Chelsea in “advanced talks” with Atalanta over €40m transfer with loan already planned | OneFootball

Fabrizio Romano claims that Chelsea are in “advanced talks” for Atalanta defender Honest Ahanor, who they intend to loan out.

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A thrilling 24 hours of transfer talk peaked last night with the news that Chelsea are closing in on signing Honest Ahanor from Atalanta.

Fabrizio Romano says “advanced talks” are already in progress for the 18 year old, who looks like one of the best of his age in the world. He was playing for Genoa as a 17 year old, and made the switch to Atalanta a year ago for €20m. An impressive debut season there already has Chelsea offering €40m for him.

Chelsea prepare to sign and loan talented defender

BERGAMO, ITALY – MAY 02: Honest Ahanor of Atalanta BC in action during the Serie A match between Atalanta BC and Genoa CFC at Gewiss Stadium on May 02, 2026 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Mattia Ozbot/Getty Images)

We didn’t expect to see Chelsea linked with centre backs this summer, simply because they had TEN of them on their books. But successfully loaning Benoit Badiashile and Axel Disasi, plus the sale of Trevoh Chalobah, opened up some spaces. Tosin is expected to follow.

Ahanor would still face a tough time earning minutes, so it makes sense that Romano says that the agreement for the teenager “would include joining a Premier League club this summer in order to develop.”

Poor Strasbourg aren’t even going to get a look in on this one.

In other news…

Chelsea are also debating whether to add Emi Martinez before the window closes – “internal talks” are ongoing says Fabrizio Romano.

Meanwhile in outgoing deals, Nicolas Jackson is on his way to Aston Villa, where he will take a medical ahead of a £65m deal.