Four Big Transfers Chelsea is Targeting to Strengthen Squad

Chelsea is gearing up for a big summer, aiming to sign four key players as part of their team revamp.

Once Enzo Maresca is officially on board as the new boss, the club will kick things into high gear. They’re wrapping up a deal to bring in the 44-year-old Italian as head coach with a five-year contract, after agreeing to pay Leicester £10 million.

While Maresca won’t be calling the shots on transfers, he’ll definitely have a say. He’s already been chatting with the Chelsea chiefs about who they might bring in.

Top of the list for the Blues are a new goalkeeper, a central defender, a left-back, and a striker.

They’ve got their eye on Burnley’s goalie James Trafford and are also looking to snap up Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo without spending a dime when his contract runs out next month. He’s a hot commodity, with Newcastle and Manchester United also keen to sign him. Plus, they’re keeping tabs on Barcelona’s Ronald Araujo, who might be leaving Camp Nou soon.

With Thiago Silva heading back to his first club, Fluminense, Chelsea needs another central defender. They were considering Feyenoord’s Quilindschy Hartman, but he’s just had knee surgery and won’t be back until early 2025.

They’re also in the hunt for a top-notch striker and are big fans of Napoli’s Victor Osimhen. The Nigerian forward might be leaving Italy this summer, and lots of big European clubs are interested.

Maresca’s got a particular way he likes his team to play. He wants the full-backs to tuck into midfield when they’re on the attack, so finding a good left-back is key. He also likes a goalkeeper who can set up plays, kind of like Ederson does at Manchester City.

Before the end of June, Chelsea wants to move some players on to make sure they’re following the Premier League’s financial rules.

Midfielder Conor Gallagher might be on his way out, with Tottenham and Aston Villa reportedly interested. Ian Maatsen’s loan at Borussia Dortmund could become a permanent move, and Armando Broja might be leaving too.

Chelsea’s confident they can meet the financial rules, but they need to get some sales done by June 30 so they can be included in the accounts for the 2023-24 season. This means we might see some players leaving sooner rather than later.

Even though they’ve just said goodbye to Mauricio Pochettino, co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, along with the rest of the recruitment team, haven’t stopped planning for the summer. They see being able to keep things moving even without a manager as a sign of their growing strength off the field.

They’ve already talked to Maresca about the transfer plans and are eager to get going once he’s officially in charge.

After finishing sixth last season, Chelsea’s convinced Maresca is the man to get them back into the top four. The owners think the current squad has what it takes to make it to the Champions League and that Pochettino didn’t quite hit the mark last year.

Since taking over Chelsea in 2022, Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali, and Jose Feliciano have been set on finding a young, forward-thinking coach to lead the team. They’re all in on Maresca, offering him a five-year deal that shows just how much they believe in him.