Chelsea Transfers

[lucio 5,418]

28 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

It’s really funny how Guirassy‘s reputation has recovered. During his time at Köln he was known as the worst finisher in Germany. The amount and quality of chances he wasted was legendary and puts Werner, Havertz, Jackson and Lukaku to shame. Ok maybe not Lukaku but still. On the one hand it shows how short ppls memories are but also two things are possible… a mediocre striker can always hit a purple patch down the line or a serial choker can become a clinical striker.

Personally, I would not touch him. We have been linked with so many flavour of the month strikers once they hit a good spell who just fell off a cliff weeks later (Belotti, jovic, piatek, lacine traore, diakite etc.) 

 

IMO there are only two types of centre forward you can trust to be starters for a top club. Either those that are the epitome of clinical finishers, who were literally born with unshakable confidence, unerring positioning,  the ability to score goals from half chances, Mishits , deflections, gk errors or undetected fouls. This type of striker has become increasingly rare as fewer teams are willing to sacrifice a runner for a fox in the box. Then there a strikers who are so polished in their overall game and offer such valuable link up play, create chances for teammates, make space for attacks and drag defenders out of postirion that they can go months without scoring but are still valuable to the play. 
Guirassy and also probably Toney fall in neither category so we should probably stay clear if they demand a starting spot. Toney is also too expensive to ride the bench. 
 

i honestly believe if we get Nkunku back to full fitness and Poch manages to tweak his system to accommodate both, NJ and Nkunku, we could have on of the best strikeforces in the country. 

 

he's worth a punt at that price surely. Chump change for todays market

[Reddish-Blue 2,504]

51 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

 

 

IMO there are only two types of centre forward you can trust to be starters for a top club. Either those that are the epitome of clinical finishers, who were literally born with unshakable confidence, unerring positioning,  the ability to score goals from half chances, Mishits , deflections, gk errors or undetected fouls. This type of striker has become increasingly rare as fewer teams are willing to sacrifice a runner for a fox in the box. Then there a strikers who are so polished in their overall game and offer such valuable link up play, create chances for teammates, make space for attacks and drag defenders out of postirion that they can go months without scoring but are still valuable to the play. 
Guirassy and also probably Toney fall in neither category so we should probably stay clear if they demand a starting spot. Toney is also too expensive to ride the bench. 
 

i honestly believe if we get Nkunku back to full fitness and Poch manages to tweak his system to accommodate both, NJ and Nkunku, we could have on of the best strikeforces in the country. 

 

Agree with this but Jackson needs at least 2+ seasons of development to be the main man in attack.   I get the experiment and Jackson has the raw skills you want to see in a young striker but to expect him & Broja to lead the line and potentially score 15+ goals between them was always going to be a step too far. 

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

54 minutes ago, lucio said:

he's worth a punt at that price surely. Chump change for todays market

17.5 indeed would be worth a punt but we don’t need any more overrated flavour of the month littering the squad. Also he is probably too old to fit into boehly ball 

26 minutes ago, Reddish-Blue said:

Agree with this but Jackson needs at least 2+ seasons of development to be the main man in attack.   I get the experiment and Jackson has the raw skills you want to see in a young striker but to expect him & Broja to lead the line and potentially score 15+ goals between them was always going to be a step too far. 

If Jackson stays fit I can see him scoring 10-15 goals in all comps. Sure he needs more time to become a reliable goal scorer but nkunku back could alleviate some of the pressure . 

broja really does not look too promising. He is all pace and power and 0 brain or awareness. I like his attitude but his finishing is meh. 

[Vesper 30,172]

Nic Jackson learning trade but Chelsea need proven ST, Enzo mentally tired? Impossible task of picking best fully fit Chelsea Xl, Luke Rushbrook article, News roundups, and more...

https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/nic-jackson-learning-trade-but-Chelsea

Morning everyone!

Happy hump day! We’ve made it to Wednesday and that means we are almost at another Chelsea fixture! It feels so great to be excited for our games week after week right now, doesn’t it?

More on the upcoming game against Brentford as the week goes on, including team and injury news that I’ll be checking in on. But before that, let’s go back to the Arsenal game for another little analysis before moving on. We have honed in on the individual errors that led to Arsenal getting back in the game, but there was also a moment that should have seen us bury the game even more and go on to win 3-0. I speak on that and the fact Chelsea still need a proven goalscorer in here.

I have seen some odd criticisms of Enzo Fernandez of all people this week. Well, I’ve not read or listened to it myself, but I have been alerted to it by one of our community members on here. Anyway, I’m not trying to tell people what to think or how to support Chelsea, but for me any criticism of Enzo is hugely daft right now, and I explain why and that maybe he might just be mentally tired in here.

This week as well I set myself the impossible task of picking the best Chelsea Xl when everyone is fit. This took me a lot longer than I expected it to. I changed my mind a whole lot and I’m still not even fully convinced or happy with my choice now. Even still, I made my choices and explain it all in here.

Luke Rushbrook has his latest and ever popular weekly Loan Army Roundup for us all here. Looking at how the likes of Gaga Slonina, Bashir Humphreys, Angelo Gabriel, David Datro Fofana, Cesare Casadei and more are getting on.

And of course, all your latest Chelsea news roundups in one place can be found here. Transfer rumours, quotes, injury news, and much more in this.

We are recording the latest Podcast episode today this week, which is a day earlier than usual. Jai is off on a work trip and he will be traveling on Thursday, so we have had to bring it forward to today. So that will be out around 6.30pm tonight!

See you all on the live blog from around 8am today!

Peace, Si.

[Vesper 30,172]

What next for Thiago Silva at Chelsea?

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138268241/what-next-for-thiago-silva-at-Chelsea

We know Chelsea have had a busy few transfer windows under Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, and we’re continuing to see speculation about further changes to this squad in the months to come.

One player with an uncertain future is Thiago Silva - we know he’s heading towards the end of his contract, currently making him a free agent in summer 2024, and there are some reports that he could move back to Brazil with Fluminense at the end of this season.

Still, my understanding is that Silva has not decided anything at this stage and no decision will be made now. It will be up to the player, and he will decide in 2024. In my opinion Thiago is still a fantastic defender but for him and Chelsea to continue together they need to be 100% convinced on both player and club side.

If Silva were to leave Chelsea, could they sign a replacement? There’s nothing concrete on that for now as Silva’s future hasn’t been decided anyway, so I’d say recent rumours linking the Blues with Alessandro Bastoni are quite premature. I’m not aware of any contact with the Inter defender, though of course it’s easy to mention “interest” for one of the most talented left footed centre-backs in Europe. Bastoni recently signed new deal at Inter, and as far as I’m aware there’s nothing else happening at this stage.

[Vesper 30,172]

Chelsea looking at new centre backs and left backs

The club are doing some due diligence - new left back name revealed in this

https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/sources-Chelsea-looking-at-new-centre

As like most clubs, Chelsea are doing due diligence and planning for two to three of the next approaching transfer windows in advance, and they are honing in on two positions in particular.

The priority remains a new striker in January, but the club’s planners and decision makers are also starting to look at potential new centre backs and left backs.

The centre back situation is clear. There are some concerns over Wesley Fofana’s injury issues and at the moment we would be surprised to see him back this season. Then there is the situation of Thiago Silva, who I am still hearing is likely to be moving on when his contract runs out at the end of this season, bar any late surprises.

Trevoh Chalobah is set to be sold in January as well, so the club are looking at potentially signing a new centre back in the summer.

I have yet to hear of any names and I’ve not heard about any interest in Alessandro Bastoni yet.

But what I have been told is that if Silva does go, they will look to replace him with a centre back with experience. That doesn’t mean an older player necessarily, but it does mean one who has either Premier League or European experience and comes with a bit of leadership and influence. So basically replacing Silva like-for-like, which I believe would be very wise.

Bashir Humphreys is also being closely monitored on his current loan spell and many at the club rate him highly.

What about left backs?

Chelsea are also doing their due diligence on potential new left backs.

Even though Marc Cucurella is liked by Mauricio Pochettino and is enjoying a bit of a resurgence and some good form, his future is still marked as ‘unclear’ by sources I have been speaking to. So that could develop.

I am also told it is likely now that Ian Maatsen will leave the club, potentially in January. Chelsea have so far been unable to agree a new long-term contract with Maatsen, and as a result they used the option to extend his contract by a further year in order to buy themselves time, and also hold a decent valuation over his head - which right now is looking to be the more likely scenario.

Maatsen has a lot of interest coming in and I believe Chelsea will end up listening to offers for him in January despite ideally wanting him to stay at the club (hence the contract offers made).

I don’t think either side really here is at fault - Maatsen is rightly looking at all options and wants to make sure he plays regular football, which he is unlikely to get at Chelsea as of right now. And Chelsea rate him and want to keep him but obviously cannot guarantee regular starts.

There are also some slight doubts creeping in from sources on Ben Chilwell’s future. Nothing to report really and as of now, nobody at Chelsea wants Chilwell to leave, and he himself is not looking to leave as of right now. But it is a potential situation that sources have said to keep an eye on in the future. So another one that could develop. His regular injuries are also a bit of a concern. Either way, Chelsea want two top left backs to compete just as they have on the right side with Malo Gusto and Reece James.

As of a result of all the above, Chelsea are looking at left backs. Nothing advanced, and nothing more than just usual club due diligence as of now, but there are a few names being looked at and considered in the view to potentially bringing one in for January or the summer.

One name I have been given is Valentin Barco from Boca Juniors. I have been told he is one left back who has been added to the shortlist for a potential move.

Barco is a 19-year-old Argentinian youth international and he is also being tracked by a number of other top clubs including Manchester City right now.

On the mystery player

I can reveal that the mystery player that Chelsea really like and are keen on signing would be for one of the above positions. He is a ‘big name’ and would certainly get Chelsea fans excited. But, nothing advanced there yet either and I am still hoping to report the name soon once my source allows it.

That’s it for now, updates will be out on the site as and when of course.

Simon Phillips

[Vesper 30,172]

Is Ivan Toney the solution to Chelsea’s No 9 problem?

https://theathletic.com/5000886/2023/10/27/ivan-toney-Chelsea-striker/

Mauricio Pochettino will probably regard it as a small mercy that, as Brentford attempt to earn their third consecutive victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, they will have to do it without talismanic striker Ivan Toney.

The 27-year-old, who is banned from football until January 17 after admitting in May to 232 breaches of the Football Association’s betting rules, did not score in either of Brentford’s two previous wins at Chelsea. He made his mark on both occasions, though: slipping a brilliant pass through to Vitaly Janelt to dink in the third goal in a 4-1 triumph in April last year and laying the ball off to Shandon Baptiste to spring Bryan Mbeumo away to ultimately give the visitors a 2-0 lead they would not relinquish a year later.

Brentford have adapted impressively well to Toney’s lengthy absence; the fact they are 14th in the Premier League does not reflect negatively on their attack, the team having scored 14 times in the season’s opening nine league matches — one more than Chelsea — with Mbeumo in particular shouldering a greater share of the goals burden. But it would be disingenuous to claim they have not missed Toney, scorer of 20 goals in 33 Premier League appearances last season and the muscular, intelligent focal point around whom Mbeumo and others have thrived.

Head coach Thomas Frank devised a 16-week plan in September to build up his top striker’s fitness, and the plan is to throw Toney back into competitive action as soon as he is eligible. He is allowed to play in behind-closed-doors matches until then and, after scoring against Como of Italy’s second division at the beginning of this month, he completed 65 minutes on Wednesday for Brentford’s B team against French side Monaco’s under-21s.

The big question is whether Brentford will be the club to benefit from this preparation work.

Toney will enter the final 18 months of his current contract at the turn of the year and has been laying the groundwork for a big-money transfer since last summer, when he enlisted powerful international football agency CAA Stellar as his new representation.

Arsenal have been linked with signing him, Tottenham could also be in the market for a new striker in the wake of Harry Kane’s summer departure to Bayern Munich, and Chelsea are the Premier League heavyweights giving most thought to signing a No 9 in the winter market, when a deal for Napoli’s Victor Osimhen might also be attainable.

But how good is Toney, and what could he offer Chelsea? The Athletic takes a closer look…

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In terms of his physical presence and style of play, the loftier Chelsea comparisons that Toney has attracted are Didier Drogba and Diego Costa. But the list of players similar to his statistical profile on respected data website FBref.com throws up another distinguished name — and probably a more accurate match — from more recent Stamford Bridge history: Olivier Giroud.

Toney, as with Giroud, is a late bloomer at the top level of football. Both have been credited by former team-mates and coaches with having the mentality of elite professionals even when they were labouring in relative obscurity, and have been widely praised for being positive dressing room influences.

GO DEEPER

Olivier Giroud: match-winning goalkeeper

Another parallel with Giroud is the fact that Toney is more than a traditional target man, though his aerial ability is a core part of his appeal; with just under 3.6 aerial duels won per 90 minutes, he ranks in the 80th percentile for forwards in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League over the past year.

Gareth Southgate handed Toney his England debut against Ukraine in March after describing his performance in a 1-1 draw against Arsenal the month before, when he dominated William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes in the air, as “outstanding”.

During his three seasons at Brentford, he has had an amplifying effect on the attacking production of those around him, using an array of incisive passes, layoffs, knockdowns and flick-ons to put team-mates in positions to threaten the opponents.

As the graphic below illustrates, these occur in deeper positions in the final third as well as inside the penalty area.

It is not difficult to imagine Toney’s smart hold-up and link-up play giving the likes of Raheem Sterling, Mykhailo Mudryk, Cole Palmer and Noni Madueke more good opportunities to stress defences, in much the same way that Giroud did with Eden Hazard, Willian and Pedro Rodriguez.

Toney’s particularly slick chemistry with a more nimble, skilful forward in Mbeumo, whenever Brentford switched to a strike partnership in attack, might also bode well for potential combinations with Christopher Nkunku — though it is also worth noting that he and the summer signing from RB Leipzig both like to drift into the left half-space in order to get on the ball.

Six of the 20 Premier League goals Toney scored last season were penalties. He is excellent at taking them, converting 29 of 31 attempts in his professional career and frequently sending goalkeepers the wrong way by employing a short, deliberate run-up that gives few clear hints as to his true intentions.

Toney is yet to record a truly prolific top-flight campaign by modern standards, and his 0.4 non-penalty expected goals (npxG) per 90 minutes in the 2022-23 Premier League fell a long way short of the 0.66 registered by Osimhen in the same season as he fired Napoli to their first Serie A title since 1990.

These individual numbers, however, should not be separated from their team context.

Brentford have created chances at a good rather than great frequency in their two completed seasons in the Premier League. In 2021-22, their first year after winning promotion via the play-offs, their 1.08 npxG per 90 minutes ranked 11th in the division, and that figure improved to 1.33 12 months later, which was eighth-best.

The most encouraging thing for Toney is that he has done a relatively impressive job of turning the chances that come his way into goals. His shot conversion of 21 per cent over the past two seasons is very respectable and actually compares favourably to more heralded attackers such as Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus and Marcus Rashford of Manchester United.

He has also made a year-on-year improvement in where he takes his shots from.

As the graphic below illustrates, the bulk of his goal attempts in 2021-22 were spread across the penalty area…

… whereas last season he did a better job of hoovering up chances in and around the six-yard box, which predictably led to a big increase in his expected goals (xG) per shot attempt:

Brentford did a better job of generating shot attempts in these high-value areas than Chelsea did in 2022-23, aided significantly by their set-piece prowess. Thirty-nine per cent of their total efforts at goal came either in the opposition’s six-yard box or just outside it.

That metric was just 32 per cent for Chelsea last season, whose overall shot conversion in the six-yard box was a startling 15 per cent — well below the Premier League average, which stood at 28 per cent:

Summer appointment Pochettino’s team have only been taking 31 per cent of their shots either in the six-yard box or just outside it in the opening nine games, though there have been marginal improvements in the average quality and distance from goal of their attempts.

The key question is: would Toney give Chelsea more of a goal threat in and around the six-yard box, or would his scoring production be negatively impacted by playing in a different system?

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Toney would be an unusual Chelsea transfer target in several ways.

He turns 28 in March, so does not fit the age profile of a recruitment strategy that has overwhelmingly focused on players 23 or younger. Nor does he project as having huge untapped potential.

However, his steady improvement since failing to break through at Newcastle as a teenager following a move from Northampton Town of the fourth division should give any buying club confidence that he will continue to find ways to grow his game. He won the League One Player of the Season award in 2019-20 with Peterborough United before breaking the Championship goalscoring record at Brentford the following campaign, underlying his ability to step up.

There are other uncertain variables from Chelsea’s perspective.

Toney has never played in a team of such stature and expectations, even if standards dropped to historic lows last season at Stamford Bridge. It is unclear how well he would adapt to being part of a high-possession team regularly confronted by low opposition blocks.

His aerial presence would certainly provide a dimension not currently offered by Nicolas Jackson or Armando Broja, but his attacking threat at Brentford has not been reliant on that; only 19 per cent of his goal attempts since the start of 2021-22 have been headers.

Frank considers Toney a key part of his leadership group, responsible for ensuring high standards are set and then maintained on and off the pitch. Would that force of personality scale up to the Chelsea dressing room?

Whatever the answer, the harsh reality is that any club considering a large transfer outlay on Toney will also need to be completely convinced that the football betting which got him this suspension is no longer a risk.

January and its transfer window will bring conflicting incentives.

Brentford need to cash in on Toney sooner rather than later. They will be conscious they allowed David Raya to enter the final 12 months of his contract and were unable to extract maximum value from his loan move to Arsenal, which is expected to be made permanent for £30million in total next summer. Brentford will also lose fellow forwards Mbeumo (Cameroon) and Yoane Wissa (DR Congo) to the Africa Cup of Nations that month.

Chelsea will have Jackson (Senegal) away at the same tournament, and need to decide whether Broja and Nkunku, who is on his way back from a pre-season injury, constitute enough firepower to see them through that period.

Even if they do pursue a No 9 in the winter window, Osimhen might be the better choice — although he stands to have Africa Cup of Nations duty then too, with Nigeria.

What transfer business is financially possible must be weighed against what is logistically feasible in the middle of a season, and the potential cost of opportunity as well as price. A deal for Toney might still be there next summer, and in the meantime, Pochettino cannot possibly know exactly what he has yet in Jackson, Broja and Nkunku — two summer arrivals and a player newly returned from a major knee injury suffered last December.

Toney has established himself as a serious Premier League striker and there is a world in which he could be as impactful as the best version of Giroud at his next club.

Whether or not that next club should be Chelsea is much harder to say.

GO DEEPER

Ivan Toney's betting ban shames the whole of football, not just him

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Three HUGE sourced stories - Exclusive on Conor Gallagher's future, Sources on new CBs/LBs, Sources on Nkunku's injury recovery - when he will be back, Plus Luke looks at midfield, and more...

https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/three-huge-sourced-stories-exclusive

Morning all!

Wow, today is a jam-packed Chelsea newsletter full of inside information and sourced stories, as well as a big exclusive story on Conor Gallagher.

It looks like we are recording the latest Podcast today rather than yesterday after all. Jai is traveling for work this week so it’s been hard to pin him down. He got to his Hotel yesterday and we were going to record then, but the WiFi wasn’t working! So we will be attempting to record today - I’ll keep you all updated on the live blog today.

BIG newsletter this, let’s get into it!

Let’s begin with the Conor Gallagher exclusive I had out - there is a new Premier League team interested in signing Gallagher this January, but will Chelsea sell him or has their stance changed on it? Find out in here.

Christopher Nkunku’s road to recovery continues, but he is getting there and we have a story here on when sources expect him back playing for Chelsea again, and what the latest is in his rehabilitation. He’s not been in England the whole time 👀

And a big sourced one now on Chelsea looking at new centre backs and new left backs for the upcoming transfer windows. Priority remains a new striker, but Chelsea’s pre-planning goes further and much more advanced than just that. I have a new left back name being targeted in this one here, as well as all the latest info on new centre backs and current situations such as Thiago Silva, Ian Maatsen, and Marc Cucurella!

And after all that excitement and big sourced news, we had our resident scout Luke Rushbrook with his daily article to keep the content varied! Luke has looked at something we have discussed a lot on here lately, the midfield balance and where Romeo Lavia fits in. That and more in here.

As well as all of that, I of course had the live blog running yesterday as usual, and this contains all your latest Chelsea news, quotes, transfer rumours and anything else in the same place here.

Will Reyner’s popular weekly column for us is in the drafts, but I had so much sourced content to put out for this one so Will’s excellent latest article will be out later today instead!

Same goes for the polls article! Looking to get that out later today!

Hope you all have a good day, see you all on the live blog from 8am!

Peace, Si.

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Chelsea

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138276295/Chelsea

• Ghanaian top talent Fatawu Ganiwu will be traveling to train with European clubs very soon. He looks set to attend RC Lens first in November, but Chelsea are also among the names monitoring him.

• Could Chelsea be set to sign a new striker and new centre-back this January?

• A big name from Barcelona has been linked with the Blues - full info here.

• Good news for Chelsea as Liverpool are NOT in the race for Victor Osimhen - more info here.

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Jamal Musiala, Tammy Abraham, Jadon Sancho, Ivan Toney, and more...

Some random names there - but some key updates

https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/sources-jamal-musiala-tammy-abraham

Chelsea’s transfer plans are fully underway for January, and for the summer, as I have been reporting on here all this week with a host of sourced stories.

I’ve been speaking to a couple of my best sources quite a bit this week and have been given a few bits of random information on the above names.

So as always, I am sharing it with you guys here.

Jamal Musiala

I’ve spoken about Musiala a few times recently and I have information from a couple of sources on him now.

One source this week tells me that Musiala is a ‘dream target’ for Chelsea for next summer, and there is genuine interest there from our side.

However, sources in Germany believe Musiala would only leave Bayern Munich for either Real Madrid or Manchester City and unfortunately, that is what my other top source has said as well - as I reported last week.

If Chelsea were to stand any chance of landing Musiala, they would need Champions League football at the very least. But the interest is there.

Although it is my personal opinion that we have no chance of getting him, so I don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up - just reporting what I hear as always.

Tammy Abraham

As I put on the live blog yesterday, I am now hearing that Chelsea have cooled their interest in bringing Tammy Abraham back to Stamford Bridge. He’s always been on the list, but never a priority, and there are at least five strikers now ahead of him in on the shortlist.

He was suggested as a potential target by Frank Lampard’s staff at the end of last season, and he was considered then. But I’ve heard he is no longer being considered as a real option as of now (things can always change but I don’t expect them to with this one now).

Jadon Sancho

 

As I reported in the summer, Chelsea looked at the possibility of signing Jadon Sancho before they signed Cole Palmer and ended up opting for him. This was since confirmed by other outlets.

I am now told that we have distanced ourselves from Sancho as of now, and I am actually hearing that Juventus are showing a keen interest in signing the Manchester United winger.

Ivan Toney

A bit more on Toney. A source believes it is likely that Chelsea might use the opportunity to speak directly to Brentford this weekend regarding a potential move for Ivan Toney. I’m not sure if this will definitely happen, but it is more a belief of my top source rather than factual as of now. I suspect it will happen though as it just makes sense.

Chelsea wanting to keep targets under wraps

One of the main reasons I cannot report the ‘mystery name’ I’ve been given yet is because Chelsea are really trying to keep their targets under wraps - just as they did in the summer.

Of course I do get many names here, and I get many of them before anywhere else. So I will always put out what I am allowed to put out. But Chelsea want to try and keep as many of their main targets under wraps as possible. This is probably why the Toney stuff isn’t out there too much right now.

I’ve also been told we are looking at a few ‘big names’ and not just the mystery name I know about. I’m sure Musiala is probably one of those ‘big names’ but as I said, I only see him going to Manchester City or Real Madrid. We CAN dream/try though, for sure. Why not!?

Simon Phillips

 

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Feyenoord

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138276295/feyenoord

• Santiago Gimenez again on fire for Feyenoord this season! He has scored 15 goals in his last 9 games! He got a brace last night on his Champions League debut - he now has a total of 15 goals and three assists this season.

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Tottenham could land Santiago Giménez for a €45m bargain fee

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138325962/tottenham-could-land-santiago-gimenez-for-a-m-bargain-fee

Let me start by mentioning what's going on around Santiago Giménez, the Mexican striker who had a fantastic Champions League debut against Lazio, scoring a brace. He’s scored 15 goals in the last nine games with Feyenoord too, so this boy is a real goal machine.

Last season he decided to stay at Feyenoord and sign a new deal, and now he's performing at a top level again with Arne Slot as manager, but what I wanted to clarify guys is that many of you have been asking me about Giménez to Tottenham or Real Madrid because of the words apparently said by someone close to the player in an interview.

What I can tell you after speaking to direct sources is Santiago Giménez has no agent or intermediary, there is no one taking care of his business other than his father - it’s important to verify that.

From what I'm hearing, something around €45m could be the right fee to get a deal done, so let's see if that’s in the January window or in the summer.

Tottenham scouts have been following the player since last year and surely he’s interesting for them - but also for many other clubs around Europe. This is why decisions will be made in the next month but, at the moment, no statement from the player’s father on this.

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No chance for Mudryk to leave Chelsea

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138325962/no-chance-for-mudryk-to-leave-Chelsea

Mykhailo Mudryk is going to change his story at Chelsea for sure because we saw recently how well he's doing, scoring for Chelsea and the Ukrainian national team.

More than that, he's very happy in London now, in his personal life and has settled down. This is really important for a young player coming from a different country.

I also wanted to clarify about Mudryk’s situation in the summer guys. When some clubs started to approach Chelsea over the possibility of maybe finding a way to sign him after a difficult six months at the club, the answer was always the same from the board and the manager. They were all together to protect, support and back the player.

It was never the case that Chelsea would let the player leave in the summer or in any other moment. They trusted Mudryk then, they still trust him now and Chelsea think that we are still not saying the best of him. It will take time of course but the club believe he is going to be a big star in the future.

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Chelsea

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/138325969/Chelsea

• Pochettino: “Christopher Nkunku is working really well now and he’s really close. We can have him involved as soon as possible. He's a really important player for us and for our project. Maybe after the international break he will be involved. Maybe… not sure. We are looking forward to seeing him help us score more goals.”

• Pochettino on January window: “We are ready, working with the sporting directors to be ready. We’ll speak to see if the team needs to add players offensively.”

• Si Phillips has all the latest on the links with Jamal Musiala, Ivan Toney, Jadon Sancho and Tammy Abraham exclusively here.

• Mauricio Pochettino is “not happy” with latest decision made regarding Chelsea [The Guardian via CaughtOffside]

• Pochettino on new deal for Conor Gallagher: “We have to see how he feels. The player, his plans and intentions, as well as what the club want. Both sides need to feel good and that’s why in this moment we can arrive at a new deal. Even if he wants to extend the contract, we will stop and speak…”

• No chance Mykhailo Mudryk will leave Chelsea. Find out why here.

[Vesper 30,172]

Who is Miles Leaburn? The prolific Charlton striker attracting Chelsea's interest

https://www.footballtransfers.com/en/transfer-news/tag/newsnow-features-only/miles-leaburn-charlton-striker-Chelsea-transfer-profile

Chelsea have become the latest club to register an interest in Miles Leaburn, who is fast taking the Football League by storm.

Leaburn came through the academy at Chelsea but joined Charlton after being released as a 16-year-old and three years later, his former club are looking to make up for their mistake.

Article continues under the video

However, Chelsea will likely face competition for Leaburn’s signature, with the giant striker also wanted by Brentford and having been tracked by Aston Villa.

SPECULATION: Blues plotting return of academy striker

 

But just who is the teenager looking to make the rise up the divisions and make his way into the Premier League?

What position does Miles Leaburn play?

Leaburn is a right-footed striker, renowned for his stature at 6 foot 6 inches, making him a lethal target man for Charlton.

How good is Miles Leaburn?

Leaburn has had a low profile career so far, being released by Chelsea’s academy in 2019 to little fanfare and joining Charlton’s youth team in League One.

However, it wasn’t until the opening day of last season when Leaburn made his debut for the Addicks aged 18, coming off the bench against Accrington Stanley and christening his first professional appearance with a goal.

The son of former Charlton forward Carl, Leaburn went on to score 13 goals in all competitions as his side finished 10th in League One, with the youngster making 23 starts.

His impressive record led to interest from Villa, prompting Charlton manager Dean Holden to say last season: “Miles is not for sale. He is a fantastic young player with lots to learn still.”

5️⃣0️⃣ appearances
1️⃣9️⃣ goals

Enjoy all of @MilesLeaburn's strikes so far 💫#cafc pic.twitter.com/YbfGOVUltN

— Charlton Athletic FC (@CAFCofficial) October 26, 2023

Leaburn has scored three goals in nine games this season, with five of those appearances being starts, but his height and physical prowess has attracted attention from across the country.

What clubs are interested in signing Miles Leaburn?

Chelsea and Brentford are thought to be the latest teams interest in Leaburn but interest is likely to grow if he continues his progress and goalscoring form.

Aston Villa had made an approach for Leaburn last season, while a £3 million offer is thought to have been rejected by Charlton fron an unnamed Bundesliga club during the summer.

When does Miles Leaburn’s contract expire?

Leaburn has a contract with Charlton until June 30th 2025.

How old is Miles Leaburn?

Leaburn was born on 28th November 2003, making him 19 years old.

What is Miles Leaburn’s Instagram?

Leaburn has 6000 followers on Instagram as of October 2023.

Edited October 28, 2023 by Vesper

[MoroccanBlue 5,381]

FUCK OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Vesper 30,172]

2 minutes ago, MoroccanBlue said:

FUCK OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

?

[MoroccanBlue 5,381]

Just now, Vesper said:

?

Context probably important here but I swear to god if I see any more young player links I might just break my computer. This is getting beyond ridiculous. 

[Vesper 30,172]

2 minutes ago, MoroccanBlue said:

Context probably important here but I swear to god if I see any more young player links I might just break my computer. This is getting beyond ridiculous. 

lol

Another wonderkid?! Chelsea tracking 17-year-old Palmeiras youngster Luis Guilherme amid rival interest from West Ham

https://www.goal.com/en-kw/news/Chelsea-tracking-17-year-old-palmeiras-youngster-luis-guilherme-interest-west-ham/blted1c809300863c52

[MoroccanBlue 5,381]

Such a wind up these lot. 

Only player we should be working on is convincing Osihmen to come.