Chelsea transfer state of play: binning the ‘bomb squad’, Garnacho latest & shock £62m striker swoop

When the January transfer window opened, Chelsea weren’t expected to be among the big players. They’ve spent so lavishly over recent seasons that the expectation was that they would simply be looking to offload some of the dead wood, and that bringing fresh faces in might be impossible due to the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules. That assumption now looks to have been wrong.

Chelsea are still looking to shift a few unwanted players, but they’ve suddenly entered the market for a string of big signings. One deal has been agreed, albeit for next summer, an audacious bid for Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho is in the works, and a striker worth £62m is now on their radar as well. However they are going to finance it, it looks like the Blues will be splashing the cash after all – and we’ve got the latest updates on all the developing transfer stories around Stamford Bridge below, along with some context for everything Enzo Maresca and his transfer team seem to be doing.

Dropping the ‘bomb squad’

More exciting stories may have taken over the headlines, but one of the priorities is still clearing the locker room of players that Maresca no longer needs – the so-called ‘bomb squad’ which includes Ben Chilwell, Carney Chukwuemeka and Cesare Casadei, along with a number of young players who were signed after Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital took the club over.

Making some immediate profit by selling such players could be essential when it comes to freeing up PSR space, but progress has been sluggish. Chilwell has been linked with Everton by recent rumours but there doesn’t seem to be a bid on the table from any of the clubs who have been connected with a move. Chukwuemeka was reportedly in line for a move to AC Milan, but it has yet to materialise.

There has been movement with Casadei, however, according to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio – he reports that a move to Torino could be finalised as early as Tuesday. The deal is supposedly worth between €10m and €12m (£8.5-10m) with a high sell-on fee. Lazio have also been linked with a bid and could conceivably attempt to hijack the deal, but at least one unwanted player should be off the books imminently.

Going for Garnacho

One deal which almost nobody expected to be on the table is the reported bid for Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho, who was among the first names on Erik ten Hag’s team sheet at the start of the season but could now be sold, with part-owners Ineos clean to move some home-grown players on in order to free up funds for future transfers.

Chelsea have made enquiries about Garacho but have yet to submit a formal bid, which puts them behind Serie A leaders Napoli in the race for the 20-year-old – they have supposedly made two bids already, with the latest worth an estimated €55m (£46.5m). That was rejected, however, with United looking to get £60m for the youngster.

Chelsea are now weighing up whether to meet the asking price. A decision hasn’t been made, and may depend on whether they can get deals for Casadei, Chilwell and others over the line – but their interest is sincere and Garnacho is now one of their top targets for the winter.

Surprise £62m striker move

The other big-money surprise which has been sprung is that Chelsea have suddenly entered the market for Juventus centre-forward Dušan Vlahović, who was worth £62m to the Old Lady when he arrived from Fiorentina a few years ago – but who is now on his way out of Turin following a confrontation with the fans and a failure to agree a new contract.

The Times are among the outlets reporting Chelsea’s interest in the Serbian striker, who is Juventus’ leading goalscorer this season with 12 to his name in all competitions. The price tag isn’t clear - around £50m is hinted at with uncertainty - but with just 18 months left to run on his contract, he would likely cost less than Juventus paid for him. A package could include left-back Renato Veiga, who was only signed in July.

Chelsea’s search for a striker isn’t new but it had been thought that it was on ice until the summer for financial reasons – but Nicolas Jackson’s poor recent form seems to have encouraged a rethink. Whether Chelsea can afford both Vlahović and Garnacho is unclear, and there is a chance that completing one move would prevent the other from taking place. The Daily Mail also report that Christopher Nkunku wants to force a move – a permanent switch is unlikely until the summer, but the Frenchman’s departure could help to massage the numbers on the balance sheet.

The chase for a centre-back

There were rumours earlier in the transfer window that Chelsea could make a move to re-sign Crystal Palace defender Marc Guéhi, but that now seems unlikely with the financial heft of the club set to be pointed in a more attacking direction.

The club have already recalled Trevoh Chalobah from his loan spell at Selhurst Park and agreed the summer transfer of Mamadou Sarr from sister club Strasbourg – the 19-year-old will move to Stamford Bridge for a fee of £11.9m.

That means that it is unlikely that the Blues make another move for a centre-back, and with Guéhi liable to cost as much as £70m, it is likely that they will wait until the summer should they wish to rekindle their interest. Garnacho and Vlahović are the priorities.