Chelsea willing to sell midfielder if they are offered £40 million - Reports
Chelsea could be tempted to sell midfielder Conor Gallagher before deadline day in January if they receive an offer between £35-40 million, as per CBS Sports journalist Ben Jacobs.
The Englishman has been on the Blues' books since 2008. After loan moves to Charlton Athletic and Swansea City, respectively, he moved to Crystal Palace in the summer of 2021 on a season-long temporary deal.
The move proved to work wonders for Gallagher's career. He had a breakthrough season with the Eagles, registering eight goals and five assists in 39 games across competitions and winning the club's 'Player of the Season' award.
But since his return, he has failed to make himself a regular starter in the Chelsea squad despite N'Golo Kante's injury troubles. The 22-year-old has made nine starts in the league this term and isn't at the top of manager Graham Potter's pecking order at SW6.
No midfielder has won more duels in a single Premier League game this season than Conor Gallagher against Crystal Palace:
◎ 27 duels contested
◉ 15 duels won
Now that's a HIIT workout. 😉 https://t.co/IkxEhGFtua
The Blues would prefer to send him out on a loan deal this month but could change their stance if a suitable offer arrives on the table. The journalist wrote in his CaughtOffside column:
"Chelsea could also be tempted to loan out Conor Gallagher, depending on what happens in central midfield in the coming days.
"Clubs like Crystal Palace, where he was on loan last season, and, again, Newcastle, would both be interested in Gallagher, so we’ll have to wait and see based on Chelsea’s own movements in the market.
“The club have indicated they’re against a sale, but that could be tested if they were to receive an offer in the region of £35-40m."
The four-cap England international has two-and-a-half years left on his current deal at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea urged to avoid signing Enzo Fernandez
Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Alan Hutton has urged Chelsea against signing Enzo Fernandez from SL Benfica in January.
Benfica with a celebration for Enzo Fernández for having won the World Cup.
https://t.co/CRemRRf8bH
It has been claimed that the Blues could have to fork out up to €160 million, excluding wages, for the Argentina international. They wanted to sign Fernandez earlier this month, but no deal materialized.
They have now returned to the table for the Benfica midfielder after splashing around €215 million in transfer fees this month. David Datro Fofana, Andrey Santos, Benoit Badiashile, Joao Felix (loan), Mykhaylo Mudryk and Noni Madueke have all been added to their squad.
When asked if the Blues needed to sign Fernandez, Hutton told Football Insider:
"Probably not. We know they had a massive injury list, their top stars for their team were out. For them to come back, the signings that they have already made, the problem is how do you keep them all happy?
"People are going to have to leave. If you are adding another £100million-plus player to that, it is crazy."