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Chelsea are on the verge of completing the signing of French centre-back Benoit Badiashile from AS Monaco for a fee of €38million (£33.6million).
The 21-year-old successfully underwent a medical in London on Monday and is set to sign a six-and-a-half year contract at Stamford Bridge.
While Badiashile is highly regarded in France, he may face competition for a place in the Chelsea first team with the likes of Thiago Silva, Kalidou Koulibaly, Wesley Fofana and Trevoh Chalobah also vying for a spot at centre-back.
France-based football correspondent for CBS Sports Golazo, Jonathan Johnson, believes that Chelsea should consider loaning Badiashile back to a Ligue 1 club for the remainder of the season before inserting him into the rotation at Stamford Bridge.
This would allow him to gain the consistency and regular game time needed to eliminate mistakes and aid his development. Johnson also noted that the pressure of expectation may be too high for Badiashile if he were to start immediately at Stamford Bridge, and another half season or even a full season in France would better aid his growth.
However, Johnson also stated that the signing has the potential to be a shrewd buy in the future, and Badiashile has been compared to former Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger due to his aggression off the ball and ability to run from defence into midfield with the ball at his feet.
