“Joao Felix has not yet understood one fundamental thing in modern football” - Luis Garcia offers opinion on Chelsea loanee after debut goal for Milan

Former Barcelona winger Luis Garcia recently outlined the one thing that Chelsea attacker Joao Felix is lacking in his career. Comparing him to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Garcia insisted that Felix's reliance on pure talent would not be enough in today's game.

He said (via ESPN):

“I believe that João Félix, at the moment, has not yet understood one fundamental thing in modern football: pure talent is no longer enough. Quality, technique and field skills are important qualities, but not enough to succeed at the highest level.

“Perhaps this discourse did not apply to phenomena like Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, who were simply in another category; but in today’s football, if you play for teams like Atlético, Barcelona, Chelsea, or now AC Milan, you have to give something more.”

Lauded as one of football's top prospects, Joao Felix earned a massive move early in his career from Benfica to Atletico Madrid. He joined the Spanish club for a reported transfer fee of €127 million in 2019. However, he was unable to shine under Diego Simeone while showing flashes of brilliance with loan spells at Chelsea and Barcelona.

He eventually secured a permanent move to the Blues last summer but found game time hard to come by, largely featuring in the UEFA Europa Conference League. In the winter transfer window, he moved on loan to AC Milan. He began his stint with the Rossoneri in splendid fashion, bagging a goal on debut in their 3-1 win over AS Roma.

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Enzo Maresca opens up on letting Joao Felix leave Chelsea in January

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca suggested that the side's need for defensive stability was a reason behind the decision to let Joao Felix leave the side in the winter window. The Portuguese attacker joined just six months ago but left the club on loan to Serie A giants AC Milan.

The Italian claimed that a combination of the Blues' range of attacking options combined with their defensive vulnerability opened up the possibility of letting Felix go. He said (via Metro):

"Nothing happened. Simply, I said many times, that the players train every day and they want to play all the games. Unfortunately, just 11 play all the games and we decide altogether that that it was a good option to leave.

"He never complained. He has been very good with us, professional. Just a matter of my decision. The reason why is because we need defensive balance. When you have so many attacking players, sometimes you can concede a transition or a goal and I don’t like that."

Cole Palmer has largely earned Chelsea's minutes in Joao Felix's favored position in attacking midfield. Maresca has mostly opted to put Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo in midfield alongside Palmer, leaving little opportunities for the Portuguese star. He had just 363 minutes of action in the Premier League before his departure with most of his action coming in cup ties.