Chelsea have taken a “huge” step in their attempts to secure a new sporting director to fill the void left by Marina Granovskaia, who departed in the summer along with the old regime at Stamford Bridge.
What’s the word?
According to the ever-reliable Fabrizio Romano, the Blues are closing in on an agreement with Southampton which would see their head of recruitment Joe Shields join up as the new director of recruitment with the west London club.
The Italian claimed that it is a big statement from the Chelsea owners, as the talent spotter is highly-rated after his work with both Southampton and Manchester City.
Taking to Twitter to share the latest on this off-field development in SW6, Romano said: “Chelsea are closing in on the agreement with Southampton to appoint Joe Shields as new Director of Recruitment.
“Huge statement by club owners as Shields is highly rated after his top work with Southampton and Man City, discovering many talents.”
An impressive operator
As Romano states, this is representative of a huge statement from Chelsea, who have so far benefitted to no end under the new regime led by co-owner Todd Boehly.
Shields is very well respected in the Premier League for his work with both Manchester City and Southampton, with his examples at St Mary’s demonstrative of his nous in the global transfer market.
With the south coast club’s chief scout expected to join up with Chelsea in the next few months, Blues fans can expect a lot from a man who led the Saints’ transfer charge over the summer. The likes of Romeo Lavia, Armel Bella-Kotchap, Juan Larios and Sam Edozie were all signed as high potential prospects who could go on to excel at St Mary’s.
As such, Shields has created the ultimate portfolio for a Champions League club like Chelsea to come in and offer him a significant role, both on a financial level and in terms of his reputation.
This is a huge prospective appointment which could see the Blues land some real gems in the market for years to come, if his previous work is any barometer.
