Who is Axel Disasi? France international completes Chelsea switch from Monaco

Nathan Evans

Who is Axel Disasi? France international completes Chelsea switch from Monaco image

Chelsea have moved quickly following the news of defender Wesley Fofana being sidelined through injury for a significant amount of the 2023/24 season, with the Blues moving to bring in Monaco centre back Axel Disasi.

Chelsea have completed a €45million deal for the French international as Chelsea owner Todd Boehly again puts his money where his mouth is to support new manager Mauricio Pochettino.

But after the Argentinian boss recently eluded to his new club being in danger of creating a “mess” if his “unbalanced” squad is not trimmed, is a move for Disasi the right one?

The Sporting News assess the 25-year-old's career to date, looks at his strengths and weaknesses and whether he's a good fit for Chelsea. 

MORE: Premier League transfer spending rankings 2023/24: Which EPL club has spent the most?

Axel Disasi transfer fee, contract

As per reports from BBC Sport, the fee agreed to bring Disasi to the Premier League involves a upfront payment of €45m/£38.5m, as part of a six-year contract.

The lengthy deal continues Boehly's policy to tying new players to increased contracts with Disasi's agreement to 2029 matched by fellow summer signing Christopher Nkunku.

Who is Axel Disasi?

Axel Disasi is a France international centre back who has been playing for Monaco in Ligue 1. 

Formally of Paris FC and State de Reims, Disasi has enjoyed a steady rise throughout his career, since coming through as a youth player with the Parisian side. 

At Paris FC, he made three senior club appearances before joining Reims on a free transfer and helping the Champagne-based side jump from the second division of French football through to the Europa League. 

His solid form saw a move to Monaco materialise in the summer of 2020 – for a fee of €13m – where he went on to make 99 appearances for the club and feature in a number of matches as captain.

Disasi was a regular standout for Monaco and an important player in their quest for Champions League qualification. That led to his inclusion as a member of France's 2022 World Cup squad – a tournament in which he made his senior international debut – playing a full 90 minutes in a 1-0 group stage loss to Tunisia. 

Getty Images

Disasi was recently linked with Manchester United and Newcastle United but, following a pre-season injury to Fofana, Chelsea have made their move first.

Axel Disasi's style of play

Standing at 6 ft 3 in, Disasi is a physical defender who enjoys tussling with opposition players.

Built with a stocky frame and blessed with plenty of strength, he's a powerful and dominant presence on the field, something which helps the 25-year-old to perform well in aerial battles and in on-ground duels. Simply put, there are few defenders in the top five European football leagues that use their bodies as well as Disasi to influence play. 

That also means that he's fantastic at defending his own penalty area, holding strong awareness and impressive positioning to help clear away danger for his side. 

But Disasi is far from your average 'stay at home' defender. 

The 25-year-old enjoys to move out of the backline when the opportunity arises to intercept possession, whilst with the ball at his feet, he's been known to frequently maraud forward on mazy yet effective runs. 

Abdelhamid Disasi Di Maria Reims PSG

Those runs can sometimes see him get into trouble as his lack of pace leaves him out of position, but for a team like Chelsea, his ability to progress the ball forward with a clinical edge will be very useful.

The French defender additionally offers valuable versatility across the backline. At centre half, he has operated on both the right and the left-hand sides of a back two with Monaco this season, while his debut for France at the World Cup saw him feature at right back. 

The main concern lies with Disasi's mobility and pace however, a limitation of his game that could be exposed in the Premier League. He is one of the slower defenders in Ligue 1, and even though he has physicality in other areas of his game, he struggles in one-on-one situations against pacy attackers. 

That's particularly true if he's used on either side of a back three by Pochettino this season, a position which could see him struggle to cover wider spaces across the defensive line.

Is Axel Disasi a good fit for Chelsea?

With Fofana's latest injury setback, Chelsea need another centre back, especially if Malang Sarr or Trevor Chalobah move on this summer, which looks likely. 

In Disasi, they have a very solid addition and someone who could thrive under Pochettino.

That's because the former Spurs manager is known to enjoy having a big physical presence in his backline, something we saw with Toby Alderweireld at Tottenham and to a lesser extent, Sergio Ramos and Marquinhos at PSG. 

However, there is the concern over Pochettino's squad being bloated in certain areas. With the Argentinian likely to deploy two central defenders this season, as opposed to three in pre-season, meaning a number of players will be left out of his main plans.

Alongside Disasi, there is Thiago Silva, Levi Cowill, Benoît Badiashile, Chalobah and Sarr who could all expect regular game-time if they remain at the club. With a lack of European football this season, that could cause a headache for the new Chelsea boss in terms of selection. 

Premier League 2023/24 TV channels, live streams

Region TV Streaming
Australia Optus Sport
Canada

Fubo Canada

Hong Kong Now TV
India Star Sports Disney+, Hotstar,
JioTV
Malaysia Astro SuperSport Astro Go
New Zealand Sky Sport Sky Sport Now,
Sky Go
Singapore StarHub StarHub TV+
UK Sky Sports, TNT Sports NOW TV, Sky Go,
Amazon Prime
USA USA Network,
Telemundo, Universo
Fubo, Peacock

UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and TNT Sports streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.

USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on Fubo. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.

Canada: Every Premier League game this season is live streamed exclusively via Fubo in Canada.

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream every match live and on demand on Optus Sport.

India: Star Sports network has the rights to show Premier League matches in India. As well as an English broadcast on Star Sports Select, select matches will be available via regional feeds on Star Sports 3 (in Bengali, English, Kannada, Malayalam), Star Sports 1 (Bangla) and Star Sports 1 (Tamil).

Nathan Evans

Nathan Evans Photo

A Sports Journalism Masters graduate, Nathan Evans joined The Sporting News in 2022 after working at Opta/Stats Perform for six years. He's an avid fan of Bradford City, FC Köln and the Pittsburgh Penguins.