Summary
Watford is interested in Chelsea’s Armando Broja; however, Monaco is a potential competitor in the pursuit of his signature.
Watford’s prospective transfer of Broja could offer him the chance to kick-start his career with consistent game time.
Broja may be able to demonstrate his abilities and realize his potential in a competitive environment at Watford, despite financial constraints.
Watford is purportedly pursuing Chelsea’s Armando Broja in an effort to augment their offensive capabilities under the leadership of new permanent manager Tom Cleverley.
The Hornets have been attributed by the French outlet L’Equipe with an unlikely interest in the Albanian international. However, they are reportedly trailing AS Monaco in the battle for his signature, as the Ligue 1 side has already approached Chelsea over a potential deal.
In recent years, the Blues forward has been on loan at Vitesse, Southampton, and Fulham. This summer, he may conclude his fifteen-year association with his childhood club permanently.
He commenced the previous season by competing for a position in Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. However, he was unable to secure a spot in the team, scoring only two goals in 19 appearances. Subsequently, he joined Fulham on loan in January and failed to impress for Marco Silva’s team.
The most recent transfer update for Armando Broja
According to the BBC, Monaco, AC Milan, and Wolves are all interested in signing Broja on a permanent basis for the 2024/25 season. Fulham, on the other hand, is not interested in extending his loan agreement.
Watford is “attentive to Broja’s situation,” according to L’Equipe. However, Monaco is currently leading the sweepstakes, and any agreement for the 22-year-old is likely to include bonuses and a sell-on fee.
The BBC has also disclosed that the Blues’ apparent £50m January valuation of Broja could decrease to between £25m and £30m in advance of the summer window. However, this appears to be a significant distance from any potential figure that Watford would be willing to spend, rendering it an unlikely deal unless he were to be loaned out to the Hornets.
Nevertheless, Fabrizio Romano has stated that Broja “will leave Chelsea on (a) permanent deal.” Consequently, it would require a substantial amount of money from Watford’s player sales to finance any potential transfer for him.
The potential for Broja and Watford to collaborate is feasible.
Although it may appear unlikely at first glance, a transfer to a second-tier team that is pursuing the play-offs and has a youthful, ardent manager could be the perfect opportunity for Broja to fully launch his career.
Although his consistent scoring at the youth level has not yet translated into the men’s game, his most successful senior seasons to date have been at Vitesse in 2020/21, where he scored 11 goals in 34 games across all competitions, and Southampton in 2021/22, where he scored nine goals in 38 games across all competitions. This could be attributed to Chelsea’s efforts to expedite his development by creating a goalscorer rather than paying a substantial transfer fee to acquire one.
He may have the opportunity to participate in consistent games at a competitive, high level at Watford, a club that is located in his area and has aspirations to build upon its 15th-place finish in 2023/24.
It would be a surprise if the Hornets were able to raise the necessary funds to bring Broja to the club, as they have not spent over £10m on a player since Imran Louza joined from FC Nantes in 2021.
Nevertheless, if he is unwilling to permanently relocate from his country of origin, Watford could serve as an ideal location for him to regain his footing and demonstrate the reasons for his exceptional reputation throughout Europe.