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Chelsea completed the permanent signing of Mateo Kovacic from Real Madrid on Monday for £40 million.

The midfielder made 51 appearances for Chelsea last season while on loan from Real Madrid.

Former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol believes the amount Chelsea paid for Kovacic is too much because he wasn’t a success at Stamford Bridge last season.

Nicol understands why Chelsea have made his deal permanent as the club is unable to sign anyone else this summer due to the transfer ban but insists he should never have been signed for £40million.

“40million and they have to do it? I mean come on. Can someone tell me what he does?” Nicol told ESPN FC.

“Because he doesn’t assist, he doesn’t score goals, he’s not a defensive midfielder, he’s not going to kill you with passes.

“So can somebody please enlighten me what Chelsea are getting for that kind of money?

“I understand why they sign him but at that money I cannot believe it.

“Even if they were paying £15m or even £20m in the current climate I could understand it with the transfer ban they are under, but to pay £40m, no thank you.”

Fellow ESPN FC pundit Shaka Hislop agrees with Nicol and believes Kovacic’s time on loan at the club was underwhelming.

“One year ago I though Kovacic was an interesting acquisition and you could have made a decent argument for paying that price for him,” Hislop added.

“But given what we have seen from him in a Chelsea shirt it has been nothing short of underwhelming.

“I don’t think he has delivered on the early promise that he showed at Real Madrid.”

Do you think Chelsea overpaid for Kovacic?