Chiesa stops Vlahovic joining Arsenal and Chelsea

Carlo Garganese

5 Mar 2024 07:09 GMT
4 min read

Dusan Vlahovic, Juventus, 2023/24 — © IMAGO

Federico Chiesa is currently hampering Arsenal and Chelsea’s chances of signing Dusan Vlahovic this summer.

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Both Arsenal and Chelsea are in the market to sign a top-class centre forward this summer year, and Vlahovic is high up on the shortlist of both teams.

However, despite their need to raise cash, there is no chance of Juventus sanctioning the sale of both Chiesa and Vlahovic this summer. At the most only one of the attacking duo will be offloaded.

READ MORE: Latest Arsenal transfer news

And right now Chiesa is far likelier to be sacrificed.

There are a number of reasons for this. The biggest is that Chiesa’s contract expires in 2025, and contract talks are not going well.

Juventus are unwilling to match Chiesa’s demands of €7 million per season due to his constant injuries. He missed most of 2022 with an ACL injury and has suffered 10 different physical problems in just over a year after returning.

READ MORE: Latest Chelsea transfer news

Chiesa has yet to return to the levels that saw him exploded as one of Europe’s best wingers at Euro 2020.

As a result, Juventus are more open to selling Chiesa this summer than Vlahovic, who has a contract until 2027.

Federico #Chiesa has had a complicated season riddled with injuries but yesterday he lacked in attitude and desire to prove himself once more. He is considered one of the most important players in the squad but now maybe we should say “he was” in past tense (@guido_vaciago / TS) pic.twitter.com/VtZquvkjQ7
— 🎥 The AJC 🏳️🏴 (@The_AJC_) February 13, 2024

Vlahovic to Arsenal or Chelsea

Arsenal tried to sign Vlahovic in January 2022 but he rejected them to join Juventus from Fiorentina, instead for €80m.

Juventus were also in negotiations with Chelsea this past summer over a swap deal involving Vlahovic and Romelu Lukaku.

However, a deal could not be agreed and Vlahovic ended up staying at Juventus for the start of the 2023-24 season.

Both English teams remain interested.

Vlahovic arrived in Turin as one of the hottest properties in world football in January 2022.

He had just scored the most goals in Serie A in a calendar year for 60 years and was posting numbers comparable to Erling Haaland and Robert Lewandowski.

However, things have not worked out for him so smoothly in Turin - although many have blamed the negative tactics of manager Max Allegri for not getting the best out of him.

He scored just 14 goals in 42 games last season but has improved in recent months, and until last week was the top scorer in Europe's big five leagues in 2024 with nine goals.