It's been another miserable season of football for Chelsea this year.
It's seen them lose the League Cup final in heartbreaking fashion, miss out on an FA Cup Final through poor finishing, and likely miss out on Champions League football due to their poor Premier League form.
Whichever way you look at it, Mauricio Pochettino's first season in charge of the Blues has been a rough one, although the incredible number of injuries he has had to deal with has undoubtedly made his job far more challenging than it should've been.
One of his senior players he has missed for much of the campaign is Ben Chilwell, and while he's worn the captain's armband at points this year, he could face some real competition for his spot next year, at least if recent reports are true.
Chelsea transfer news
According to a recent report from Dutch outlet 1908, Chelsea have held talks with Feyenoord's exciting young left-back Quilindschy Hartman, who was in attendance for the club's 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Arsenal last month.
The report reveals that the Pensioners have held an interest in the 22-year-old for some time now. While the publication believes the injury he sustained at the end of March has ruled out a move this summer, the fact that he was invited to watch the team take on Arsenal suggests that the Blues might still push on regardless to ensure that other teams do not get ahead of them, or at the very least go back in for him in January 2025.
There haven't been any reliable reports as to how much the Dutch international might cost Todd Boehly and Co, but Football Transfers value him at around €29.8m (£25m).
Interestingly, there have been plenty of reports in recent weeks suggesting that one of the Blues' other left-backs, Ian Maatsen, could be on his way out of the club in the summer, as Borussia Dortmund look to make his loan move permanent, per Fabrizio Romano.
The 22-year-old has taken to life at the Signal Iduna Park like a duck to water, scoring two goals and providing two assists in 19 appearances, and so if he is to leave West London in the summer, a move for Hartman becomes all the more important and means that the Dutchman's route to challenging Chilwell is all the more straightforward.
How Hartman compares to Chilwell
So, if Chelsea are to sign the promising full-back, be it in the summer or new year, how does he compare to the man he'll be competing with for a spot in the team?
Well, from a pure output perspective, there isn't much competition at all. The 22-year-old has provided seven assists in 38 appearances this year, meaning he is averaging a goal involvement every 5.4 games, while the Chelsea man has provided just one assist in 21 games.
When it comes to their underlying numbers, the comparison is just as one-sided. While the former Leicester City ace produces a higher non-penalty expected goal and assists figure, wins more aerial duels and produces more progressive carries, he comes out second best in the majority of relevant metrics and by quite a distance in some of them.
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.30
0.41
Assists
0.22
0.12
Progressive Passes
6.61
2.98
Progressive Carries
1.96
2.62
Passing Accuracy
80.6%
75.4%
Shot-Creating Actions
3.83
2.62
Goal-Creating Actions
0.43
0.24
Tackles
1.96
1.79
Interceptions
1.22
0.48
Miscontrols
0.57
2.50
Dispossessed
0.57
0.60
Ball Recoveries
5.61
3.93
Aerial Duels Won
1.30
1.43
For example, Feyenoord's "revelation," as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, produces more progressive passes, maintains better passing accuracy, makes more tackles, interceptions, and ball recoveries, is dispossessed less often, miscontrols the ball considerably less often, and produces more shot and goal-creating actions, all per 90.
Ultimately, while Chilwell is a talented player, his form when he has played this season has been lacklustre, and even though Hartman is currently injured, his underlying numbers are all the evidence Chelsea should need to go out and sign him, especially with Maatsen likely to leave in the summer.
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