Loan spells are a tricky deal in football; sometimes you settle and prove your worth, and other times you leave fans – and clubs – wondering why they brought you in the door no matter how temporary your stay was. In the case of Spanish international Saul Niguez, his short-term assignment with Premier League giants Chelsea could not have gone any worse.
Regularly considered as one of the better midfielders in La Liga and for Spain, Saul swapped capitals last summer in a bid to improve the central options on offer under German tactician Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge. But what was originally heralded as potentially one of the steals of the summer turned into nothing but frustration for everyone involved – directly or indirectly – with Chelsea.
But in the aftermath of a difficult period away from home in 2021-22, when the Elche-native managed just ~1200-minutes of football across twelve starts in a total of 23-appearances, Saul has returned to Atletico Madrid this summer in positive spirits in the wake of frustration.
Saul Niguez on #Chelsea spell:
“Despite the fact that I have not had the minutes I wanted, I think it has been a good experience for me to leave at a time when mentally I was not feeling well.”
[@diarioas via @Sport_Witness]
— Absolute Chelsea (@AbsoluteChelsea) July 9, 2022
In quotes provided by AS, sourced by Sport Witness, Saul spoke fondly of his time in west London, aiming to use the difficult period as a roadmap for growth in the coming year.
“Despite the fact that I have not had the minutes I wanted, I think it has been a good experience for me to leave at a time when mentally I was not feeling well.”
“I have been able to reset, learn about a new culture, lead a new life, meet a new club, new fans. I can only be grateful to the people at Chelsea for their trust & to my teammates for making the year so easy for me & helping me.”
“I think this season has helped me to improve in many aspects, I have learned a lot, and that will come in handy for this new season.”
Though Saul may not have hit the ground running – or even walking – at Chelsea, his professional attitude was well received by Blues fans on social media, and could serve him well as he looks to re-establish his credibility in 2022-23.
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This article was edited by
Conor Laird.
