Chelsea open negotiations to sign £100m Brazilian with offer already made
da poker： Chelsea have reportedly opened club-to-club negotiations over signing a £100 million striker for Enzo Maresca, with their opening bid already submitted as BlueCo attempt to move quickly in the transfer market.
Chelsea shortlist striker targets as summer transfer talks begin
da apostaganha： It is no secret that the west Londoners, amid their chase for Champions League qualification, are looking to sign a centre-forward when the window reopens.
Related Chelsea really looking at signing £25m "new name" who agreed to join Arsenal
He’s shook hands on personal terms with the Gunners last year.
Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku boast just two Premier League goals between them since the turn of the year, while Marc Guiu is inexperienced and coming back from injury, emphasising their need for a proven option up top.
Race for Champions League qualification
Rank
Team
Points
GD
3
Man City
68
+26
4
Newcastle
66
+22
5
Chelsea
66
+20
6
Aston Villa
66
+9
7
Nottingham Forest
65
+13
According to journalist Simon Phillips this week, Eintracht Frankfurt starlet Hugo Ekitiké, RB Leipzig ace Benjamin Sesko and Napoli outcast Victor Osimhen are just some of the strikers under consideration by Stamford Bridge chiefs – but all will likely command a marquee fee and considerable wages.
Ipswich Town star Liam Delap is also set to make a decision about joining Chelsea, amid interest from Man United, with Fabrizio Romano backing up other reports that the Blues have held talks with Kieran McKenna’s number nine.
Another player to be linked this last week, Brighton star Joao Pedro, is now emerging as a more serious potential target as well.
The Brazil international has racked up 10 goals and seven assists in all competitions under Fabian Hürzeler this season, and the jury is out on whether he’d really improve Maresca’s current options, but ex-Premier League scout Mick Brown has heard that he’s keen on a switch to Cobham.
“I hear he’s spoken to people around him about a move, and he would be interested in Chelsea,” said Brown to Football Insider.
“He wants to make a step up from Brighton as they’re going to miss out on European football again. It’s just a case of whether they decide he’s the right man for the job.”
Chelsea open talks with Brighton over signing Joao Pedro
Despite claims Pedro would cost around £60 million, there are also suggestions that Brighton intend to hold firm on a marquee £100 million price tag, so the 23-year-old could end up being a very expensive option.
However, that doesn’t mean Maresca’s side won’t at least try their hand, as shared by Brazilian news outlet Ge Globo and their journalist Cahê Mota from Rio de Janeiro.
He reports that Chelsea have opened talks with Brighton over signing Pedro, and they’ve already made an offer of around £50 million for the striker. Chelsea are attempting to “speed up” these negotiations ahead of the Club World Cup, with discussions also expected to intensify next week as they try to tempt the former Watford ace with a move.
It remains to be seen whether their initial bid of £50m will be enough, as Brighton and Tony Bloom are widely known to be tough negotiators when it comes to selling their star players to Chelsea, as evident by the transfer fees they acquired for Moises Caicedo and Marc Cucurella.
However, we believe BlueCo would be unwise to splash anywhere near £100m on Pedro, considering they have other, more prolific striker targets who could turn out to be much better value for money.