Chelsea were offered Ilya Zabarnyi, his stats prove he would have been a top signing

Chelsea turned down the chance to sign PSG defender Ilya Zabarnyi in the summer; his recent performance suggests they may have made a mistake.

Chelsea were offered PSG defender Ilya Zabarnyi during the summer transfer window but declined the opportunity. The 24-year-old Ukrainian, who joined PSG from Bournemouth for £57 million just 12 months earlier, was willing to leave after spending most of PSG's Champions League campaign on the bench. Liverpool also reportedly showed interest.

Chelsea instead signed Maxence Lacroix, who has since been ruled out for around two months with a hamstring tear. This has left Wesley Fofana and Levi Colwill as the main centre-back options for manager Xabi Alonso, with the squad now looking thin in defence.

Zabarnyi's recent display for PSG against Le Havre—where he completed 90 of 95 passes, made two blocks, six clearances, two interceptions and six recoveries without being dribbled past—suggests Chelsea may have missed out on a valuable signing who could have provided both depth and competition at centre-back.