Chelsea were among several clubs to send scouts to watch Monza striker Gustavo Varela, who has netted nine times in his first nine Serie A games for the promoted Italian side. Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United, Brighton, Brentford and Fulham were reportedly in attendance at the Renato Dall’Ara as Monza lost 2-1 to Bologna. Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Atlético Madrid also had scouts in attendance, but there is no word of any clubs making any official attempts.
The 21-year-old Portuguese attacker moved to Monza from Benfica in the summer after a successful loan spell with Gil Vicente. He signed for them for €2.5m plus add-ons, and Benfica hold the right to match any offer for him, as well as a 20% sell-on clause. They do not have a buy-back option. Varela is the son of former Cape Verde international Fernando Varela. He netted against Bologna to add to his incredible start to life in Italy. He is the first player under 22 to score nine goals in his first nine Serie A games since Pierino Prati for AC Milan in the 1960s.
Chelsea have shown interest as Joao Pedro is set to be out for a few weeks due to a thigh injury suffered in training. He has been in fine form this season with five goals and three assists in the Premier League, but they failed to score in league defeats to Brentford and Tottenham without him, before beating Manchester United 2-0.
Xabi Alonso has been forced to rotate options through the middle, using Morgan Rogers, Pedro Neto, Danny Welbeck and Emmanuel Emegha. Meanwhile, with Varela still being scouted, Napoli, Juventus, AC Milan and Inter are also keeping a close eye on him.
Xabi Alonso: “You Need To Be Looking For Solutions, Not Looking For Excuses”
Xabi Alonso has stated that they must look to solve any problems internally while Joao Pedro is out with his thigh injury. He spoke about the injury ahead of their Carabao Cup clash against Liverpool last week. Alonso confirmed that the Brazilian would be out for several weeks but did not give a specific timeframe. He was also asked if they have enough squad depth to compensate for one of their key attackers.
Speaking to reporters before the game, Alonso said:
“He has an injury on his thigh and he’s going be out for a few weeks. Let’s see how many. We don’t want to predict on that. But not ready for the next games. He’s a key player. We will miss him, but we have to be ready to deal with the injury and be competitive and try and win with the players we have available. This is the situation.”
Asked whether the squad was strong enough to cope, the Chelsea boss added:
“Yes for sure. This is why you build a squad. It’s a situation that can happen and you need to be looking for solutions, not looking for excuses.”