Chelsea in talks to sign Prem star despite manager not being ‘biggest fan’ as Poch sanctions two exits | OneFootball

Jarrad Branthwaite and Jhon Duran.

According to reports, Chelsea are ‘in dialogue’ with Aston Villa over a move for striker Jhon Duran as a move for Karim Benzema has been ruled out.

Chelsea‘s January transfer plans have been impacted by their ongoing Financial Fair Play issues but they do need to sign a new striker.

A deal in the summer for Napoli’s Victor Osimhen could be on the cards as it’s been confirmed that he will leave the Serie A giants and Chelsea are reportedly the striker’s ‘chosen club’.

In the meantime, Chelsea could sign Duran from Premier League rivals Aston Villa. The Villans paid an initial fee of around £15m to sign the 20-year-old from MLS outfit Chicago Fire during the 2023 January transfer window.

Duran has been unable to substantially impact Villa over the past year as he has only scored two goals in his 26 Premier League appearances.

and The Athletic’s David Ornstein is now reporting that Unai Emery is ‘not his biggest fan’ but the Blues ‘like him’.

The London outfit reportedly believes the inexperienced striker has ‘vast potential’ and ‘they have held dialogue about possibly doing a deal’ but an agreement is dependent on ‘the price reducing to a level they deem fair’.

It is also noted that Duran’s current injury ‘complicates’ the deal but ‘does not completely rule out a switch’ as the forward is ‘mainly viewed as a talent for the future’.

Chelsea have also been linked with Benzema this month amid claims that he is looking for an escape route from the Saudi Pro League. He will not be heading to Stamford Bridge as Ornstein has confirmed that they ‘plan to avoid costly moves for older players and prioritise emerging elite talent like Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto’.

Ornstein has also revealed that Armando Broja and Trevoh Chalobah are free to leave Chelsea this month, while a move for Conor Gallagher is ‘plausible’. He explained.

Chelsea Conor Gallagher