According to reports, Chelsea are set to beat Arsenal in the race to sign a future England international as they have an ‘agreement in place’.
Chelsea are already way outin front of our Premier League net spend table and they look likely to extend their lead this summer, with around £100m already spent on signings.
Their next major signing is likely to be a winger as they have been scouring the market for a new wide man since deciding to send Jadon Sancho back to Manchester United.
Sancho spent the 2024/25 campaign on loan at Stamford Bridge, and this deal included an obligation to buy for around £25m. However, the Blues had the option to back out of the deal by paying a £5m penalty fee to Man Utd.
The England international scored in the Europa Conference League final, but his form was inconsistent for Chelsea, who eventually came to the sensible decision to pay £5m to force the winger to return to Man Utd.
Enzo Maresca’s side have been active in the market as they have made signings ahead of the Club World Cup and made Dortmund standout Jamie Gittens as their preferred replacement for Sancho.
READ: Club World Cup prize money table revealed: Manchester City pay back summer transfer already
The 20-year-old Englishman had a breakout season in 2024/25 with Dortmund, grabbing 12 goals and five assists in all competitions.
Chelsea were deep in negotiations with Dortmund before the Club World Cup, but they could not finalise a deal before the tournament started.
Despite this, the two clubs have remained in contact and a couple of days ago, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano revealed the Blues and Gittens have an agreement over a contract.
Romano explained: “Jamie Gittens has an agreement with Chelsea on a seven-year contract.
“It’s all ready. Now they’re working club-to-club to try to reach an agreement with Borussia Dortmund. Chelsea keep advancing on this deal and continue to see Gittens as their priority target.”
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Now, The Athletic’s David Ornstein has revealed that there has been a breakthrough in talks between Chelsea and Dortmund, with Gittens’ proposed move to Stamford Bridge set to be ‘done imminently’.
Recent reports have indicated that Arsenal have made a ‘concrete’ move to hijack the deal, while Ornstein mentions Bayern Munich as another contender to sign Gittens.
However, Ornstein notes that the winger ‘favours’ Chelsea and has ‘remained fully committed’ to the Premier League giants, while another factor in their favour is that ‘negotiations have been helped’ by them and Dortmund competing at the Club World Cup.
The report adds:
‘Chelsea were unable to finalise a deal with the Bundesliga club for the 20-year-old before the closing of the pre-Club World Cup transfer window earlier this month.
‘But despite that delay, talks have continued and there is hope an agreement can be reached swiftly, irrespective of suggestions Bayern Munich are also keen on Gittens.’