Chelsea had just been crowned Premier League champions in 2017 when they were seriously interested in signing a player who would become a legend of the English game.
Antonio Conte’s side had strolled to the title in the 2016/17 season, but it was noticeable that their squad was upgradable if they wanted to maintain their place at the top.
Ultimately, a summer transfer window which revolved around the addition of Alvaro Morata and Tiemoue Bakayoko did not do enough, especially when their rivals were making strides to close the gap.
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Manchester City strengthened their defence with the signing of Kyle Walker, and it has now been revealed that they actually beat Chelsea to that deal.
Walker told The Overlap that he was in discussions with the Blues over a potential move, however decided that because he was coming from Tottenham he couldn’t make the controversial switch across London.
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He said: “Yeah, Marina, Yeah, I was speaking to her, but I couldn’t have gone there. I couldn’t have gone there because of the Tottenham-Chelsea thing. So I wouldn’t have gone there. So the only option was Manchester City.”
Victor Moses had been used as the right wing-back for the 2016/17 campaign, and while he had a great season he would never reach these heights again in his career.
Walker would certainly have been an upgrade for Chelsea in that position for a number of seasons, before Reece James would have likely pushed him for his position in the side.
Ironically, Walker has named James as the heir to his right-back position for England after his recent international appointment ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
At Man City, Walker would go on to win six Premier League titles. Chelsea have not won the league since that 16/17 campaign.
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The move would certainly have been controversial for Walker to make due to the lack of individuals to play for both clubs.
Only William Gallas and Carlo Cudicini have directly moved between the two clubs, with not many more playing for both sides in Premier League history.
The standout names include Eidur Gudjohnsen and Gus Poyet, with Cobham graduate Conor Gallagher currently part of the struggling Spurs side.
It is likely that money played a part in his decision though. Gallagher is currently earning £200k-per-week in North London, four times what he was on at Stamford Bridge.
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