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The 31-year-old center half has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge after falling down the pecking order at the Allianz Arena this campaign.
Jerome Boateng would be a perfect signing for Chelsea if the German center-half decides to leave Bayern Munich in search of more first-team football.
The 31-year-old already has a taste of what it likes to be playing in the Premier League from the one-season he spent at Manchester City at the start of the last decade.
Manager Roberto Mancini tried to play the £10.4m signing from Hamburg at right-back, but that didn’t go according to plan as the German departed for Bayern for £11m the following summer. That move turned out to be brilliant for Boateng as he went on to establish himself as one of the world’s best defenders.
Provided Chelsea can convince the 31-year-old to leave the comfort of a title-winning Bayern side, they’d be getting a player hugely different from the one that left English football with his tail between his legs a decade ago.
During his time in Germany, Boateng has developed composure on the ball, with his ability to dissect the opposition’s midfield with a slicing pass needing no introduction.
He has been an integral part of the Bayern side which has won 15 trophies during his nine-year stay at the club, including several Bundesliga titles and one Champions League trophy.
The defender’s ability to play the ball out from the back further makes him an ideal player for the type of play Frank Lampard wants his Blues’ side to play.
One of the criticisms leveled at the current crop of Chelsea defenders is that they aren’t able to see the game through when the other side takes the pressure to them.
There is some truth to the criticism as no other team apart from the relegation-threatened Aston Villa has conceded more goals in the last 10 minutes of their games than Chelsea this season. The Blues have shipped in an unbelievable 11 goals in the 10 minutes before the final whistle.
One of the reasons why the Blues are more prone to taking their eye off the game in the dying stages of the game is the relative inexperience of their back four. The club no longer has figures like John Terry or Branislav Ivanovic in their ranks who knew how to take the sting out of the game in the final minutes.
Boateng, on the contrary, is a master at game management and could teach a thing or two about the same to the Chelsea players after his potential arrival at the club. The likes of Fikoyo Tomori (22), Andres Christensen (23), and Kurt Zouma (25) would all benefit from the German playing alongside them.
Therefore, if Lampard wants his side to banish the also-ran status which they have rightly earned with their rollercoaster performances this season, he could certainly take help from the defensive prowess and the wealth of experience that Boateng has at his disposal.
Akte FC Bayern. The Bayern Munich Files. The rise of the average. From local hero to world-class.
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