Interview: Saul Niguez has opened up about his time at Chelsea after returning to Atletico Madrid
Speaking to Atletico Madrid’s official website, Saul Niguez has opened up about his time at Chelsea. The Spaniard joined the London outfit on a season-long loan deal from Atletico Madrid last season.
It is safe to say that Saul’s time at Stamford Bridge did not go as expected for the player. The midfielder struggled to adapt to the Premier League as he managed to make just 10 league appearances for the Blues. It became very clear during the course of the season that Chelsea had no plans to activate the £35million option to buy.
Now Saul has opened up about his time in London, speaking to Atletico’s official website before he joins Diego Simeone and the squad for pre-season.
“Despite the fact that I didn’t have the desired minutes, I think it was a good experience for me to go out at a time when I wasn’t feeling well mentally. I can only be grateful to all the people at Chelsea for their trust and to my teammates for making the year very bearable and helping me, and to Atleti for having made it easier
SAUL TO ATLETICO MADRID’S OFFICIAL WEBSITE
The Spaniard had a turbulent time, having been substituted off within 45 minutes of his debut against Aston Villa. He experienced the same fate three months later when he was taken off against Watford. In all his time, he managed to play 90 minutes for only three games in the league.
But that is all in the past now. Some section of the fans must have already forgotten about the Spaniard being part of the team last season. The focus has now been shifted to Thomas Tuchel, who is currently in the US with the squad for pre-season. The German tactician is yet to make a signing this summer and that caused some frustration to the Blue’s loyalists.
However, it is claimed that a deal for Raheem Sterling has been finalised with Manchester City. While there are also reports that Chelsea are in the race to sign Nathan Ake and Matthijs de Ligt. However, there is no official confirmation regarding any.
As for Saul, it is smart on our part not to activate the clause in his deal. He didn’t have a very good time here and it’s best both parties moved on from that.
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We could have used a player like him had he performed, because he has experience of playing in Spain’s top flight and is of a decent age profile as well. But nevertheless, it’s better the Blues look for players that suit their style rather than going only for the big names.