A £162,000-per-week forward is ready to join Chelsea this summer, if Todd Boehly and the Blues recruitment team can strike a deal with his club.
Chelsea expected to sign new attacker for Maresca before deadline day
Following their botched move for Michael Olise earlier this summer, with the 22-year-old instead joining Bayern Munich from Crystal Palace, Chelsea remain in the market for new senior attacking options.
Bid pending: Chelsea plot move for "Haaland-esque" £58m Duran upgrade
He’s been described as having “Haaland-esque” properties…
ByAngus Sinclair Jul 27, 2024
Chelsea were planning to sign Olise from Palace earlier this window, and the prospect of player-plus-cash bids was mooted by sections of the press. Raheem Sterling was mentioned as a potential makeweight in a Chelsea deal for Olise, but these reports came to no avail when Bayern started knocking at the door.
Co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley are still scouring the market for new forward options in an attempt to back Enzo Maresca, with the bulk of Chelsea's new signings being ones for the future thus far.
Cole Palmer
7.48
Conor Gallagher
7.13
Nicolas Jackson
7.07
Moises Caicedo
6.85
Noni Madueke
6.84
Tosin Adarabioyo (Fulham), Omari Kellyman (Aston Villa), Renato Veiga (FC Basel), Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (Leicester City), Marc Guiu (Barcelona), Estevao Willian (Palmeiras), Caleb Wiley (Atlanta United), Filip Jorgensen (Villarreal) and Aaron Anselmino (Boca Juniors) have all put pen to paper on moves to Stamford Bridge, but only Tosin, Jorgensen and Dewsbury-Hall can be classed as fresh senior additions.
In terms of attackers who could come in and give Maresca a different dimension, Chelsea have been linked with Athletic Bilbao starlet Nico Williams and a few other exciting wingers recently, but there is also the matter of a potential new striker.
Maresca has reportedly made clear he wants a striker at Chelsea this summer, and one who can compete with Nicolas Jackson. One name who refuses to go away in this regard, despite the cost of a potential operation, is Napoli star Victor Osimhen.
The Nigerian has scored 76 goals across 133 appearances in all competitions since making a move to Serie A from Lille, making him one of the most sought-after strikers on the continent.
Osimhen's £162,000-per-week contract includes a release clause of around £109 million, but Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Napoli are becoming more open to the prospect of including Romelu Lukaku as part of the deal, which could help them reach a compromise.
Osimhen ready to Chelsea if Boehly can agree deal with Napoli
As per TEAMtalk, Chelsea will not run into any issues on the player's side. Indeed, it is believed Osimhen is ready to join Chelsea if Boehly can strike a deal with Napoli, so the player's stance is crystal clear.
PSG have also been tipped as firm contenders for Osimhen, but journalist Ben Jacobs told GiveMeSport earlier this year that his priority is a move to the Premier League.
"It’s also true that PSG have Osimhen very, very high on their list of targets and can move in the market because they will free up money due to Kylian Mbappe’s departure," said Jacobs.
"I'm still told by sources that Osimhen’s priority is the Premier League, which is encouraging for Chelsea and Arsenal. He would be looking for about £250,000 per week, which Arsenal, Chelsea and PSG would all be happy to pay.”