will open talks in upcoming days. Even the pickiest pundit out there would agree that he more than deserves it after impressing week in week out this term.
The Nigerian was rated as one of the brightest prospects during his days at Wigan Athletic and he joined the west London club in 2012 for a fee of £9 million. He failed to reap up the expected reputation at his new club and thereafter was involved with a number of loan spells which rather derailed his stock. Thus when he returned to his parent club, the fans weren’t much excited, eyeing him as a backup winger. Even Moses himself could have felt the same way.
Similar to Moses’ Chelsea career, things did not go according to plan this season for new boss Antonio Conte as the Blues were stumbling in the opening matches, shuffling between defensive uncertainty and key players failing to up their tempo when needed which resulted in spirit-sapping defeats at the hands of Liverpool and Arsenal. It was rather looking like fighting for the top four would be the tale of their campaign until the former Juventus coach introduced a 3-4-3 formation. Since then, the Blues have buried the initial odds and currently lead the Premier League table after 13 rounds and Moses has been a pivotal part of the progress.
Being deployed as a wingback, the 25-year-old has already found the back of the net thrice which include previous weekend’s winner against Tottenham Hotspur. His burst of pace along the right flank and constant eye for goal has promptly knotted with the manager’s preferred plan and he has been named the man-of-the-match twice already. On the other, he holds immense experience considering his age which has played a huge part in his decision-making.
Besides Chelsea, many European clubs are tempted to employ wingbacks to further support their attacking intensity yet only a handful of players have succeeded in such roles. Case in point would be Barcelona, who haven’t found a reliable replacement for Dani Alves. Conte is well aware that interests could flock in sooner or later and many clubs are willing to pay through the nose just to snatch any individuals who fit the fold. Moses penned a four-year deal last year worth £45,000 a week and the new contract will surely see a significant rise.
Next Saturday’s early kick-off against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium could be the toughest and trickiest fixture so far. Despite being an attack-minded player, he will need to keep his temptation in check as the Citizens have the ability to pounce and punish at any given opportunity. However, Chelsea and Moses will be looking to extend their splendid form, knowing that dropping points would cost them the no.1 spot.