After Joao Felix was dismissed for Chelsea on his club debut on Thursday night, Manchester United supporters made fun of him online.
Wednesday saw the season-long loan of Felix to the London club. Chelsea paid €11 million to secure Felix’s services through the end of the year. The 23-year-old has only scored 34 goals in 131 appearances across all competitions for the La Liga team. He also extended his contract with Atletico by an additional year, taking it to June 2027.
The Portuguese forward was reportedly being pursued by both United and Arsenal, but the Reds refused to pay the asking fee to sign him on a loan. Chelsea is covering his salary.
Chelsea are paying his wages in full until the end of the season as part of the deal.
Felix made his debut for Graham Potter’s team against Fulham, but things didn’t quite go as planned. Atletico paid Benfica £113 million for Felix in 2019, making him the fifth-most expensive player in history. Despite showing promise in the opening period, the attacker was dismissed in the 58th minute for a reckless challenge on Tete. On his debut, he became the first player for the London club to receive a red card.
United supporters were overjoyed that the Reds did not sign Felix on a season-long loan from Atletico for the Premier League match, which Chelsea lost 2-1.