Chelsea ready to ABANDON transfer plan after Maresca admission

Cameron Smith

11 Apr 2025 11:30 BST
4 min read

Enzo Maresca, Todd Boehly, Chelsea — © IMAGO

Chelsea could be set to abandon their pursuit of a new right-back following Josh Acheampong’s performance against Legia Warsaw on Thursday night.

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The Cobham academy graduate was handed a rare start by Enzo Maresca in the first-leg of Chelsea’s Europa Conference League quarter-final and he repaid his manager’s faith with an outstanding performance in Poland.

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STATS

Josh Acheampong

D (CR)

Chelsea

Josh Acheampong

D (CR)

Chelsea

4

Games
0

Goals
0

Assists

Acheampong caught the eye at right-back, his usual position, before looking at ease in an unnatural midfield role for the final 30 minutes.

The England U19 international, who is also capable of playing at centre-back, was handed back-to-back Premier League starts in January, but he has only made three appearances since Trevoh Chalobah was recalled from his loan spell at Crystal Palace, and his season looked set to fizzle out as a result.

However, Acheampong more than justified his selection versus Legia Warsaw and proved that Chelsea have no need to dip into the right-back market this summer.

The Blues have been linked with both Jules Kounde and Denzel Dumfries in recent weeks, following Reece James’ move into a midfield position, but Acheampong’s presence is likely to dissuade Maresca from pursuing a new right-back this summer.

The 18-year-old attracted interest from Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain before signing a new contract at Chelsea in December, and the west London giants must prioritise his development next campaign.

What has Enzo Maresca said about Josh Acheampong?

Following Acheampong’s performance against Legia Warsaw, Maresca was eager to heap praise on the England youngster.

“He [Acheampong] was the one I fell in love with tonight,” Maresca told reporters. “He showed he can be a very good player for this club.

“He showed he can move positions, as a full-back or midfielder. He was mature and composed. The best thing from Josh is he is so open to learning.”

With Maresca evidently a huge admirer of Acheampong, Chelsea are now highly unlikely to sign a new right-back during the 2025 summer transfer window, with the Englishman expected to play a more prominent role next year.