It’s the off-season for all club competition, almost all of the international play currently being staged are just meaningless friendlies, so you know what that means? It is indeed the summer silly season, i.e. time to talk some transfer rumors, and other assorted news items. So let’s jump with the latest buzz surrounding Chelsea FC.
Today we have a double shot of Chelsea transfer rumors for you, so let’s jump in with the first right here, and you can check out the second batch over at this link.
The Daily Telegraph claims that Thomas Tuchel “has been promised as many as six summer signings” by the club’s new owner Todd Boehly, who will give about £200 million to spend this summer on improving the squad. With Bruce Buck and Marina Granovskaia both now gone, it is indeed a new era at Stamford Bridge.
Juventus centre-back Matthijs de Ligt is supposedly at the top of their want list, with Chelsea having reportedly offered German forward Timo Werner to Juventus as part of their negotiations for a potential swap deal. That’s according to transfer guru Gianluca Di Marzio.
The 22-year-old, deemed as a potential replacement for the departing Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger, reportedly has a release clause worth €120m.
The longer De Ligt stalls on signing a contract extension beyond 2024, the more speculation will swell about his potential departure. The Daily Mail has another angle on a potential swap deal for De Ligt, as their transfer narrative sees Christian Pulisic potentially going the other way.
Pulisic has also been linked with a Everton, as a piece in a swap deal for Richarlison. In other words, there are a lot of moving pieces here going on.
While Chelsea have yet to sign a single new player this summer, and thus its been a very dull summer thus far, just hold on. Things will start heating up soon.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.