Chelsea Legend Tells Club To Buy Ex-Rival Striker | OneFootball

Chelsea Urged to Sign Darwin as Desailly Makes Bergkamp Comparison

Chelsea have been encouraged to consider a move for Darwin, with a familiar voice from Stamford Bridge insisting the forward could flourish in the right surroundings. Marcel Desailly believes the former Liverpool striker has the qualities to thrive in the Premier League once again, drawing a pointed comparison with Dennis Bergkamp’s early struggles before his transformation at Arsenal.

Darwin’s journey has rarely been straightforward. A Premier League title winner with Liverpool in 2024-25, he later moved to Al Hilal after scoring 40 goals in 143 appearances for the Reds. For all the silverware and flashes of brilliance, consistency often eluded him. Now, talk of a return to European football has placed Chelsea firmly in the conversation.

Darwin’s Liverpool Record and Fresh Start

At Liverpool, Darwin’s raw numbers told part of the story. The £64 million arrival from Benfica offered pace, unpredictability and an instinct for space. Yet confidence proved fragile. When chances were missed, scrutiny intensified. When rhythm deserted him, the mood shifted.

Desailly believes that narrative masked the underlying talent. He told FootItalia: “I would actually recommend Nunez for Chelsea. He’s a very good player, a smart player – he just needs the right environment to perform. When Liverpool identified his potential they knew what they had statistically.

Photo: IMAGO

“But when you start on a bad note, the confidence disappears and the consideration from those around you follows. It’s like Dennis Bergkamp going to Inter Milan – things went completely wrong. Or Roberto Carlos in his early days, shooting the ball into the stands. The confidence wasn’t there. That’s what happened to Nunez at Liverpool. But the quality is still there. He’s at Al-Hilal now and has scored around six goals in 16 matches – not bad at all.”

For Chelsea, the attraction would lie in harnessing that untapped consistency, in turning moments into momentum.

Role of Cole Palmer in Chelsea Attack

A reunion with the Premier League could also mean service from creative players capable of acting on instinct. Desailly emphasised the importance of timing and trust.

“I’m pleased to see him wanting to come back to European football – it shows money isn’t everything. A club like Chelsea, or the new Manchester United, would be best for him. He needs to be surrounded by established, confident players who know they’re going to play every weekend and who will give him the ball on the first intention. That’s the small detail – when he makes a run, he needs to get the ball immediately. Otherwise he loses confidence quickly.

“We had something similar with Frank Lampard – magnificent player, but sometimes he would look for another option instead of playing the ball first-time to the striker. You could see the strikers losing their rhythm. Nunez needs that immediate ball. But he’s a quality player and he’s still young enough.”

Cole Palmer could be central to that dynamic, though his own future has prompted debate. Desailly added: “Chelsea will qualify for the Champions League. But even if not – fans are educated differently now. It’s about the club, not any one player. Chelsea have the potential to perform without Palmer. He has a long contract, so if he were to leave, significant money would come in that you could reinvest in players who fit the manager’s philosophy.

“I’m sure he’s giving his best to get Chelsea into the top four. But if his heart is telling him to go – well, I had to choose between Monaco and Marseille once, and I followed my heart. I went to Marseille because I was a fan. Players come and go in modern football, but the club is the priority in the hearts of supporters.”

For Chelsea, the message is clear. Darwin remains a striker of promise. In the right environment, confidence restored, his story could yet take on a different hue.