Glen Johnson has told Chelsea it was a ‘mistake’ to buy one of their key summer signings.
Chelsea’s astonishing spending continued last summer, with the Blues splashing out almost £300m on several new recruits.
Joao Pedro was Chelsea’s most expensive signing at £60m but a further £200m was spent on key additions Jamie Gittens, Alejandro Garnacho, Estevao Willian, Jorrel Hato and Liam Delap.
While the signing of Estevao already looks like a smart piece of business, a number of Chelsea’s other new additions have endured underwhelming starts to life at Stamford Bridge.
Delap has only scored once in the Premier League, for example, while Hato has started just two of Chelsea’s league games.
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An even bigger ‘disappointment’, according to ex-Chelsea defender Johnson, has been the form of Garnacho following his £40m move from Manchester United.
Chelsea were widely praised for their deal for Garnacho, a 21-year-old Argentina international who was once one of the most highly-rated players at Old Trafford.
But Garnacho is yet to show his full potential in west London, scoring just one goal in the Premier League and three more against inferior opposition in cup competitions.
Johnson believes Garnacho is ‘talented’ and can ’cause havoc on his day’ but says it was a ‘mistake’ for Chelsea to sign him given the attacking options they already had at the club.
‘I think Alejandro Garnacho has been disappointing since he signed for Chelsea,’ Johnson, who won the league title at Stamford Bridge under Jose Mourinho, told Metro on behalf of WDW Bingo.
‘It was a mistake to sign him, and not because of his ability, as I think he is talented, but Chelsea have an abundance of great wingers.
‘He can cause havoc on his day, for sure, but one goal so far this season just isn’t enough for the money they spent on him.’
Johnson also questioned whether Pedro was consistent enough to be Chelsea’s long-term first-choice striker.
The £60m summer signing has scored seven goals in all competitions so far this season after bagging 30 in 70 games for his former club Brighton.
‘On his day, I think Joao Pedro can be the striker that Chelsea requires,’ Johnson added. ‘But I’m just not sure his day comes often enough.
‘If you want to be the number nine for a club like Chelsea, you have to perform week in week out, and Pedro doesn’t seem capable of this at the moment.
‘I think he is a fantastic player, but we need to see consistency in his form.
‘Chelsea are looking to win the league, that is their target, and if Pedro wants to be the striker who leads them there, he will need to demonstrate his ability much more often.’
Chelsea won the Conference League last season and lifted the Club World Cup trophy over the summer, beating Champions League holders PSG in the final.
But another summer of heavy investment has not led to more success for the bosses at Stamford Bridge, who sacked Enzo Maresca on New Year’s Day following a frustrating first-half to the season.
Former Strasbourg and Hull City manager Liam Rosenior has been tasked to get Chelsea, currently down in eighth, back into the Champions League spots.
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