Romano: Chelsea rejected ‘approaches’ for £24.3m striker with Boehly, Pochettino ‘on the same page’ | OneFootball

Armando Broja has attracted interest from West Ham and AC Milan.

Chelsea rejected ‘verbal approaches’ from two clubs for Armando Broja over the summer, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

Broja returned to the Blues’ matchday squad on Sunday after nine months out injured.

The Albanian international ruptured his cruciate ligament during a friendly against Aston Villa last December and his return to the pitch came against the same team.

He got the last 11 minutes against the Villans as Mauricio Pochettino’s side continued their poor start to the season with a 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge.

The return of Broja will be viewed as a huge boost, however, especially with the Blues struggling to put the ball into the back of the net with Nicolas Jackson leading the line.

Pochettino appears to be a big fan of the 22-year-old striker as it has been revealed that he turned down the chance to sell him in the summer transfer window.

According to Romano, West Ham and AC Milan both wanted to sign Broja but the Argentine manager and the Chelsea hierarchy were in agreement that the player is in their long-term plans.

Valued at €28million (£24.3million) by Transfermarkt, Broja signed a six-year contract extension in September 2022.

Romano wrote for CaughtOffside: ‘We saw Armando Broja return to the squad after injury and he could have an important role to play this season.

‘There were verbal approaches from AC Milan, West Ham and one more club this summer for Broja. But Chelsea decided not to entertain those proposals as they wanted to trust Armando, with the board and Pochettino on the same page.’

Chelsea face Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday and we could see Broja make his return to the starting XI.

Pochettino will surely make wholesale changes with plenty of opportunities to get into a struggling team.

Despite their awful start to the season, midfielder Conor Gallagher has urged everyone to remain positive.

“It’s really disappointing to lose the game,” Gallagher told the club’s official website following the home defeat to Villa.

“We came into this one trying to win the game and given that we are struggling for points, we were desperate to win today.

“Obviously the red card (to Malo Gusto) doesn’t help but we can’t make any excuses. We’re just really disappointed and we’re determined to put it right for the next game.”