Well this is just weird.
A Sky Sports report says that Chelsea and Barcelona could swap Willian and Malcom, mere months after the Blues reportedly rebuffed Barca bids for the elder Brazilian.
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Chelsea turned down a $70 million bid for Willian in the summer, and Barcelona opted for Bordeaux winger Malcom to the tune of $47m.
The 21-year-old right wing has only played 363 minutes for Barca, however, scoring only two goals while suffering a pair of short-term injuries.
Willian, 30, is probably not a big part of Maurizio Sarri’s plans, although he’s been used plenty by the Italian. Willian has four goals and six assists in 31 matches this season, but has one year left on his contract after this season.
It seems a leap unless Chelsea is bargaining on using the Europa League to reach the Champions League next season. The Blues splashed major cash on Christian Pulisic for a summer arrival, and it is risky to expect Malcom to return to his exceptional Ligue 1 ways via a third league in less than a year.
Color us extremely skeptical. Also, Willian? Extremely good.