Chelsea Go on a Transfer Spending Spree | OneFootball

Some folks head south to Wight or the southern coast for summer holidays; Chelsea buy players. Not only is the London club blowing up the transfer rumor mill, they’ve already made three confirming signings! It’s been dizzying trying to keep up with all the gossip, but here’s what we have so far.

Confirmed Spending… Er… Signings

Signed, sealed, delivered… he’s theirs. Chelsea locked down 22 year-old striker Liam Delap, pulling the trigger on his $40M release clause to pry him away from Ipswich Town. In May Delap and Manchester United were reportedly getting cozy, but the former City academy lad must’ve taken a reasoned step back from that slow-motion disaster after their insipid performance in the Europa League final. He will be rostered for the Club World Cup.

Twenty-year-old midfielder Dario Essugo just inked a five-deal worth approximately $24M. While on Sporting CP’s books, he’s spent the past two seasons out on loan, most recently with recently relegated Las Palmas. A scouting report gives him high marks for his pitch awareness and skill in one-on-one duels, but notes he has some discipline issues (9 yellow cards) and is error-prone. His contract does not expire until the end of the month, so he will not be eligible for the Club World Cup.

Geovany Quenda just completed his first professional season with Sporting CP, taking part in 51 games across all competitions. When he was sixteen, he made a splash by coming on the field for Sporting in a Champions League match. He scored three goals and registered 6 assists, playing both sides of the field. His deal is reported to be $59M, and Chelsea will loan him back to Sporting until 2026.

If you’re doing your maths, that’s $123M committed already. Say goodbye to that Champions League profit.

Confirmed Exits

Jadon Sancho been released back to Manchester United with a $6.8M check taped to his forehead. That was the cost to NOT sign him. Signing him would have cost nearly $41M. Clearly his 5g/8a wasn’t enough to impress Marasca.

Potential Spending/Signings

Of course there are still plenty of spoons stirring in the witches brew of transfers. Here are some we’ve caught wind of.

Everyone knows Chelsea have a keeper problem. AC Milan’s Mike Maignan might be the answer. The club is “in talks” with the 29-year-old French goalkeeper’s people. With Kepa’s future in doubt, and Robert Sanchez not in favor… well, you get it.

Jamie Gittens is 20 years-old, English and had a hell of a season with Borussia Dortmund last year (12g/3a in 48 games). He was also a part of the Chelsea academy. “Advanced talks” is what the rumormongers say, some even hinting he was a January target that couldn’t get closed in time. The deal numbers are running as high as $75M.

And despite the Delap signing, the Blues are reportedly still targeting strikers. Chatter hints that Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike and Leipzig’s Benjamin Šeško are on the club’s radar. Both are young (22 and 21), big, and can score. They’re also being pursued by other big name clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool. Stay tuned.

On the defensive side of things, some think an offer for Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi could be in the cards. He’s a former Chelsea lad but they’ll have to fight off other suitors.

Potential Exits

Let’s be honest, with $123M already sunk, the club will need to raise some cash in order to fund any future signings. While financial reports indicate that they have some headroom before running afoul of the PSG and FFP rules, they can’t spend too much. And if the Premier League cracks down on their creative accounting practices regarding club assets such as hotels and the women’s team that loophole could become a noose.

In any event, the club has a strong incentive to sell players over the next few weeks. Robert Sánchez is high on that list, and possibly Kepa. Noni Madueke had flashes of brilliance but wasn’t particularly consistent; serious offers would be considered.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has seriously underperformed and only started two games all season. That $40M spent last summer looks to be rancid business and they’ll want to recoup something.

The club has been trying to offload Armando Broja for a while now. Loans to Vitesse and Southampton didn’t pan out, and this season he went to Fulham and Everton and barely made a ripple. Clubs looking for tall, still-young striker with possible upside could get him for a steal.

When all is said and done, Chelsea don’t look to have learned the lessons from their past financial flourishes. Once again, they’ve opened the wallet and look to be spending.