Radamel Falcao looks less of a gamble for Chelsea the more you look at it Dominic Fifield Dominic Fifield

Chelsea were supposed to be scarred. Those costly Fernando Torres and Andriy Shevchenko episodes were meant to have warned them off forwards whose brilliance, once so blinding, had been dulled by injuries and brittle confidence. In that context, confirmation Radamel Falcao will be in the ranks at Stamford Bridge next season would instinctively feel like history repeating itself, an expensive mistake in the making, though the champions would dispute as much. For José Mourinho, the Colombian is a project within a project. A talent to revive.

The loan move for Falcao, which should be confirmed after a medical once his national team’s involvement in the Copa América concludes, can be considered only in the context of his toils last term at Manchester United. The striker’s arrival at Old Trafford had been hailed a coup. Sure, he had sustained that tear to the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in a French Cup tie against Monts d’or Azergues the previous January, cutting short his first campaign at Monaco after nine goals in 17 appearances, but his recovery had apparently been rapid. His surgeon, José Carlos Noronha, had publicly suggested Falcao might be fit to feature in the summer’s World Cup in Brazil, and José Pekerman had even included him in his provisional 30-man squad for the tournament.

That proved to be wishful thinking but he scored twice in three Ligue 1 games at the start of last term before United took on his £265,000-a-week salary, paid a £6m loan fee and were promised the option to make the deal permanent for £43.2m a year on. Those figures would not have felt that outlandish for a striker who had rampaged across Europe with Porto and Atlético Madrid – Chelsea still recall with a shudder his hat-trick in the Uefa Super Cup in 2012, and Mourinho his impact in the Copa del Rey final a year later at Real Madrid’s expense – and making him the most sought-after forward in the world. The romantic notion was that he would rediscover his zest and run riot in a United shirt.
Four goals in 29 games, a solitary shot on target in his last 12 Premier League appearances, and 71 minutes struggling to make any impact whatsoever with the club’s under-21s development side against Tottenham Hotspur in March tell their own story. His main contribution in the second string that night was to block two goal-bound shots. His attacking instincts in the six-yard box had been blunted.
The industry and clever movement may have remained, the mind was apparently willing – as was proved with that slick turn to win a penalty against Sunderland in February – but he was devoid of a burst of pace to liberate him properly in front of goal. Watching him struggle so pitifully to influence games was depressing, given the force of nature he had been previously. The star who had envisaged becoming a legend at United ended up diminished.
Yet this is the 29-year-old whom Chelsea, possibly after a fair deal of persuasion from the manager given the board is more comfortable these days purchasing younger potential, consider a risk worth taking. At this point the influence of Jorge Mendes, who represents both Falcao and Mourinho, should probably be acknowledged. There is a perception among other agents that Mendes alone could have smoothed this deal, which could be considered grudging recognition of the power he wields within the game, or frustration that the champions are taking on Falcao rather than one of the alternatives they are promoting. Chelsea, like United, Monaco and Atlético, deal with the Portuguese on a regular basis.
Yet Mourinho will not want to lose face on this deal. He will want his judgment to be proved correct. Most managers would probably back themselves to reinvigorate a player who had once been considered the most ferocious forward of his generation. The manager who claimed the Premier League for Chelsea last term will see a player still capable of covering huge distances over 90 minutes even last season, a striker whose quickest darts were more rapid than those of Robin van Persie, and whose eagerness to work in all areas of the pitch would fit into the more selfless demands of Chelsea’s approach.
The medical will confirm whether there are underlying physical issues with which the player is having to deal. The key to restoring Falcao will be Mourinho’s ability to heal the psychological wounds caused by the injury, the absence from the World Cup and his failure to thrive with United.
It is that anxiety that flares these days in the six-yard box. He had opportunities last season – more regular chances than Loïc Rémy or Didier Drogba did at Chelsea – but, more often than not, he snatched at them. There was confusion etched across his face in the aftermath, that of a player perplexed at how what used to come so naturally now felt so alien.
Maybe he lacked rhythm at Old Trafford in a team in transition. At Chelsea, a side whose evolution is more advanced and who better resemble the Atlético setup in which he had previously shone, he may be able to ease himself back in more gradually with Diego Costa still the attacking focal point of the side. The Colombian will play. Drogba, even in the twilight of his glittering career, featured 40 times last season and the calendar will be as crammed as ever in 2015-16. But joining the fray once Costa has left opposing centre-halves battered and bruised could also suit Falcao, offering opportunities against tiring defenders and teams who will frequently be playing catch-up.
The loanee will not assume he is an automatic selection on the basis of everything that happened at Old Trafford. But Mourinho likes his fringe players to be hungry; personnel with plenty to prove. To that end, the manager flung down a challenge with that interview last week on the Latin American station DirecTV Sports. “For a player of his level and quality, it’s a real shame people in England think Falcao is the player who was at Manchester United,” he said. The message was clear: go and prove you can still do it. It was arguably the same among the strikers he has worked with at Chelsea with Hernán Crespo and even Samuel Eto’o, players who wanted to justify their reputations and duly made an impact under his stewardship when others – Drogba and Torres respectively – had been considered first choice. Admittedly, it did not work with Shevchenko, though he was a player rather foisted on the management.

Costa’s presence – Thibaut Courtois is another ally from the Vicente Calderón – may be beneficial. The pair worked together at Atlético and, although their roles have now been reversed, they know each other’s games. If the Drogba and Costa partnership rarely felt comfortable, even if it was seldom required, Costa and Falcao may be a more natural combination: they scored 31 goals in tandem in Spain.
Chelsea may also hope that Falcao’s arrival will help Costa’s assimilation, the Spain international having conceded there have been issues over adjustment to life in England. His will be another welcome familiar face, particularly if Filipe Luís returns to the Spanish capital.
He would be an expensive foil, even at a revised wage package nearer £170,000 a week and a £4m loan fee, but Chelsea can afford it. There is an option but no obligation to make the move permanent for £35m next summer, and they can incorporate his arrival in their budgets to comply with financial fair play and still pursue up to three more senior signings this summer.
They are not bringing in a disruptive influence. Indeed, his United team-mates were surprised at how humble and amenable Falcao had been at Old Trafford, and he will fit in at Cobham. Coaxing him back to his best is a considerable undertaking, one Louis van Gaal could not pull off at United. But it is a challenge Mourinho will relish.

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