Chelsea look to sell SEVEN stars as £160m of transfers set for exit

Suraj Radia

• 12 Dec 2023 18:42 GMT
• 3 min read

Chelsea will look to make wholesale changes to their squad and transfer policy in 2024, with a host of players already facing an exit and focus being made on signing a striker.

The Blues have spent more than £1 billion in the three transfer windows since Todd Boehly’s takeover last year but their staggering outlay has delivered underwhelming results on the pitch, with Mauricio Pochettino’s side sitting 12th in the Premier League.

There has been mounting pressure on Pochettino in recent weeks but the Chelsea boss is thought to retain the faith of the board, having admitted that more signings needed to be made in January.

Chelsea’s spending has left the club battling with financial fair play regulations and TEAMtalk have claimed that up to seven players could be sold as they have been deemed ‘dispensable’ and ‘not at the required standard’.

With academy graduates counting as pure profit for the books, Trevoh Chalobah, Armando Broja and Ian Maatsen are said to be available for transfer in January to help ease the constraints against Chelsea.

However, a number of Chelsea’s transfer flops from last season are also on the chopping block such as Noni Madueke and Malo Gusto also quoted as expendable, while the club also wish to sell £40m summer signing Axel Disasi, meaning more than £160 million worth of players is now available for transfer for the Blues.

Two names added to Chelsea’s striker shortlist

Chelsea’s priority is also said to be a striker, with Victor Osimhen top of the club’s list, although the Napoli star would likely cost in excess of £100m.

Ivan Toney is also a player who has been long-admired by Chelsea as well as 18-year-old forward Antonio Nusa, who has broken into the Club Brugge team.

However, The Standard have stated that two more names have been added to Chelsea’s shortlist in recent weeks ahead of the January window, with FC Copenhagen sensation Roony Bardghji and Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres now being considered.

Bardghji made headlines after scoring against Manchester United the Champions League last month, while Gyokeres has scored 15 goals in 18 games in all competitions for Sporting since joining from Coventry in the summer for £20m.

A striker is unlikely to be affordable until a player is sold and Conor Gallagher is also being considered to leave as he enters the last 18 months of his contract, meaning Chelsea could be set for another hectic transfer window under Boehly.