Chelsea they are also believed to be considering the possibility of signing two players from Barcelonaamid their widely publicized interest in a January deal for Crystal Palace Marc Guehi.
Chelsea are considering re-signing Marco Guehi from Crystal Palace
Enzo MarescaThe search for another central defender is a concrete ongoing situation, and it is reliably believed that Guehi is an option being seriously considered.
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The west Londoners could be without Wesley Fofana for the rest of the season, with Benoit Badiashile also currently on the treatment table, which has partly prompted BlueCo to enter the market for central defensive reinforcements.
Chelsea were reportedly aiming to sign another centre-back this monthregardless of the injury problems of the aforementioned duo, but the absences of Fofana and Badiashile seem to have thrown them into second gear.
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Chelsea’s next matches in the Premier League |
Date |
|---|---|
|
Bournemouth (home) |
January 14 |
|
Wolverhampton Wanderers (home) |
January 20 |
|
Man City (away) |
January 25 |
|
West Ham (away) |
February 3 |
|
Brighton (away) |
February 14 |
A number of credible outlets and journalists have reported that Chelsea are actively considering a winter deal for Guehi, who has 18 months left on his current contract, and could even recall Trevoh Chalobah from his temporary stint at Selhurst Park.
Fabrizio Romano supports reports that Guehi’s return to Chelsea is a real possibility before the February 3 deadline, while the BBC’s Nizaar Kinsella suggests that Eagles chairman Steve Parish could be tempted to take up negotiations thanks to the sell-on clause in the 24-year-old’s contract.
Additionally, if an agreement cannot be reached for the England international, Maresca’s side have drawn up a list of alternatives.
Chelsea’s trusted reporter Simon Phillips writes that along with Guehi, Benfica’s pair Tomas Araujo and Antonio Silva, as well as Bournemouth’s Illia Zabarnyi and Dean Huijsen are on the program.
However, fellow journalist Graeme Bailey says more players from Barcelona are also being considered.
Chelsea are considering January moves for Ronaldo Araujo and Jules Kounde
Writing for The Boot Room, Bailey says both Jules Kounde and Ronald Araujo are targets for the Blues. Catalan stars, a total of approx £329,000-a-week at the Camp Nou, are on Chelsea’s shortlist of central defensive targets for January with Guehi.
As Chelsea are eyeing January moves for Kounde and Araujoit’s not hard to see why they’re interested in the former. Kounde has been a mainstay under Hansi Flick, playing in every one of Barca’s 19 La Liga games so far, starting 17 of them.
He is also their third highest performing player in average match rating according to WhoScoredbut that fact means it could be difficult for Chelsea to seal a deal in January.
Araujo, meanwhile, has spent the vast majority of this campaign with a hamstring injury and has only just returned to the squad for a match – he was on the bench for the last two La Liga games but still awaits his first appearance in the Spanish league in 2024/25.
