Chelsea's recruitment drive has been pretty exciting over the last week, with numerous talks ongoing behind-the-scenes after they sealed a deal for Liam Delap.
Chelsea attempting to confirm more signings before Club World Cup
Delap officially signed a six-year contract at Stamford Bridge earlier this week and will don the number nine shirt, with the Blues deciding to pay his £30 million release clause.
ipswich-town-liam-delap-premier-league Related
Chelsea push to sign second ex-Man City gem after Delap amid £20m discount
The Blues could add to their ex-City contingent again.
The now-former Ipswich Town star is eligible to take part in Chelsea's Club World Cup campaign, giving Enzo Maresca a classic out-and-out number nine to work with ahead of the potentially lucrative tournament, which could yield £97 million in prize money.
BlueCo are by no means slowing down in the market after the confirmed arrival of Delap, with Chelsea at work to strengthen numerous other areas of Maresca's squad before the mini-window shuts on June 10.
Liam Delap's best Premier League games for Ipswich last season Match Rating
Ipswich Town 2-0 Chelsea 8.08
Bournemouth 1-2 Ipswich Town 8.05
Ipswich Town 2-2 Aston Villa 8.04
Ipswich Town 1-2 Southampton 7.83
Fulham 2-2 Ipswich Town 7.55
via WhoScored
Chelsea are still reportedly pushing to sign Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund, as his price tag apparently drops to around £30 million, and they've been in discussions with AC Milan about a deal for French international goalkeeper AC Milan.
However, despite Chelsea holding talks over Maignan, as first revealed by Fabrizio Romano, there remains a considerable gap in valuation between the clubs.
With Chelsea also reportedly in negotiations over signing Ajax starlet Jorrel Hato in their pursuit of a new centre-back, not to mention a move for Eintracht Frankfurt sensation Hugo Ekitike, it is clear that Maresca's side are pulling no punches as they attempt to reinforce the squad.
There's actually been an interesting update on the latter, who appears likely to leave Eintracht after just one full season in the Bundesliga.
Hugo Ekitike clear he wants to join Chelsea with "positive talks" held
According to a report by journalist Simon Phillips, via his Substack, Ekitike has communicated his desire to join Chelsea behind-the-scenes - following the 6 foot 3 striker's excellent campaign of 22 goals and 12 assists in all competitions.
However, the move remains complicated, with price proving to be a major sticking point.
hugo-ekitike-frankfurt
"More positive talks yesterday and this one has been progressing. However, as with Maignan, Chelsea are not paying their asking price. Games are being played here too," said Phillips.
"The player wants the move and has communicated that. Frankfurt know they are selling him, so Chelsea once again are taking the tough stance here and know they are in a strong position.
Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike-1
"Chelsea have mooted players to Frankfurt as a make-weight on the deal, and they are interested. I don’t know which players, but it is rumoured to be a couple from Strasbourg, so it would have to be unofficial favour for a favour ‘swap’ deals here.
"I see this one dragging on a bit to be honest because the gap in valuation is too big. But as I said, there has been positive progress on this over the last week. By the way, there is no way Chelsea should be paying £80m for Ekitike so I back this stance here, I just don’t back it for Maignan."