Chelsea's big-money summer buy Moises Caicedo has been told "to learn" by Claude Makelele as £115m man continues to struggle at Stamford Bridge.
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Caicedo signed for an exorbitant fee from Brighton Yet to find his feet in midfield Makelele urged the club to stand behind Caicedo Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?
The Ecuadorian has been under immense pressure to deliver since his British-record transfer from Brighton (£115 million ($146m) to Chelsea last summer. However, he has failed to emerge as one of the dependable figures in midfield and has instead grabbed headlines for the wrong reasons, more often than not.
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Former Scotland striker Ally McCoist had earlier labelled Caicedo the flop of the season so far and he was vindicated after the former Brighton man put in two stinkering performances against Wolves & Brentford. Although Makelele was not so harsh on him, the Chelsea legend believes that Caicedo has a thing or two to learn to be successful with the Blues.
WHAT MAKELELE SAID
Speaking to The Athletic, Makelele said: "He needs to learn. He’s an amazing player. If Chelsea don’t give him the platform with these details he will struggle and it will be difficult and he won’t play at a higher level than he was before in the Premier League (with Brighton). He needs to learn, to read — it’s very important for people to give him this message.
“It’s not about the physical quality, it’s about the smarts. Understanding about when to make an impact, when not to, learning about where your team-mates are, you have to use this position to read the game. You need to have leadership in this position. You don’t play for yourself, you play for everyone else to be OK in the team. Because the manager can’t do anything anymore, you have to guide the way to play and the way to win.”
GettyWHAT NEXT?
Caicedo has simply been not good enough and must improve. He is familiar with the English conditions and must prove his worth to the fans and the Chelsea board, sooner than later. It remains to be seen for how long Mauricio Pochettino continues to back him if he keeps on misfiring.