Chelsea's two-window transfer ban cost them the chance to sign Netherlands wonderkid Xavier Mbuyamba.
The Blues were unable to register any new players during the 2019 summer transfer ban as a result of serving a punishment in regards to breaching FIFA rules in their dealings with overseas players under the age of 18.
That decision was later overturned in December, but the west London outfit opted not to sign a single player in the January transfer window despite links to Jadon Sancho, Moussa Dembele and Ben Chilwell among others.
And by the time the winter window was open, Mbuyamba had already been snapped up by La Liga giants Barcelona.
Only time will tell if the Blues end up ruing this particular transfer decision.
But the wonderkid has revealed that he was keen to join the west London outfit after training with the youth teams last summer.
"At Chelsea, I started the week in under-18s and trained with under-23 at the end of the week. The higher the level, the better I got," Mbuyamba told VTBL, as per Sport Witness.
"I would [have] actually gone to Chelsea, because they were the first to come.
"But because of a transfer ban they could not offer a contract. Then the choice finally fell on FC Barcelona."
Chelsea's loss is Barcelona's gain and the defender is aiming to force his way into the first-team picture before 2022.
"I have a four-year contract and I like life here. Living on my own is going great. I’m going to do everything I can to succeed here," he added.
"Of course, I don’t expect to be there [first team] next year.
"I will be with the Barcelona B team first and I want to have a good season there and do a lot training with the first team.
"I hope to be able to join the [first team] selection within two years.”
