Chelsea’s hierarchy are considering bringing Emmanuel Emegha’s move to the club forward to January, sources can reveal and amid an Enzo Maresca’s admission that Liam Delap faces another untimely spell on the sidelines.
A deal that will see 22-year-old Emegha arrive at Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2026 is already in place, with the Blues having agreed to splash out a fee in the region of €25m (£22m, $27m) to sign him from sister club, Strasbourg. Standing at 6ft 5in and having recently earned his first two caps for the Netherlands, Emegha, 22, was also appointed captain of the Ligue 1 side this season.
But Chelsea are now looking at the prospect of bringing the Dutch striker in ahead of schedule, TEAMtalk has been told.
Strasbourg were never keen to lose Emegha early, but with Argentine Joaquin Panichelli in fine form and currently first-choice under Liam Rosenior, the belief is now that Strasbourg could very well cope with the potential loss of Emegha in January should Chelsea insist on triggering the deal.
Should Chelsea bring Emegha in, they would likely do it early in January, giving BlueCo the chance to bring in another striker that could replace him at Strasbourg.
Chelsea are looking at Emegha as a possible option following a shoulder injury suffered by Delap in their goalless draw with Bournemouth.
Whilst the extent has yet to be confirmed, sources have informed us that the initial diagnosis is that Delap will be ruled out for around two months – meaning he won’t be seen again in a Chelsea shirt until February at best.
Delap has already missed a chunk of the season following a hamstring injury in August, and despite having fellow summer signing Joao Pedro and Marc Guiu available, Maresca has made it clear that he wants striker reinforcements come the New Year.
Speaking in the aftermath of Saturday’s frustrating 0-0 draw at Bournemouth, Maresca told the media: “Unfortunately, he has already been out for two months and he has to be out again. We don’t know for how long, but it looks quite bad, his shoulder.”
Maresca added: “He has been unlucky. We are also a bit unlucky because we need that kind of a No. 9.”
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Latest Chelsea news: Newcastle eye forgotten star; £120m Man City raid
Meanwhile, Newcastle are reportedly among the sides hoping to land a forgotten Chelsea man who the club are very much keen on shipping out ahead of the January window.
The bona fide member of Maresca’s bomb squad has not played for Chelsea since a 3-1 win over Wolves in January.
Elsewhere, hugely ambitious reports from Spain claim Manchester City are plotting a £120m raid on the Blues for one of their brightest prospects, though the article does look wide of the mark for several reasons.
Finally, while the Blues may have endured a very disappointing week, taking just one point from games against the Cherries and Leeds, sources can reveal that Maresca enjoys the full backing of Chelsea’s hierarchy, who could not be happier with their progress under the Italian tactician.
Furthermore, with the club already considering an option to extend his contract, and with their two top transfer priorities in 2026 also coming to light.