‘Useless’ – former Chelsea midfielder has scathing but fair Joao Felix critique

Chelsea signed Joao Felix on loan during the 2022/23 season from Atletico Madrid, and even though he failed to impress at Stamford Bridge and turned in another mediocre season on a full year loan within La Liga to giants Barcelona in 2023/24, he still inexplicably ended up back in London for the 2024/25 season.

Except this time, Chelsea, for some odd reason, decided to buy Felix permanently. They spent a jaw-dropping 52 million euros on Felix on paper, which is a sum that is shrouded by the fact that Conor Gallagher went back the other way to Atletico Madrid on a 42 million euro valuation.

While Gallagher clearly isn’t worth that much money either and didn’t exactly have a banner 2024/25 campaign in the Spanish capital himself, there’s no question that as unawnted as he was by Chelsea, Felix was the much bigger flop last season.

Felix was so bad that Chelsea almost immediately jettisoned him to AC Milan on loan during the 2024/25 season, as the 25-year-old forward mustered a meager three Premier League starts for the Blues, so putrid was his play on the pitch that Chelsea quickly viewed him as untenable to their plans.

Joao Felix simply doesn’t want it enough

A case study in how quickly a young phenom can fade when their smoke and mirrors act is exposed, Felix has become the poster child of technical ability with poor attitude, no effort, and little else but a few passing highlight tapes of nifty flicks that go nowhere.

At this point, even his peers aren’t hiding the fact that Felix is an unmitigated bust and a waste of potential of his own doing. Former Atletico Madrid legend and Chelsea midfielder Saul Niguez has experience playing for two of Felix’s clubs, and the Spanish international didn’t mince words in an interview with Partidazo de Cope when discussing the monumental Atletico Madrid transfer bust.

Saul said of Joao Felix, “He has everything it takes to be a champion, but if you don’t work hard, it’s useless. We’ve tried many times to help him, but if someone doesn’t want to… Talent without commitment isn’t enough.”

It’s probably the most biting quote a player could provide about a peer, and it’s an assessment that few fans, pundits, or contemporary footballers would disagree with.

Felix has been given chance after chance by multiple big clubs. And whether it’s been two very different La Liga giants, the most posh club in the Premier League, or a struggling Serie A powerhouse, Felix has failed to latch on to four different major sides in European football with very different playing styles.

All four of these clubs gave Felix ample opportunities – and two of them gave him multiple stints – to succeed, and he squandered all of them. Saul is right on the money. Felix has nobody to blame but himself.