Chelsea 'make contact' to hijack Man Utd transfer for top target

Tom Weber

• Updated: 4 Jun 2024 09:39 CDT
• 3 min read

Chelsea have made contact with Michael Olise regarding a summer transfer, according to a report.

The Crystal Palace winger is one of the Premier League's most desirable players this summer. One of the most devastating attackers in the division when fit, the Frenchman is being courted by several clubs.

Olise is considered Man Utd's top target for the upcoming window, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe personally greenlighting the Red Devils' pursuit of the 22-year-old.

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Though Palace are hopeful of keeping Olise, with Oliver Glasner recently stating that he hopes their spectacular end to the season showed him how ambitious the Selhurst Park outfit can be, it will be quite difficult indeed for the Eagles to manage to retain his services for two consecutive years.

Last summer, Chelsea were thought to have triggered the winger's release clause only to eventually pull out of the deal after being accused of having tapped up the player by Palace, resulting in him signing a new deal. Now, Chelsea are in for him again.

Chelsea make contact

As part of the aforementioned new contract, Olise is believed to have a release clause worth a whopping €70 million, so he won't come cheap. Despite this, Footmercato reports that the Blues have established contact with the Frenchman's camp ahead of a potential summer move.

It is not clear what the stance of new boss Enzo Maresca is on Olise, but the fact that he has told Chelsea that they can sell Omari Hutchinson in the next few weeks, suggests that he is looking to add a new winger after analysing the Blues' squad.

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Indeed, in recent weeks, it was reported several times that the race to sign the Palace star would essentially come down to Chelsea and Man Utd despite tentative links to Arsenal as well. Now, it seems that Chelsea have begun putting things into place to launch another attempt for his signature.