Maresca ‘ABSOLUTELY LOVES’ €80m Chelsea target

Robin Bairner

8 Jul 2024 07:30 BST
3 min read

Chelsea are not giving up on a transfer for Samu Omorodion of Atletico Madrid, with new manager Enzo Maresca in love with the player.

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The Blues made a big push for Omorodion towards the end of June and they are ready to revisit a deal for the 20-year-old, despite a transfer looking difficult to broker because of the Spanish club’s asking price.

Chelsea have fallen short of Atleti’s asking price for the striker, who spent last season on loan at Alaves.

Current ETV

Samu Omorodion

F (CRL)

Alaves

Samu Omorodion

F (CRL)

Alaves

ETV Range

€8.8M - €14.6M

The Blues’ latest offer came in around the €50m mark, yet the Spaniards are holding out for something in the region of €80m, with previous claims indicating that the Wanda Metropolitano outfit believes he can one day be worth €100m.

As such, there is a huge gap to be bridged, particularly when it is considered that Omorodion has played only 36 games at the top level with an impressive return of nine goals in his first campaign.

Chelsea willing to persist

Writing for the Daily Briefing, Matteo Moretto claims: “The only thing I can say regarding Chelsea target Samu Omorodion is to repeat what I reported a couple of weeks ago: so far, Atletico have said no to Chelsea’s offers. Atleti are clearly keen to hold onto him, and it helps that Omorodion himself dreams of succeeding at Atleti before considering a move in successive summers.

“That said, we have to tell it like it is – Chelsea are definitely still keeping a close eye on his situation, as he is a player that the board at Chelsea and their new manager Enzo Maresca absolutely love. We shall have to wait and see if anything new comes of it.”

Chelsea have already added Barcelona striker Marc Guiu to their ranks this summer for €6m but see him as a player for the future and are seeking an additional reinforcement to support Nicolas Jackson at the point of their attack, with Omorodion clearly high among their targets.