Why Mohamed Salah could be Juan Mata's replacement at Chelsea

Mohamed Salah (C)

It came as something of a surprise to many that Mohamed Salah ended up as a Chelsea player.

The Egyptian winger was widely tipped to join Liverpool after a month of speculation saw them finally agree a fee with Basel, only for the Blues to gazump them at the last minute, despite having shown no apparent interest in the player.

This is not the first time the Blues have done this now, with Willian ending up at Stamford Bridge despite looking all set for a move to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer.

But a Blue Salah is all set to become, much to the Reds chagrin with the curiosity being whether he actually fits into Chelsea’s system.

Salah has primarily been used an orthodox winger by Basel, attacking from the flanks with a style very reminiscent of Aaron Lennon, as demonstrated when the two faced off against each other in last season’s Europa League.

Chelsea on the other hand play in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with the supporting three generally playing more infield roles, alternating between the three of them and buzzing around in the space around the lone striker.

With Andre Schurrle and Frank Lampard there to support Willian, Oscar and Eden Hazard, one is curious as to how frequently Salah will find himself in the side, though his arrival does appear to signify the end of Juan Mata as a Chelsea player.

With that system and the way the attacking midfielders play for Chelsea, we have to question the purchase of Salah, as his pass completion of 77% in the Champions League is far worse than the men standing in his way of a first-team place, with the outgoing Mata having completed 86% of his.

He did however complete 165 passes still, meaning he found a teammate on more occasions than any of Chelsea’s attacking stars apart from Oscar who completed 174.

Salah has a lower pass completion rate than any of Chelsea’s attacking stars in the Champions League

But what Salah does bring is lightning quick pace that terrifies defences and creates space for other attackers, as he displayed when Basel and Chelsea met in the Champions League, racing through to score in both games as the Swiss side triumphed home and away.

He is not simply a player only comfortable with chalk on his boots as he does drift inside, and his turn of pace and willingness to run at players offers Chelsea an alternative to the players they have that are more comfortable with an intricate passing game.

Salah has completed 90% of his take-on attempts this season as he puts his pace to good use, although he he has completed fewer take-ons that Eden Hazard and Willian, while he was fouled more times in Basel’s Champions League spell than any Chelsea player.

Salah has scored with 25% of his shots, a higher conversion rate than anybody at Chelsea

He created seven chances with only Willian (8) in a blue shirt creating more, while his shot conversion rate is an impressive 25%, better than anybody that Jose Mourinho has at his disposal managed in Europe’s premier competition.

It’s expected by many that Salah will not have the burden of responsibility that he had at Basel, as he will have several other players competing with him for his position.

But depending on the chances he is given to impress, Salah offers a different attacking threat to Chelsea’s offensive play to at least give Mourinho another way to win a game.